Turn to our pages for thoughtful election coverage

Series: Decision 2021 | Story 1

Coming on the heels of presidential election that few will soon forget, we want to remind Hinsdale residents that will be asked to head to the polls again this spring to make their selections for local seats.

On April 6, Hinsdaleans will cast their ballots in contested races for the Community Consolidated District 181 Board, the Hinsdale High School District 86 Board and the Hinsdale Public Library Board.

And while election day might seem far off, it will be here in just over nine weeks. To usher in campaign season, we’re launching our coverage today with our Page 5 story on the top issues facing each public body, information on voter registration and Pam Lannom’s column on submitting election-related letters to the editor. Be sure to give the last one a read because we certainly appreciate hearing from our readers, and we know other readers do, too.

The Feb. 4 issue will look at the job of a board member and furnish candidate bio charts for a reader-friendly breakdown of each person seeking office in the District 181 and library races. The Feb. 11 issue will provide the same information for those vying for a spot on the District 86 board.

Charts outlining the candidates’ positions will run for four weeks after that, with our endorsements appearing in the March 18 issue.

To lay the foundation for readers, here’s a list of those running in contested races on April 6:

In District 181, incumbent Margie Kleber and Christine Dannhausen-Brun are seeking the board’s two-year term seat.

The Hinsdale Public Library has five candidates vying for four seats, with incumbents Mary Bock, Amy Glynn and Kristen McDaniel joined on the ballot by Richard Munson and Ryan Trombly

With 10 candidates, District 86 has the most crowded field, with incumbents Kevin Camden and Marty Turek and current board appointee TJ Edwards being challenged by Justin Baron, Peggy James, Debbie Levinthal, Mark Pinnow, Karen Shannon, Terri Walker and Jeff Waters seeking one of four seats on the board.

The Hinsdale Village Board has the only uncontested races locally. Tom Cauley is unchallenged for a fourth term as village president, and incumbent trustees Neale Byrnes and Matt Posthuma are being joined by newcomer Michelle Fisher to claim the three open seats on the board.

The Hinsdalean is planning to hold a virtual candidate’s night to provide residents with the opportunity to hear from the candidates. Voters will have the opportunity to submit questions in advance for the candidates to answer. Details on the candidates’ night event will be provided in an upcoming issue.

The objective behind all of our election season coverage is to both educate and engage the local electorate. After all, the choices are yours.

Every election story will be posted on our website, https://www.thehinsdalean.com, from the day it runs until the election. Comments or questions? Please send them to [email protected].