Brooks gets apparent nod in comeback bid for Will County Board

Herbert Brooks Jr. may be on his way back to a seat on the Will County Board after being an apparent winner in the Democratic primary Tuesday.

Brooks, who was on the County Board for 14 years before being thrown off the ballot in 2022 in a petition challenge, and incumbent Denise Winfrey were the top vote-getters in the Democratic primary in District 6, which is largely in Joliet.

They will face Enrique Ruiz, the only Republican on the primary ballot in District 6, in the general election in November.

Voters pick two representatives in each County Board district, and up to two candidates are selected in each party primary for the general election.

Janet Diaz, a first-term board member elected in 2022, trailed Brooks and Winfrey in the unofficial final vote count Tuesday.

“Thank you to all the voters in District 6 for sending me back to the Will County Board in the general election,” Brooks said after his apparent victory.

The primary win gives Brooks a likely chance to return to the board in the heavily Democratic district.

In the only other competitive County Board contest Tuesday, Dawn Bullock and David Lozano were the unofficial winners in District 7 in the Democratic primary. The area includes the west side of Joliet and Plainfield.

Coming in third was Demmond Dorris.

The winners and only two candidates in the Republican primary were incumbent Vince Logan and Elizabeth Naglich.

Brooks, a leading County Board member who rose to the position of speaker, said his duties as a pastor during the COVID-19 pandemic took his attention away from the 2022 election bid, but he made up for it this time, especially in collecting enough petition signatures to ward off another challenge.

“That was the first thing I did,” he said. “I got 10 times the signatures I needed.”

Winfrey got the most votes in the District 6 Democratic primary at 1,506 for 44% of the vote. Brooks got 1,184 votes for 34%. Diaz collected 750 votes at 22%.

In District 7, Bullock was the top vote-getter with 1,895 votes at 42%. Lozano collected 1,497 votes for 33%. Dorris got 1,116 votes at 25%.

One other County Board district was on the ballot.

In District 10, which is in a northwestern corner of the county that includes Naperville and Aurora, there were no contests in the primary, with two candidates running in each party.

Republicans Julie Berkowicz, an incumbent from Naperville, and David Scriven-Young will face Democrats Meta Mueller, an incumbent from Aurora, and Kelley Hickey in November.

Countywide races

There were no contests in the primary election for countywide races.

Incumbent Democratic County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant will face Republican Charles “Chuck” Maher in the general election.

Coroner Laurie Summers, a Democrat, will run against Republican Robert Enright.

Auditor Kevin “Duffy” Blackburn, a Democrat, faces Republican James Robert Buiter.

State’s Attorney James Glasgow and Recorder of Deeds Karen Stukel ran unopposed in the Democratic primary, and no Republicans ran in the primary.