In my first post, I wrote about how apathy has set in over Northbrook. Our municipal elections typically see only about 10% of registered voters participate, with the highest turnout in recent years reaching just 23.7% in 2021. Many elections feature exactly the same number of candidates as open positions, and for the past 15 years, the Northbrook Caucus has remained undefeated—every single one of their endorsed candidates has won the seat they sought.
In my opinion: 1. The more people who vote and engage in Northbrook, the better it will be for the community. Turnout should be a goal for all of us. 2. The effectiveness of Northbrook’s leadership should be judged almost entirely on execution—how well village services meet the needs of residents and how much progress is made on initiatives critical to Northbrook’s future. Vision is important, but in my experience, progress is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration. 3. Partisan politics has no place in Northbrook—period. The issues impacting our community don’t fit neatly—or even messily—into a red vs. blue divide.
There’s not much more to say about #1 beyond what I outlined in my first post. It’s a simple truth—it’s hard to imagine anyone disagreeing that a more engaged Northbrook is a better Northbrook.
I plan to dive into #2 in future posts. To be clear, this won’t be a series of rants against the Northbrook Board, nor will it be an invitation for that kind of discourse. There’s a difference between scrutinizing how effectively our elected officials are serving the community and simply spewing bile at everything they do. Regardless of how one feels about their performance, our board members dedicate a great deal of their time to Northbrook. Even if you wish to replace them, they should first be commended and respected for their service.
In this post and my next one, I want to focus on #3—the role of partisan politics in Northbrook.
Partisan Politics Pushes People Away Partisan rhetoric is the fastest way to create further disillusionment with local government. When debates about the future of a given municipality start mirroring the tribalism of national politics, people tune out. The moment someone has to first determine your political affiliation before deciding whether to listen to you, the conversation is already broken. A conversation about what is best for the future of one's hometown should not devolve into a battle between Democrats and Republicans. I would hope that Northbrook longs for better than to be used as a proxy war for broader political agendas.
Unfortunately, this kind of partisanship is exactly what we saw in a recent email from the Democrats of Northfield Township. The email was a weird flex—an overtly partisan body stepping into a municipal election that has no Republican vs. Democrat structure. This isn’t about a governor’s race, Congress, or the presidency. It’s about running a village. And yet, the email leaned heavily into party-line attacks, painting a picture of “us vs. them” in a race where governance—not ideology—should be the focus.
Beyond that, the email inexplicably included names of individuals in a way that felt unnecessary and personal, so I have redacted all names from it but otherwise included it in its entirety.
Northfield Democrats e-mail DEMOCRATS OF NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP [REDACTED], Committeeperson February 7, 2025 Dear Democrats, Local elections matter—and a thoughtful, experienced approach is core to vetting and endorsing candidates. It's why Democrats of Northfield Township shares open caucus recommendations, which have included and will continue to include moderate Republican, Independent, and Democratic candidates for school, park, library, and village boards in Glenview, Northbrook, and Northfield. At the local level, that broad coalition of viewpoints represents our community well now and going forward and deserves our support. Not surprisingly, the local Republican party disagrees and is supporting candidates for local office with little if any elected office track record and a risky lack of transparency. We have always lifted up local races for you because as voters, you need factual information from sources you trust. The Republicans running for Northfield Township and the Northbrook Focused slate are comprised of inexperienced candidates for the Township and Village boards in a challenging economic environment when we need experience more than ever. Their ad nauseum attacks on Democrats represent a joint effort to distract from their collaborative effort to turn your local governments over to candidates who lack the knowledge or temperament to do the work. Here’s how the Republicans are misleading voters in the upcoming Northfield Township & Northbrook Village Board elections: Filing meritless legal challenges that cost taxpayers thousands of dollars while claiming to be the party of fiscal responsibility. Four Republican proxies, including [REDACTED], filed eight meritless lawsuits against the Township Government Democrat slate; all of the suits were unanimously dismissed by an independent Electoral