With all precincts reporting, unofficial McHenry County election results show that Amy Blazier and Rosemary Kurtz will likely fill two out of the three open seats on the Crystal Lake District 155 School Board.
Blazier and Kurtz hold approximately 24 and 20 percent of the vote, respectively.
As for whom will win the third open seat, candidates Adam Guss and Brian Alan Pelz remain neck-and-neck, with about 200 votes separating them. Guss currently holds almost 14 percent of the vote while Pelz comes close to 13 percent.
District 155 School Board’s election comes after a debate surrounding a proposed bleacher project at Crystal Lake South High School.
About half of the school districts in McHenry County are contested, with District 155 School Board’s election being one of the most heated races.
Karen K. Whitman is the only incumbent out of three running, which is a stark contrast to the past two elections in which the district’s incumbents ran unopposed.
Nine candidates are vying for three four-year terms in the school board. The Northwest Herald attributes the high number of candidates to District 155’s decision to expand the bleachers at Crystal Lake South High School with a price tag of $1.18 million, not including the money spent on litigation from a lawsuit filed by angry neighbors.
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The case is now before the Illinois Supreme Court at the district’s request. The lower and appellate court sided with the plaintiffs who “argue the bleachers violate the city zoning code, including being too tall and too close to neighboring properties,” according to the Northwest Herald.
Other candidates include Daniel Marks, Brennan Markee, Brett Siegmeier and Titus Mielke.
See complete election results in McHenry County below.
