My Year of Leslie Knope-Ness Post-Election Analysis

In This Issue: Year of Knope-ness .... 1 Great Night................... 4 My Year of Leslie Knope-ness Election Analysis ......... 1 The Message .............. 5 (And if you don’t get the reference in the title, why aren’t you watching Parks and ComCon Difference .... 2 Jewish Vote ................ 5 Recreation? You need some Ron Effing Swanson in your life!) by Pat Ferruzza Voter Protection Team .. 3 You’re Invited .............. 6 For information or to volunteer: So a little more than a year ago I undertook the walking, in sweltering heat Email us at [email protected] task of running for the Lake County Board. I had and chilly rain. I found out Or visit our website at www.tenthdems.org Or call us at 847.266.VOTE (8683) volunteered for local and national campaigns, that there are a lot of hills in Or write to Hon. Lauren Beth Gash, Chair, but I had never run for elective office before. I’d my district, and it seemed like Tenth Dems, P.O. Box 523, Deerfield, IL 60015 be going against a 16-year incumbent, running there were many more streets as a Democrat in a majority GOP district. And running uphill than down, if Editorial Consultant: Barbara Altman I had no money, and no way to self-finance a that’s physically possible. Editors: Susan Friedman, Allan Sperling campaign. Editorial Staff: Jack Altschuler, Joan I met a lot of people. Attenberg, Eleonora di Liscia, Pat How did it turn out? *SPOILER ALERT* I did Most were good-hearted Ferruzza, Hon. Lauren Beth Gash, Richard Goldwasser, John Hmurovic, Adrienne not win. Not really even close. The polls closed and welcoming. They Kirshbaum, Steve Sheffey, Ilya Sheyman at 7:00, and my precincts were tabulated and said that I was the first reported by 8:30, not in my favor. candidate of any kind Design: Terry Wrem Jones to come knocking Beyond the numbers, I think I did pretty well. I Distribution: Ravi Ganapathy, Glenn Stier on their door and ran a campaign that I was proud of; and I did it ask what was on The opinions expressed are those of the the way local races need to be run, by going out writers, and not necessarily endorsed by their minds. There Tenth Dems and knocking on doors. It was a lot of solitary continued on page 4 www.tenthdems.org DECEMBERTenth 2012 Illinois Tenth Congressional District DemocratsNews Newsletter Volume 9, Edition 12 Post-Election Analysis: Reasons to Be Thankful by John Hmurovic the 10th District. But maybe we owe at least a tip In November, we give thanks. As Tenth of the hat to Mike Madigan for his leadership in Congressional District Democrats we are redrawing the congressional and legislative maps thankful for the reelection of President after the 2010 census. Obama, for Brad Schneider becoming our first Democratic congressman in Not convinced? Look at the numbers. decades (and, for some areas of the The Congressional Race 10th, in more than a century), for a record number of Democratic state legislators Before the election, it was said the new 10th who will represent us in Springfield, and, District, the one drawn after the 2010 campaign, begrudgingly for many, we maybe, possibly, was two to four percent more Democratic. With perhaps, ought to, kind of, should be thankful Congressman-elect Schneider receiving 50.5 percent of for Democratic State Party Chair Mike Madigan and the vote, that added edge mattered. other Illinois Democratic Party leaders. Schneider received 38.4 percent in Libertyville Township and What? The guy who Republicans, the Chicago Tribune and many lost in the townships of Shields (41.4 percent), West Deerfield Democrats love to hate? That Mike Madigan? (47.5 percent), Northfield (47.7 percent), Vernon (47.9 percent), and Wheeling (49.2 percent), all of which were a part of the If you count yourself among those who are not fond of the old 10th. The two most reliably Democratic parts of the old Illinois House Speaker and head of the Illinois Democratic Party, 10th District did come through for Schneider. He won big pause and give him at least one moment of appreciation. Yes, in Waukegan (72.5 percent) and Moraine Townships (60.9 kudos to Brad Schneider for defeating a tough, well-funded percent). But that wasn’t enough. Parts of the new 10th added in opponent, and kudos to a strong team of state legislative candidates for winning almost every contested seat within continued on page 2 4 a five-seat majority on the Lake County Board, but continued from page 1 Analysis with impressive victories by Democrats, including during reapportionment provided newcomers Steve Mandel and Sandra Hart, the the extra boost. He won big in Republican majority remains at five seats, despite the Zion (63.0 percent) and Maine best efforts of Republican