Politics & Government

County Referendum on Dual Elected Duty will be on November Ballot

Referendum is advisory; DuPage Chairman Dan Cronin says County Board duties require "undivided focus."

Editor's Note: The following information was provided by DuPage County officials.

DuPage County voters will be asked this November whether one elected official should be permitted to hold more than one elected office at the same time.

The DuPage County Board Tuesday approved an advisory referendum question that will appear on the November general election ballot asking voters: “Should Illinois law permit an individual to hold two or more public elected offices simultaneously?”

Find out what's happening in Elmhurstwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

DuPage County Board Chairman Dan Cronin sought the referendum question in order to gauge the public’s sentiment on the issue. Two sitting DuPage mayors are running for election to the DuPage County Board this fall, Elmhurst Mayor Pete DiCianni and Burr Ridge Mayor Gary Grasso. For months, both have indicated that they wanted to remain mayor of their respective town, but that he would resign the mayor's seat if elected to the County Board.

“We face serious and time-consuming challenges here at the county that demands the undivided focus and commitment of each County Board member,” Cronin said. “Holding two elected offices at the same time simply does not allow for the level of attention needed to fully and impartially serve the taxpayers of DuPage County. I believe our voters will send a clear message that one elected office per person is enough.”

Find out what's happening in Elmhurstwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The non-binding advisory question will now be submitted to the DuPage County Election Commission.

Last January, Cronin from DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin as to whether a County Board member is statutorily able to hold another elected office. In his opinion, Berlin stated that DuPage County Board members should not hold elected office with another governmental body that has contractual obligations with the county.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here