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Dist. 2 County Board race off to early start
By: James Pluta – staff writer
Elmhurst Press
Friday, July 29, 2005
A nine-year Elmhurst resident who has been active in York Township Republican politics for the past few years is exploring a spring primary bid for a four-year seat on the DuPage County Board.
Jeff Redick, 36, is a partner with the Oak Brook-based civil defense law firm of Power & Cronin and has been a GOP township committeeman for the past eight years. He said if all goes well he plans to make a formal announcement for the District 2 seat prior to the annual Republican Day golf outing at St. Andrews set for Thursday, Aug. 25.
The seat, held by Irene Stone of Lombard since 1986, is considered to be somewhat vulnerable in part because of the large amount of interest in it from area politicians. Redick has formed his campaign committee, Friend of Jeff Redick, which already boasts $21,000 in donations, about a third of what he anticipates he will need.
“I live and work in District 2, where I run a business and raise a family,” he said July 27. “District 2 is the center of my life, and the people of this district require and deserve strong representation and leadership on the County Board.”
District 2 serves all or parts of Downers Grove, Oak Brook, Elmhurst, Oakbrook Terrace, Villa Park, Lombard, Lisle, Woodridge and Clarendon Hills.
Among those Redick counts among his supporters are GOP township chairmen Paul Hinds from York, Chuck Clarke of Lisle and Jeff Fawell from Milton, as well as state Rep. Robert Biggins, R-41st District, and state Sen. Dan Cronin, R-21st, both from Elmhurst. Supporters also include several newly elected officials from York Township including Supervisor John Valle, Assessor Deanna Wilkins and Trustee M. Moon Khan.
Redick worked on District 1 County Board member Paul Fichtner’s campaigns, chaired District 2 County Board member Brian Sheahan’s 2002 campaign and was the York Township coordinator for Cronin’s last campaign against former state Sen. Tom Walsh. He also is treasurer of the York Township GOP, was a caucus moderator and in 2004 was named Committeeman of the Year.
“I think he would be a tremendous candidate and a tremendous board member,” said Sheahan, who also plans to seek re-election next year and endorse Redick. “He’s young, very bright, has a great background for public policy and has certainly paid his dues at the local level. He is not only well known in the district but throughout the county.”
Married with two children, ages 6 and 3, Redick is a coach with the Elmhurst Baseball League, a member of the Yorkfield Presbyterian Church in Elmhurst and for the past four and half years has been an appointed member of the York Township Senior Advisory Committee. This group recommends programming and services for the aged.
While he said he has nothing to say about any other candidate until someone else gets in the race, he noted the biggest issue facing DuPage is its budget woes.
“We have a situation to solve where the County Board had the state Legislature put together this deal for short-term Water Commission money, and July of ’07 is when our last check comes,” he said. “The question then becomes what are they going to do to solve our budget woes … because going back is not a viable option or an appropriate option.”
Stone has not yet made her intentions known for the Tuesday, March 21, 2006, primary; she was not available for comment. Official filing deadlines for the seat are not until early December.
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