Levin To Become Elmhurst's Next Mayor: Election Results

Elmhurst IL

06 April, 2021

7:00 PM

Description

ELMHURST, IL — Longtime Elmhurst Alderman Scott Levin defeated his two opponents in the race for mayor Tuesday. Levin, an attorney, prevailed with 41 percent (3,225 votes), followed by aldermen Michael Bram with 34 percent (2,645) and Mark Mulliner with 25 percent (1.964), according to unofficial election returns. All precincts have reported. "I'm thankful to win," Levin said in a phone interview Tuesday night. "I stick by the campaign slogan, which is 'Working together for Elmhurst.' All the candidates know the turmoil of the race. Everyone did a great job. There was no mudslinging. I'm looking forward to working with everyone." Levin takes office May 3. Mulliner will remain on the council, but Bram's term as alderman is expiring. He has served for two decades. The final weeks of Elmhurst's mayoral campaign have involved the debate over expanding fire department services and a $5,000 contribution to one of the candidates. All three candidates are aldermen with a decade or more of experience. The men were vying to succeed Steve Morley, who has been mayor for the last eight years and ran unopposed in the last election. Meanwhile, four city wards saw competitive races. According to unofficial results: In Ward 1, incumbent Jennifer Veremis, who was appointed last year, prevailed with 50 percent of the vote to Susan Smentek's 37 percent and Kevin Flanagan's 13 percent. In Ward 2, Jacob Hill, who was appointed to the seat in December, prevailed with 67 percent of the vote to Tristan Dacre's 32 percent.For the Ward 3 seat, which has been held by Alderman Bram, Chris Jensen won with 43 percent of the vote, followed by Nektarios with 38 percent and Alan Quarrie with 19 percent. For the Ward 6 seat, which is being vacated by Alderman Jim Kennedy, Emily Bastedo won with 46 percent of the vote, followed by Yeena Yoo with 38 percent, Peter Dabertin with 8 percent and Peter Ahern with 7 percent. Both Bastedo and Yoo advertised heavily. Bastedo touted her endorsement from outgoing Mayor Steve Morley. In the mayoral contest, all three candidates were able to tout their experience in city government. In December 2012, Levin, a lawyer, was appointed mayor for a few months after then-Mayor Pete DiCianni left to join the DuPage County Board. The entire council, including Bram and Mulliner, voted for Levin's selection. In 2013, Mulliner, a retired official from the Elmhurst school district, ran for mayor, drawing about 30 percent of the vote against two other candidates. Morley prevailed with 43 percent. Bram, an engineer, has represented Elmhurst's northeast side for two decades. He is not shy about being the lone dissenting vote on the 14-member City Council — and he often is. One of Bram's key issues has dominated the mayoral race in recent weeks. He proposed the addition of advanced life support on city fire trucks. Mulliner and Levin joined Morley and other aldermen in opposing such a move, saying it would cost millions of dollars in pensions and other benefits over the long run. They said that's because such a service would become a mandated issue of bargaining with the firefighters union. Bram disagreed. He contended firefighters, who already show up to emergency medical calls, should be able to provide such life support if they arrive before the city's private ambulance service. The cost for getting the equipment is estimated at $80,000. The union backs the idea and promises it would not demand that advanced life support become an issue for bargaining. In response to the debate, Mayor Morley has called arguments in favor of advanced life support on fire rigs "disingenuous" and "ludicrous." "I think for the city of Elmhurst to add millions of dollars to the budget on a yearly basis is not something that is prudent at this time," he said at a recent meeting. The proposal also has the support of Shelly LeGere, mother of Annie LeGere, whose 13-year-old daughter died six years ago of a severe allergic reaction. For years, the Annie LeGere Foundation has offered to pay for advanced life support equipment on city fire rigs. After a foundation board member spoke at a public meeting last month for advanced life support, Ward 1 Alderwoman Marti Deuter emailed the member, accusing her of exploiting the tragedy. Deuter later apologized. During the controversy over Deuter's email, Shelly LeGere told Patch that the city's response to the 2015 emergency was plagued with problems. A police officer, she said, asked her to drive the ambulance. Another issue that attracted notice in the campaign was a $5,000 donation to Mulliner from a neighborhood group that opposes new parking lots at Roberto's Ristorante and Pizzeria. The group, Elmhurst Neighbors United, criticized Levin's response to the issue. He is one of the neighborhood's two aldermen. Mulliner sits on the City Council committee that would review the proposal before the full council votes on it. Given Mulliner's committee role, Levin said the contribution had an "appearance of impropriety." After Patch reported on the donation, Mulliner returned it, saying he did not want Neighbors United to find itself in the middle of a controversy. Days earlier, Mulliner's campaign called the group's endorsement and contribution "a pleasant surprise." Neither Mulliner nor Levin stated a public position on the parking lots. Bram told Patch he opposed the restaurant's proposal as it stands now. The mayoral candidates touted their endorsements in recent weeks. Four of the current aldermen — Deuter, Bob Dunn, Tina Park and Dannee Polomsky — announced their support for Levin. Alderman Mike Brennan backed his fellow Ward 7 alderman, Mulliner. Bram received no endorsements from current council members, but former aldermen supported him. So did Shelly LeGere, the mother of the 13-year-old who died. Despite the pandemic, City Hall finances appear to be in relatively good shape. After the crisis began, the city instituted a hiring freeze and stopped road paving projects for a year. But in December, Alderwoman Noel Talluto, the City Council's finance committee chairwoman, warned the city budget was unacceptable. She said it would put the city on a path toward higher taxes and fees. At the time, she and others called for investigating six ideas for cost savings to avoid higher taxes. She later voted for the budget, despite the criticism. "I look forward to new ideas that could change the bottom line of the budget that we are considering tonight and together positioning Elmhurst on even stronger financial footing for the future," Talluto told the council. All three mayoral candidates voted for the budget. Whoever wins the mayoral race takes office in early May.