Board, yet cost taxpayers thousands of dollars. Attacking Northbrook Caucus candidates while vocally claiming not to be partisan (while blaming Democrats). This is Projection 101. [REDACTED], who filed the suits against the Township Democratic slate, are all members of a private Facebook group “Northbrook Focused” which recruited a slate for Northbrook Village Board. [REDACTED] is back again? Yes, [REDACTED], who runs a firearms e-commerce business in Northbrook, led the 2021 United4Northbrook Village Board opposition slate that was defeated 2-1 and had volunteers jointly passing handouts for them and the far-right Republican-supported high school board candidates at Northbrook Village Hall. How else are the 2021 United4Northbrook slate and the 2025 Northbrook Focused slate connected? [REDACTED], who lost a 2017 race for Village trustee and supported the 2021 far-right Republican high school board candidates, is the Chair of both the former United4Northbrook and the Northbrook Focused political committees. Likewise, [REDACTED], who has previously spoken against gun safety policies and said he's a “2A guy,” administers the United4Northbrook private Facebook group, which was recycled and renamed Northbrook Focused just over a year ago. Supporting blank slate candidates who emerged from a secretive process, have very little track record, and who can say anything and make accusations while taking NO responsibility. We can’t afford for secretive candidates to land on our local Boards. Who are the candidates for Village Board, if not [REDACTED]? A blank slate, intentionally. Three of the four Northbrook Focused candidates, including the President candidate, have never voted in a Northbrook municipal election. None have served on a municipal board or commission. They’re running solely on criticism and generic promises of change. Sound like a familiar gambit? We don’t know the agendas of this slate who came out of a secretive process. Furthermore, their checklist of ideas is generic—and handing a board majority to so many inexperienced candidates is a recipe for disaster. Meanwhile, the Northbrook Caucus slate has delivered results: Despite a tough period of high inflation, the Northbrook Caucus slate has: Developed a thriving business community with a 12.7% growth in sales tax revenues compared with the previous four-year average. Actively rebuilt infrastructure that the community relies on. Focused on enhancing downtown. Additionally, they have a combined 33 years of government board experience, actively promote inclusivity, and are hitting the goals of the Village’s Climate Action Plan. Our leaders have fought through a pandemic and its economic aftermath, including shortages, inflation, and high interest rates, yet Northbrook’s economy has grown with new businesses, increased sales tax revenue, low Village levies, and investments in police, fire, and public works. You can see their platform and learn more about the candidates here. How do we respond and keep chaos out of our local Boards? The answer is the same as always: Support open, public candidate endorsement processes like the Northbrook Caucus, which welcomes candidates and volunteers from all parties, including Democrats, and prioritizes experience and qualifications for good governance. Call out private Facebook groups that propose replacing the board majority with four inexperienced, untested newcomers. It's been a tough stretch for government, and things will not necessarily be easier ahead. We need vetted elected officials in this moment—not worrisome wildcards. We need you to get involved. Join our field meeting at the Northbrook Library on February 12 at 7 PM—use your voice to support good candidates on social media, and above all else, vote and encourage your neighbors to vote.
Wow. We can parse every word here but the overall message seems clear: something dark and nefarious is happening in Northbrook, and people should be worried. Implicitly and explicitly, the message is that these candidates are unworthy because they did not go through the Caucus process, have not worked their way up through village committees, and have not voted in a Northbrook election. Conveniently left out is the fact that these candidates went out and got the necessary signatures to appear on the ballot—which, last I checked, is how democracy works.
And yes, it’s just plain weird that the Democrats of Northfield are researching the voting records of candidates in this election.
This kind of messaging doesn’t serve Northbrook’s best interests. It divides instead of unites, discourages engagement instead of fostering it (or, rather, encourages it only for those who agree), and shifts the conversation away from actual governance.
Everyone in the village—regardless of political affiliation—should disavow it. If I have missed the Caucus-endorsed candidates publicly rising above this nonsense, please point it out to me. We should publicly commend anyone who has done so and encourage anyone who has not to do so immediately. We should also ask why this group has chosen to publicly tie the Northbrook Caucus to a partisan organization.
