Embattled Dolton Mayor Tiffany Henyard was decisively defeated by trustee Jason House in primary elections Tuesday night, as several other suburbs voted. NBC Chicago’s Regina Waldroup reports.
Voters in numerous Chicago-area communities headed to the polls on Tuesday night, delivering decisive results in communities like Dolton and Aurora.
The primary elections will set the stage for the consolidated elections, which will take place on Tuesday, April 1. Early voting in most jurisdictions will begin around March 17 across the area, according to the Illinois Board of Elections.
In suburban Dolton, Trustee Jason House declared victory over embattled Mayor Tiffany Henyard, leading by more than 3,300 votes with all 17 of the city’s precincts reporting on Tuesday night.
"We faced four years of intimidation, four years of failure, and tonight is a new day for the city of Dolton," House said at a victory party. "The community spoke loud and clear tonight."
House had previously been an ally of Henyard, but has since become one of her harshest critics in village government. He will now face independent candidate Casundra Hopson-Jordan in the April 1 consolidated election.
Kiana Belcher, Brittney Norwood and Ed Steave captured victories in the primary races for village trustees, while Alison Key won the primary for village clerk.
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A full recap of Cook County election results can be found on the county clerk's website.
In suburban Aurora, incumbent Mayor Richard Irvin appears to be taking a step toward a third term in office, as he will likely be one of the top two vote-getters in the race, along with challenger John Laesch.
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Between DuPage, Kane, Kendall and Will counties, Irvin held a narrow lead over Laesch, and the duo appears to be headed toward a showdown in the April 1 consolidated election.
Elsewhere in Cook County, Calumet City Mayor Thaddeus Jones appears to be headed toward a primary victory over James Patton. Berwyn Mayor Robert Lovero held a lead over two challengers in a nonpartisan primary, and Cicero Mayor Larry Dominick held a lead of just over 1,000 votes with all but two precincts reporting.
In Lake County, former Waukegan Mayor Sam Cunningham earned a victory in the Democratic Party primary in that race, leaving him in position to take on former Ald. Harold Beadling in the consolidated election.
North Chicago Mayor Leon Rockingham Jr. also earned a win in the primary over Kenneth Smith.
Lake County results can be found here.
Now all attention will shift toward the April 1 consolidated election, which will feature votes in more communities at the local level, with school boards and park districts also part of that balloting.
Several communities will also have referendums on the ballot later this spring, and NBC Chicago will provide full coverage of the election as early voting begins in coming weeks.
