KANE COUNTY 2019-2020 GOVERNMENT GUIDE Issued by: John Andrew Cunningham Kane County Clerk On August 13, 2018, the County Clerk’s Office opened a second full-service office in downtown Aurora to serve the residents of Kane County. The Aurora office provides the same services that are offered in the main Geneva office. Please visit the new Aurora office 5 E. Downer Place, Suite F Aurora, IL 60505 2 COUNTY OF KANE Published July 2019 This booklet briefly describes the various departments within Kane County government, outlines the services provided, and lists the names of the administrators of those departments. It also includes a comprehensive listing of the national and state officials who represent the citizens of Kane County, as well as the elected and appointed officials of the units of local government. Due to multiple elections in Illinois each year that affect leaders in state and local government, it is inevitable that some names of elected officials will be outdated within a few months of publication. However, the descriptive information should remain constant. This booklet is intended to enable citizens to become more familiar with Kane County government, thus encouraging each person to take an active part in its decision making process. Further information can be located on the Kane County website, www.countyofkane.org, and updates to this guide will be available at the County Clerk’s website, kanecountyclerk.org. Please follow us on social media for news and updates! facebook.com/kanecountyclerk twitter.com/KaneCoILClerk John Andrew Cunningham Elections ............... 630/232-5990 Kane County Clerk Tax Extension ...... 630/232-5964 County Government Center Vital Records ........ 630/232-5950 719 S. Batavia Ave. Bldg. B www.kanecountyclerk.org Geneva, IL 60134 [email protected] What services are offered by the County Clerk? Vital Records Property Tax ● Do you need a copy of a Services birth, death, or marriage ● Do you need to records? pay delinquent ● Do you want to apply property taxes on for a marriage or civil your property or union license? mobile home? ● Do you need to register ● Do you want for an assumed name assistance with a certificate for your property tax business? search? Voter Registration ● Do you want to register to vote? ● Have you recently moved or married and need to update your voter registration information? ● Do you want to vote early or request a Vote by Mail ballot? Passports ● Do you need to apply for a passport? ● Do you need help renewing your passport? ● Do you need passport photos? The Kane County Clerk’s Office does all these things and so much more. Please visit www.kanecountyclerk.org for more information about your Clerk’s Office! 4 Kane County Clerk’s Votemobiles The Kane County Clerk’s Office has 2 fully equipped Votemobiles to serve the residents of Kane County. The Votemobile units are mobile precincts and serve as Early Voting locations during elections. The Votemobiles are also used for voter registration and voter education throughout the year. If you see one the Votemobiles at a parade or community event, please feel free to visit and come inside the unit. Kane County Board Chairman Chris Lauzen, CPA 630/232-5930 [email protected] Government Center, Bldg. A 719 S. Batavia Ave. Geneva, 60134 6 Table of Contents www.countyofkane.org Introduction ................................. ………………....................3 Schedule of Elections……………………….……. .................. 8 List of Kane County Clerks.................................................... 9 History of Kane County ....................................................... 10 List of Selected Federal/State/Local Services ..................... 15 Federal Elected Officials ..................................................... 18 State Elected Officials ......................................................... 21 County Elected Officials ...................................................... 27 County Appointed Officials .................................................. 57 Kane County Departments and Offices ............................... 59 Cities and Villages .............................................................. 60 Townships ........................................................................... 63 Park Districts and Library Districts ...................................... 65 School Districts ................................................................... 68 Fire Districts and Special Districts ....................................... 71 Political Party Officials ........................................................ 