For McHenry County Board chair, both Mike Buehler, challenger Kelli Wegener boast they’re taxpayer-friendly

Four years ago, Mike Buehler won his first race for public office by besting Democratic incumbent McHenry County Board Chair Jack Franks. Now Buehler is the incumbent whom his challenger is trying to oust.

The Republican Buehler, a 55-year-old construction company owner from Crystal Lake, is running in the Nov. 5 election against Democrat Kelli Wegener, a 53-year-old county board member and church financial manager also from Crystal Lake, to determine who leads the McHenry County Board for the next four years.

The achievements Buehler touted from his first term include collaboration with municipalities and public safety.

Buehler took office in December 2020, before the COVID-19 vaccine became widely available. He said one of the first things he did once he took office was waive liquor license fees for bars and restaurants under the county’s jurisdiction to help them through the pandemic.

In the years since, Buehler touted collaboration with other agencies, saying the county coordinator role has “flourished” under his leadership.

“Part of our greatest successes” is collaboration with municipalities, which as yielded some “great ideas,” Buehler said.

Among the examples he cited is the new regional police training facility and firing range in Cary, which is run by the McHenry County Sheriff’s Department but which is of use by many municipal departments. McHenry County purchased the former Cary Village Hall site for the training center for $1 and the site serves to train officers from around the county.

Public safety more broadly was another accomplishment Buehler touted, saying the county is the safest one in Illinois “for our size.”

Should Buehler be elected to a second term, some of the challenges he sees on the horizon include transportation.

RTA consolidation has been among the top transportation issues in the county as of late. Local officials have expressed their opposition to the potential consolidation of the Metra, Pace and CTA boards, citing concerns about diluting suburban voices. Buehler said the county has made it clear it’s “not in favor of the legislation” as it currently stands. Buehler said Metra and Pace have been “nimble and responsive” to the county’s needs, but the big concern he expressed in a recent Northwest Herald guest editorial, co-written with Ringwood Village President Rick Mack, is the CTA’s “multibillion-dollar debt,” for which they said McHenry County residents could see their tax dollars diverted to cover.

For car commuters, the new Longmeadow Parkway bridge was another achievement Buehler cited. McHenry County chipped in $1 million to help eliminate the need to make it a toll bridge. The span is located just outside McHenry County in Kane County, connecting Carpentersville and Algonquin, but many McHenry residents use it. In fact, McHenry officials said it would save the average McHenry County commuter $200 to $300 per year. Buehler said the return on investment in Longmeadow was “huge.”

Wegener was first elected to the county board in 2018 and currently represents District 5, covering parts of McHenry, Prairie Grove, Cary and Island Lake. She gave up the chance for reelection to that seat to seek the higher office because, she said, there she could better effect changes at the county level that she feels need to be made.

Republican Deena Krieger of Island Lake and Democrat Steve Firak of McHenry are running to succeed Wegener in District 5. Board member Terri Greeno, a Crystal Lake Republican, is the other member representing the district on the board; she is not up for reelection this cycle.

Some of Wegener’s goals should she be elected include increasing transparency in financials and contracts. Wegener pointed to Lake County as an example of what she wants to see in McHenry County, such as providing details around bidding for county contracts and who bid what. She said some of those details are included in resolutions at the McHenry County Board but it’s “not very complete.”

Though the two candidates appear vastly different in some ways, they have common ground on issues.

Wegener said she wants a less partisan board and for “us all to work together for a common goal.”

Buehler similarly said taxpayers really want the board to work together and set partisanship aside.

However, Wegener has on occasion displayed partisanship on her time on the board. Earlier this year, she accused McHenry County State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally of filing lawsuits for political gain, namely ones challenging the state SAFE-T Act and the Protect Illinois Communities Act, which bans semiautomatic weapons. Wegener later apologized for being accusatory towards Kenneally. Kenneally was also running for re-election this year but dropped out this spring.

The county put together a workforce housing workgroup which released a report this summer showing a shortage of workforce housing in the county. Wegener would like to commission a similar group to work on transportation issues. She said the transportation group would consist of getting transportation stakeholders together and they could recommend efficiencies, working together or changes.

She also supports expanding workforce housing, but conceded that might be more of a state and federal issue. Buehler said the county isn’t really in a position to provide workforce housing and doesn’t have the infrastructure to handle workforce housing.

Buehler said issues people often bring up to him are immigration, taxes and economic development. He said the passage of the county Mental Health Board sales tax referendum – a quarter-percent sales increase to fund mental health services, replacing a property tax levy – proves the county is serious about “doing our due diligence” to keep taxes low.

Despite the new funding source, Wegener said the county still “lacks sufficient providers for mental health, addiction, disability, and senior services. Every individual deserves access to healthcare, and this issue has become increasingly important for our growing and diverse community. We must also start accepting federal funding for women’s healthcare, which the current administration is leaving on the table despite it having no impact on taxes.”

Both candidates sought to portray themselves as advocates for keeping taxes down, with Wegener saying she’s “always been a budget hawk and as Chairperson, will make this my top priority.”

“We need to spend more responsibly and eliminate unnecessary expenses. Right now, McHenry County is not using all the tools available to lower property taxes. As Chair, I’ll explore new ways to promote responsible economic growth and use tax dollars more effectively,” Wegener said in a Northwest Herald candidate questionnaire.

Buehler challenged Wegener’s record on fiscal hawkishness, saying she has an “activist track record on the county board, which has consistently supported initiatives that are not in the best interest of our residents and have created significant financial burdens for the county.” He cited Wegener’s support of the cancellation of the county’s federal jail contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ultimately leading to a staggering loss of over $18 million in revenue over the past three years. This decision has severely strained the county’s budget.”

The decision was prompted by a state law that prohibited such contracts, though the board fought against that.

But Buehler also said Wegener has “voted for every property tax increase that has come before her, along with a gas tax hike.”

Wegener also has sought to link her opponent to former president Donald Trump and the MAGA movement. After Buehler gave a speech at a pro-Trump rally in August, Wegener put out a press release stating “It’s deeply troubling when elected officials in our county choose to back the divisive and extreme agenda that was on display today. The MAGA extremists are rallying behind a convicted felon, pushing an agenda that is entirely out of step with the values of McHenry County.”

In the speech, Buehler commented about how McHenry County is the last remaining Republican stronghold in the Chicago area.

Buehler, in his speech, tried to contrast Republican-voting McHenry County with the Democratic-voting state of Illinois and other Chicagoland counties. But, Buehler noted, the Democratic Party has gained support in the county over the past 15 to 20 years.

Wegener said the county is changing demographically and politically. She also believes turnout will increase with Kamala Harris and Tim Walz at the top of the Democratic ticket. “I just think people are excited,” Wegener said.

Despite recognizing the bluing of the county, Buehler expressed optimism that his accomplishments will resonate with the electorate. He said he would be “more than honored” to remain chair.