Candidate filing deadline arrives; three D186 subdistricts have contested races

The final candidate lineups for the 2023 consolidated election became clearer on the last day of filing Monday.

Candidates for school and park district boards, among other races, had until 5 p.m. to file for the offices. The election is on April 4.

Three races for District 186 school board will be contested and a candidate stepped up to run for the Subdistrict 7 seat.

Candidates also filed for seats on the Springfield Metropolitan Exposition and Auditorium Authority (SMEAA) board, the Springfield Park District board and the Lincoln Land Community College board.

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Candidates for Springfield mayor, treasurer, clerk, and ward seats filed on Nov. 28, as did other candidates for area municipal seats.

According to the Sangamon County clerk's website, six of the District 186 incumbents have filed for reelection.

Jeff Tucka, who was appointed Nov. 15 to fill out the term of the late Mike Zimmers, will face former District 186 principal Ken Gilmore and Donna Hopwood in Subdistrict 4, which covers the city's southwest side.

Sarah Blissett, who is trying to keep her seat in Subdistrict 3, will be matched against two opponents.

Blissett was appointed to the board when president Scott McFarland took a job in Missouri in early 2021. Spurgeon Johnson and Jessica Bandy both filed Monday to round out the race. The subdistrict covers the northeast part of the city.

Incumbent Micah Miller will now face an opponent in Subdistrict 2. Miller, the board's vice president, is being challenged by Emerson Weed. That term is for two years. The subdistrict covers a wide swath of a north part of the city.

In Subdistrict 7, Debra Merriman Iams filed to run but incumbent Bill Ringer did not.

Ringer has served on the board since early 2018 when he was selected to replace Chuck Flamini, who had resigned. Ringer won a full term in 2019.

"It's time for me to be off and bring some new insight from another qualified candidate hopefully," Ringer said following Monday's school board meeting.

Ringer said he did not know Iams.

Having three contested seats means "people are interested in District 186 and they're interested in serving on the school board," said Superintendent Jennifer Gill Monday.

Anthony "Tony" Mares, the president who represents Subdistrict 1; Buffy Lael-Wolf of Subdistrict 5 and Erica Austin of Subdistrict 6 all filed.

All seven seats are up because of the decennial Census. Winning candidates in subdistricts 1, 2 and 6 will serve two-year terms while the remainder will serve four-year terms.

All three SMEAA races up for election this go-round will be contested, thanks to some late filings.

SMEAA governs the Bank of Springfield (BoS) Center.

In District 3, incumbent Jason Loftus will be pitted against Steven Simpson-Black.

In District 4, six candidates have lined up for three spots, including two incumbents newly drawn into the district.

Anthony "Tony" Smarjesse had represented District 3 while Steve Ettinger was in District 1.

Bill Taft was an early filer, but the trio got company Monday when Deborah Grant, Derek Griffin and Michael Steven Paoni all jumped into the race.

Incumbents Brad Mills, the SMEAA secretary, and Patricia "Patty" Meyer have filed in District 5. Also running as Marissa Lesko, Duane Malany, Garret Selinger and Gail Simpson. The six will try for three spots.

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All terms are four years.

For the LLCC board, two races are contested.

In District 1, incumbent Samantha Raymond will face Sean Dickerson. Both are from Springfield.

Raymond is the board's secretary. In 2019, Dickerson lost to Miller in the District 186 Subdistrict 2 race.

In District 3, vice chair and incumbent Gordon Gates will square off with Melissa Hahn Mosely.

Also filing for trustee positions were chair Ken Elmore of Waggoner (District 7); Vicki Davis of Riverton (District 2); Wayne Rosenthal of Morrisonville (District 4), Jeff Fulgenzi of Sherman (District 5) and Mark Holaway of Jacksonville (District 6). All filed for four-year terms.

For Springfield Park District, incumbent president Leslie Sgro filed along with Kris Theilen, who is seeking a four-year term, and Mary Beth Rodgers, who is seeking a two-year term.

On Monday, Charles Hoogland II, Winfred Earl Wilfong and Mary Aiello filed for four-year terms. They will compete with Theilen for three seats.

C.J. Metcalf, who has served two four-year terms, recently announced he would not seek a third term. Another trustee, Lisa Badger, is running for city treasurer against two other candidates.

There are contested school board races in Pawnee where five candidates are vying for three spots and Riverton where four candidates jostle for three spots.

The field in Pawnee includes incumbent and vice president Steve Kern; Travis Guess; Caitlin Rydinsky, Amy Boblitt and Joshua Ward. The terms are for four years.

In Riverton, Dirk McCormick is seeking a four-year term on the school board after being appointed to a two-year term in 2021. David Leach, Joseph Betz and Misty Anderson are vying with McCormick for three open seats, while Deana Schenk and Shannon Churchill seek unexpired two-year terms.

In Auburn, school board members Bradley Smith and vice president Carl Kessler are running for election along with Jeff Miller. There are three spots open.

Steven Bryant will try for another four-year term on the Ball-Chatham school board. Newcomer Ryan Murphy is the other candidate who has filed for one of the three openings.

Bill Marr and Stephanie Neuman are vying for reelection to the New Berlin school board. Also in the race are Jeremy Bishoff and Josh Beard. Four seats are up.

Christopher Gordon has filed for an unexpired two-year term.

At Pleasant Plains, Kyle Nestler and Anna Hickey are seeking reelection to the school board for four-year terms. Keith Donovan and Jenny Metzroth are after four-year terms with four spots up.

Gregg Humphrey has filed for an unexpired two-year term in Pleasant Plains.

In Rochester, there are four four-year terms up. Amy Reynolds and Christie Magoulias look to retain their seats, while Robert Chiles is a third candidate.

Three incumbents in Tri-City have filed for four-year terms. They are Mike Brooks, William Lee III and John Martincic. Stephanie Forgas is also running.

President Matt Seman, Lorri Bandy and Josh Frye are running for reelection for Williamsville-Sherman's school board. All three are seeking four-year terms.

The April election also will include races for regional board of school trustees; several municipal/township library districts; several fire protection districts; school boards without districts and the Curran-Gardner Townships Public Water District.

Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788, sspearie@sj-r.com, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Deadline arrives for 2023 consolidated election candidate filings