Kane County voters on Tuesday weighed in on their preferred party’s nominees in several countywide races during the primary election.
As of Tuesday night, 67,145 ballots had been cast — a little under 23% of the county’s 295,781 registered voters, according to numbers from the Kane County Clerk’s Office.
Unofficial results show current Undersheriff Amy Johnson advancing as the Democratic nominee for Kane County’s sheriff, defeating opponent Salvador Rodriguez. Former county Coroner Rob Russell came out on top as the Republican nominee, defeating Luis Santoyo, according to the unofficial results.
Johnson received 54.81% of the Democratic vote on Tuesday, per the Clerk’s Office numbers, while Rodriguez got 45.19%.
In the Republican contest, Russell secured 67.14% of the vote, with Santoyo getting 32.86%, according to the unofficial results.
It appears Johnson and Russell will vie in the fall to succeed current Kane County Sheriff Ron Hain, who last year announced that he would be stepping down in 2026.
Johnson, 44, was born and raised in Kane County, and has served her entire career in the Kane County Sheriff’s Office since she became an evidence custodian, and then a deputy in 2004. She’s worked in the county in a variety of roles, like as a detective, a crime scene evidence technician and a field training officer.
Johnson was appointed undersheriff by Hain in 2022, becoming the first woman to hold the post in the county, and has received the current sheriff’s backing in her bid for the top post.
Over the phone Wednesday, Johnson said that she was “very humbled by the fact that so many people turned out” for the election.
“We stayed out there until it became dark,” Johnson said of her campaigning strategy, “and took phone calls and just (had) one-on-one conversations of … ‘What do you need from Kane County?’”
Going forward, Johnson said her campaign approach will continue to be having town hall and door-to-door conversations, and that her plans are to “start hitting the ground very quickly” in terms of hearing from county residents about what issues are of greatest concern for the coming years.
Russell, 58, served as the Kane County coroner from 2012 to 2024, when he lost reelection to Democratic challenger Monica Silva. Before that, he worked in the DuPage County Sheriff’s Office.
He’s originally from the Rockford area, but has lived in Kane County for nearly 30 years and currently lives in Hampshire. He currently provides consulting services to the Kane County Sheriff’s Office for its forensics lab project, and works as a campus police officer at Harper College in Palatine.
In a news release late Tuesday evening, Russell declared victory in the Republican race and cited his past law enforcement experience and said Kane County “deserves a sheriff who will stand firm, make tough decisions and support law enforcement without hesitation.”
Going forward, Russell also spoke of his hope that Kane County voters will look to candidates’ qualifications, not just their political affiliation, in November.
“When you have one party that rules basically every single office, you lose a little bit of that, what I would call separation of powers,” Russell said over the phone Wednesday. “For me … holding office has never been about party.”
As for the other contested countywide races, Penny Wegman, the county’s current auditor, appears to have come out on top for the Democratic nomination for Kane County’s treasurer. Three candidates — Wegman, Connie Cain and Scott Johansen — were vying for the nomination in hopes of facing off against Republican incumbent Chris Lauzen in the November general election.
Wegman ultimately secured 66.04% of the Democratic vote, per the Clerk’s Office’s numbers, with Johansen receiving 17.65% of the vote and Cain getting 16.31%.
Wegman, 49, of Elgin, has been the county’s auditor since 2020, when she ousted incumbent Terry Hunt. Before that, she was a Kane County Board member and previously served as president of the Kane County Regional School Board.
Wegman did not immediately return a request for comment on Wednesday, but a message posted on her campaign Facebook page acknowledged her win and thanked those that supported her campaign and those that ran for office.
In November, she will face current Treasurer Chris Lauzen, who was elected to the seat in 2022. Lauzen previously served as a state senator in the 21st and 25th districts, and also served as the Kane County Board chair from 2012 until 2020, when he withdrew from his reelection bid. Lauzen was unopposed in the Republican primary for treasurer.
The county clerk’s office also saw a competitive primary, with two candidates — Brian Pollock and Brenda Rodgers — vying for the Democratic nomination. Rodgers ultimately secured 55.41% of the Democratic vote, Clerk’s Office numbers show, with Pollock garnering 44.59%.
In November, it appears Rodgers will face off against Republican incumbent John “Jack” Cunningham in the general election. Cunningham has served as the county’s clerk for more than two decades. He was unopposed in the Republican primary for clerk.
“I talked to a lot of residents, and I think people saw the perseverance that I’ve had, the determination that I’ve had,” Rodgers said over the phone Wednesday morning. “I’m just very thankful that they trusted me and believed in me.”
Rodgers is a longtime Realtor and resident of Elgin, and a former Elgin City Council member.
In the lead-up to November, Rodgers said she will be “just working hard,” prioritizing talking to residents and addressing their concerns.
mmorrow@chicagotribune.com