72 Schedule of Elections In Even-Numbered Years In Odd-Numbered Years General Primary Election: Consolidated Primary: Third Tuesday in March Last Tuesday in February Nomination of: Nomination of: Federal Officers Municipal Officers State Officers Township Officers Legislative Officers Judicial Officers Consolidated Election: County Officers *First Tuesday in April Election of: Election of: Political Party Officers Municipal Officers (Republican State Central Township Officers Committeemen, Democratic Park District Officers State Central Committeepersons Library District Officers Precinct Committeepersons, School District Officers Delegates to National Comm. College Dist. Officers Conventions) Fire Protection Dist. Officers Special District Officers General Election Regional School Officers First Tuesday after the First Monday in November Election of: Federal Officers *If the election date conflicts State Officers with Passover, the election is Legislative Officers the scheduled the first Judicial Officers Tuesday following Passover. County Officers Retention of: Judicial Officers Any unit of government may schedule a special election or referendum on any of the four regularly scheduled election days. March 17, 2020: General Primary Election November 3. 2020: General Election County Officials to be elected: Board Members, Board Chair, Auditor, Circuit Clerk, Coroner, Recorder, State’s Attorney February 23, 2021: Consolidated Primary Election April 6, 2021: Consolidated Election 8 Kane County Clerks Clerk of the County Commissioners: Years of Service 1. Mark W. Fletcher: Jun. 1836 – Aug. 1847 11 2. Josiah L. Warner: Aug. 1847 – Dec. 1849 2 County Clerks: 3. James Herrington: Jan. 1850 – Dec. 1857 7 1/2 4. John Greene: Dec. 1857 – Dec. 1861 4 5. Henry B. Pierce: Dec. 1861 – Dec. 1870 9 6. Frank P. Crandon: Dec. 1870 – Sept. 1873 2 1/2 7. John C. Sherwin: Sept. 1873 – Mar. 1879 5 1/2 8. H. A. Scott: March 1879 – Jun. 1879 1/2 9. Thomas Meredith: Jun. 1879 – Dec. 1886 7 1/2 10. A. M. Beaupre: Dec. 1886 – Dec. 1894 8 11. Charles W. Raymond: Dec. 1894 – Dec. 1898 4 12. John McKellar: Dec. 1898 – Dec. 1902 4 13. William F. Lynch: Dec. 1902 – Dec. 1914 12 14. Charles F. Lowry: Dec. 1914 – Sept. 1962 48 15. DeMae Sheffner: Sept. 1962 – Jan. 1966 3 16. William A. Vollrath: Jan. 1966 – Nov. 1974 8 1/2 17. David L. Pierce: Dec. 1974 – Apr. 1985 10 1/2 18. Roberta Harper: Apr. 1985 – Nov. 1986 1 1/2 19. Lorraine P. Sava: Dec. 1986 – Feb. 2001 14 20. Bernadine Murphy: Feb. 2001 – Nov. 2002 1 1/2 21. John A. Cunningham: Dec. 2002 – present 16 1/2 History of Kane County The development of Kane County from virgin prairie land to the fifth most populous county in the state demonstrates the evolution of modern government. The Kane County region was discovered in 1673 by the French explorers, Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet, as the explorers returned north along the Illinois River after their travels south along the Mississippi River. The explorer Robert de La Salle and his lieutenant, Tonti, later claimed the land for France. In 1717, the region was placed under the rule of Louisiana, remaining a French possession until the close of the French-Indian War. Following the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1763, the land was ceded to the British. British control of the region ended in 1778 when George Rogers Clark captured “Illinois Country” for the Americans during the Revolutionary War. Portions of Illinois were claimed by Virginia, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. All claims to the territory in present-day Kane County were ceded to the federal government by the mid-1780s. Many plans were advanced for dealing with the newly acquired federal territories. Thomas Jefferson proposed to divide what now is known as Illinois into three different states with present-day Kane County as part of the state of Assensipia. However, it was decided to give Illinois large boundaries at the advice of James Monroe, who had made several trips to the area and deemed the entire Midwest “worthless and uninhabitable.” In 1787, the Northwest Territory was established by Congress to provide the government of all lands northwest of the Ohio River. Illinois initially became a part of the Indiana Territory in 1800, and the Illinois Territory was established by an act of Congress in 1809. In 1818, Illinois was admitted as the 21st state with Kaskaskia as its capital. At the time of statehood in 1818, only Native Americans were known to be residing in the Kane County area. Resentment grew among the Native American community as the settlers took over their land and forced the indigenous people west to Iowa. In 1832, the Sauk leader and warrior, Black Hawk, gathered together members of the Sauk and Fox tribes in an effort to regain their homelands. In response to this action, United States Army troops under the command of Gen. Winfield Scott were sent from the east to Chicago, where they had been delayed by a cholera