map-drawing. Townships (59.5). Districtwide, Lake County Recorder Mary Ellen Vanderventer led all Schneider won by nearly 2,700 Democrats on the ballot. In just the 10th District portion votes; he carried Zion and Maine of Lake County she received 62.1 percent of the vote. townships by nearly 4300 votes. No one ran better than that. Without the new townships, the outcome may have been different. Thomas Rudd held onto the coroner’s seat for the Democrats, with 54.3 percent of the vote in 10th District But the new district boundaries precincts helping him secure the win. don’t tell the whole story. In townships where we can make a State’s Attorney candidate Chris Kennedy probably direct comparison, Schneider ran wishes all of Lake County followed the 10th District’s slightly better than Democratic lead. He received 53.0 percent of the vote in 10th congressional nominee Dan District precincts, which was stronger than Brad Seals in the presidential year of Schneider’s 50.4 percent in precincts where they 2008 when Seals lost with 47.4 percent of the vote. Seals ran were on the same ballot. But the 12,000 vote margin better than Schneider in Shields (43.9 to 41.4 percent), and of victory for Kennedy in the 10th got wiped out by a 17,000 vote the two received the same vote percentage in Vernon. But loss in Lake County precincts in the 6th and 14th Congressional Schneider did better in Waukegan (72.5 percent for Schneider Districts. and 71.8 percent for Seals), West Deerfield (47.5 percent versus continued on page 3 44.1 percent) and Moraine (60.9 percent versus 55.6 percent). Without that improvement by Schneider, even the new maps would not have made a difference in the final outcome. Community Connection Makes State Legislative Races a Difference in the Northern Part The state legislative districts were also redrawn after the 2010 of the 10th District election, and after this year’s election the northeast corner of by Ilya Sheyman Illinois will be represented by more Democratic legislators than Since launching just two short years ago, the Tenth Dems it has probably ever had. Not only did incumbents Dan Kotowski Community Connection in downtown Waukegan has and Terry Link win, but Daniel Biss and Julie Morrison held onto become a genuine resource in the northern part of the district. seats of retiring Democrats. Melinda Bush won a Republican Volunteers have hosted the first two annual Poetry and Prose seat, and Ira Silverstein and John Mulroe were unopposed. Slam competitions for high school students in the Waukegan, That adds up to seven Democratic state senators who will Zion, Gurnee, and North Chicago area. A group of leaders represent 10th District residents, while Republicans held on to hosts a bi-weekly “To Infinity and Beyond” interview just two seats. skills training workshop together with community allies at Waukegan Township and the Lake County Coalition to It’s the same story in the House. Robyn Gabel, Elaine Nekritz, Reduce Recidivism. And the office has been a bustling hub of Rita Mayfield, and Carol Sente won reelection. State activity—for OFA (Obama for America) and other campaign Representative John D’Amico was unopposed. Those five volunteers, as a kick-off location for voter registration drives, Democrats are joined by newly elected state representatives as a prominent source of visibility for Democrats during Laura Fine, Marty Moylan, Scott Drury, and Sam Yingling. Waukegan’s ArtWauk, and so much more! Democrats won eight of nine contested races for state Our work at the Community Connection is just beginning, th representative within 10 District precincts. It was an but there’s no denying that Tenth Dems has put its values impressive, unprecedented victory. Again, the candidates and into action and demonstrated to the community that their campaigns deserve most of the credit, but the new district Democrats are guided by the belief that politics should be maps certainly helped. about more than just elections—it should be about people working together to build stronger communities. Lake County Races There’s no substitute for that kind of on-the-ground Maps were also an issue in Lake County Board races. This engagement in non-election years, and it’s certainly one of time, it was the Republican-controlled board that redrew the reasons voters in the northern part of the district were so the boundaries to benefit the majority’s party. But election fired up to mark their ballots for the Democratic ticket on results show that map-drawing isn’t enough. You need good Election Day. candidates to win. Going into this election Republicans held 2 Tenth Dems Voter Protection Team on the Scene by Eleonora di Liscia Lake County had gotten the word.

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