Five candidates filed to run for Will County sheriff in 2026, in a race to replace retiring longtime Sheriff Mike Kelley, while all but one incumbent serving on the Will County Board filed for reelection before Monday’s deadline.
The primary election is March 17 and will determine who will be on the November ballot.
Countywide offices on the ballot include Will County sheriff, clerk, treasurer and the regional superintendent of schools.
Eight out of the 11 districts for the Will County Board are up for election. Each district has two representatives, and control of the board, which has been evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats, is at stake. Four of those districts will have primaries in March.
Countywide races
For sheriff, Deputy Chief Dan Jungles and Sgt. Patrick Jones will be on the Democratic primary ballot while Justin Fialko, James “Jim” Reilly and Brian Conser will run in the Republican primary.
Reilly, a Will County sheriff’s police deputy, lost four years ago in a bid to defeat Kelley.
Jungles has been with the department since 1999 and has been deputy chief since 2017 overseeing all special operations and investigations units within the office. Jones is also a longtime employee, working for 24 years in corrections, patrol division, crime scene investigation and crisis negotiations, among other roles.
Reilly has more than 22 years of experience with the department and holds a doctoral degree in criminal justice, writing his dissertation on community policing. Conser, a 30 year veteran of the department, is the undersheriff. Conser is also a U.S. Air Force veteran. Fialko, a deputy, is a former corrections officer at Stateville Correctional Center.
For treasurer, incumbent Democrat Tim Brophy, who has held the position since 2018, does not face a primary challenge. Two candidates filed on the Republican side, Raj “Pi” Pillai and Carmen Maurella III.
Pillai, a certified public accountant who is active with the Will County Veterans Assistance Commission, lost four years ago to Brophy. Maurella is an accountant, the Homer Township assessor and a past village manager for Homer Glen.
Neither the county clerk nor the regional superintendent of schools races will have a primary since only one candidate per party has filed.
The clerk’s race next November will feature a rematch from 2024 with Republican Annette Parker, the incumbent and a former Will County Board member, seeking reelection over Democrat Michelle Stiff, the director of Will County Workforce Services and secretary of the Joliet Township High School District 204 board.
These two candidates ran in 2024 for a two-year term after the resignation of Lauren Staley Ferry.
Incumbent Republican Elizabeth Caparelli-Ruff will seek a second term for regional superintendent of schools. She is challenged in November by Democratic candidate Theresa Rouse, the superintendent of Joliet Public Schools District 86.
County board races
Sixteen seats out of 22 are up for election and could affect the political leanings of the board, which is evenly divided at 11 Republicans and 11 Democrats. County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant, a Democrat who was reelected last year, is the tie-breaker.
Only Bolingbrook Democrat Elnalyn Costa opted not to file for reelection.
Primary races will be held in Districts 2, 4, 5 and 11 since more than two candidates filed for the seats.
In the 2nd District, which includes eastern Will County and areas of New Lenox, Frankfort and Manhattan, Republican incumbents Judy Ogalla, of Monee, and Frankie Pretzel, of New Lenox, are challenged by Neil “Muggsy” Gallagher.
The top two vote-getters will face Democrat Bob Howard in November, who ran and lost in 2022. Howard is a former Washington Township supervisor and county board member.
In the 4th District, which includes areas of Homer Glen, Mokena, Orland Park and Tinley Park, incumbents Steve Balich, of Homer Glen, and James Richmond, of Mokena, filed for reelection. They are challenged in the Republican primary by Michael Lepore, a Homer Glen trustee, and Pawel J. Tyrala.
Balich, a former Homer Township supervisor, has been on the county board since 2012, and Richmond, a former Mokena trustee, is the board’s Republican leader.
On the Democratic side, three candidates filed for the 4th District, including William Pratt, Sheri Boniecki-Cooling and Kevin Koukol. Boniecki-Cooling ran in 2022 while Koukol was a candidate for Homer Glen trustee earlier this year.
In District 5, which includes areas of Crest Hill, Lockport and New Lenox, three candidates filed for two spots in the Republican primary, including incumbent David G. Oxley of Lockport, appointed last year to fill the vacancy when Parker was elected clerk. Other Republican candidates are James “JJ” Balonek and David Palya, Lockport’s city treasurer.
The top two vote-getters will face Democratic candidates Karen Johnson and Sherry Williams. Williams, of Crest Hill, is the board’s Democratic leader.
In the 11th District, which includes the Bolingbrook area, incumbent Democrat Jacqueline L. Traynere face challenges from Tyler Giacalone, Sheldon L. Watts and Barbara Ann Parker in the March 17 primary. The top two vote-getters will face Republican Steven Smith, the only Republican to file.
Several districts will not have primaries.
In District 1, Democrat Joe VanDuyne, the speaker of the Will County Board from Wilmington, has filed for reelection and will face Republicans Katie Deane-Schlottman, an incumbent from Joliet, and Debbie Militello.
In District 3, incumbent Daniel Butler of Frankfort filed for reelection in the Republican primary. Democrats who filed are Sherry Newquist, an incumbent from Steger, and Marc McKirdie.
In District 8, incumbent Mark V. Revis of Plainfield will run in the Republican primary. Democrats filing are incumbent Mica Freeman of Plainfield and Michael Crowner.
In District 9, incumbent Raquel M. Mitchell of Bolingbrook will run in the Republican primary and face incumbent Democrat Destinee Ortiz of Romeoville as well as Democrat Alex Zapien, the Lockport Township supervisor, in November.
A lottery to determine ballot positions will be held Nov. 12.
Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter.
