Lake County Gazette

Michelle Parnell, vice-chair of the Shields Township GOP, is urging voters to focus on local races in the April 1 elections, stressing that these contests are often just as crucial, if not more so, than federal ones.

Parnell, who is running unopposed for Shields Township Trustee, emphasized that voters should prioritize competent candidates and policies that reflect their values at the local level.

“Every election is important, and it’s important to vote for competent people and policies you agree with at the local level,” Parnell, a realtor for Coldwell Banker, told the Lake County Gazette. “It’s where you live. It’s your community. It’s even more important in some regards than the general federal elections.”

This election cycle, Parnell and others are focused on the upcoming mayoral race in Libertyville.

“Donna Johnson is running for re-election for mayor of Libertyville, and it’s going to be a good one,” Parnell said.

The Libertyville mayoral race is contested between incumbent Mayor Donna Johnson and Village Trustee Matthew Hickey.

Hickey has received donations from the Lake County Democratic Women, Friends of Eric Rinehart, and the Libertyville Township Democratic Organization.

Having lived in Lake Forest, Parnell has firsthand experience with contentious local mayoral elections. 

In 2023, Prue Beidler, a political donor who contributed over $1 million to Democratic campaigns, including donations to Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, former Governor Rod Blagojevich, and former Attorney General Lisa Madigan, ran for mayor of Lake Forest.

Parnell and others supported Randy Tack, who won the election despite Beidler’s spending in the race.

“I was on the Lake Forest Caucus in the last mayoral election…it was very contentious,” she said. “But we came out with a win because we fought really hard to get the message out and to make sure people were aware of the elections in their community. We actually won 3 to 1.”

After that experience, Parnell quickly stressed the importance of Johnson's re-election campaign in Libertyville.

“Donna Johnson has been a very, an excellent, a very overqualified mayor for the city of Libertyville,” Parnell said. “I guess a raging liberal Democrat has been trying to make changes to the township. I actually don’t think people are aware until something very disruptive happens, and then it’s too late. So we need to make people aware of their choices before the election actually happens.”

Parnell’s comments reflect broader concerns within the local Republican party about the impact of progressive policies in suburban communities like Libertyville.

“We need to make sure that the people in our communities understand the significance of these elections and how their choices can affect the direction of their local government,” she said.

Parnell was firm in urging voters to participate in the April elections.

“Get out and vote.” she said. “It’s your civic duty. Every vote counts, especially in local elections where every decision impacts you directly.”