Since the email referenced “the local Republican party… supporting local candidates for office,” I searched for something that fit the bill but only found this statement (in response) from the Northfield Republicans, which can be read in full below. They showed some restraint, but still could not help themselves from also sticking it to their political opponents.
Northfield GOP response Local Democrats recently sent an attack on candidates for Northbrook Village Trustee, Village President, and our Township Board slate. Our Republican organization does not endorse in nonpartisan municipal elections. The so-called “caucus system” (e.g., Northbrook Caucus, Northfield Caucus, Unite Glenview) has become nothing more than a local political party with no obligation to pick from a broad base of candidates. Some caucuses represent their communities better than others. The Northbrook Caucus abandoned nonpartisanship years ago. Northbrook’s government has veered sharply left. This year, its slate includes 19 candidates. One has never voted in a primary. The other 18? Not a single GOP primary vote in five election cycles (2016-2024). Not one Republican-leaning candidate out of 19. As the Republican Committeeman for seven years, I have never once been contacted by the Northbrook Caucus, its leadership, or any current Village officials. They do not represent the full community—nor do they intend to. The caucus’s deep Democratic ties are evident in the many local Democrats who signed their candidates’ petitions. The local Democrats themselves circulated petitions for these “non-partisan” races and hosted signing events at their headquarters. Under Illinois election law, one cannot belong to two parties in the same cycle. Multiple respected election attorneys found grounds for ballot objections, as recent law changes created legal ambiguities around municipal and township races. Yes, the township bore the cost of the objections process—as it should—to ensure election integrity. Where was the outrage when the township burned through 37 months of reserves — spending large sums on vanity projects like rebranding with new logos and taglines? These same Democrats had no problem wasting taxpayer money on feel-good PR. Their attack letter personally smeared local residents, including a former Township trustee, a first responder, and a former Northbrook Village President – all lifelong township residents¬. None are candidates this election cycle. Their only “crime”? Supporting candidates not handpicked by the Democratic machine. Differences of opinion on policies and candidates are not divisive – it’s the American way! What is divisive are personal attacks in response to these differences. They say they’re backing “qualified” candidates—but their definition of "qualified" is clear: only those who fit their partisan agenda. This is classic Chicago-style politics: “We don’t want nobody nobody sent.” Voters deserve a real choice—not one-party rule.
Northbrook Needs “Us vs. the Problem,” Not “Us vs. Us” The problem with both of these statements is that they don’t seek to improve Northbrook or bring the community together. Instead, they both aim to create an “us vs. them” dynamic, deepening the divide and turning local governance into a proxy fight for state and national politics.
(And lest you think I am picking on one side more than the other, please trust me when I say that my judgement was on the content of the messages not on the stated affiliation of the creator).
Neither side is helping drive better voter turnout, which Northbrook desperately needs. Instead, their performative political theater pushes people further away from engaging. I hope people are tired of this nonsense. I’d like to believe that most Northbrook residents—regardless of party affiliation—simply want to work with their neighbors to make this town better for this and future generations. But when attacks from well-funded outsiders with an agenda go after candidates in a local election—again with no Republican or Democratic tickets on the ballot—who in their right mind would want to run for office in Northbrook? Why would a busy professional building a successful career who barely has enough time for family want to then volunteer additional time—time they really don’t have—just to be dragged through the mud?
It’s time to dial down the nonsense, and remember that the main thing is best kept the main thing. Anyone injecting partisan politics into Northbrook’s nonpartisan elections should reconsider their approach. This battle needs to be re-framed as “us vs. the problem.” The problem is apathy, and the answer is engagement. Encourage your friends and neighbors to vote in the April 1 election. If none of the candidates appeal to you, submit a write-in vote.
We need to turn the tide in Northbrook. Turning out the vote will send a message that we are ready to engage.
PS - If I have mis-stated anything, missed prior examples that helped fuel this escalation, or you have any other reactions -- let me know in the comments below, please. The intent is to get better and I know I don't have every single bit of context & history, and certainly not all the answers.