April 24, 2024
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2022 primary election: Two state legislative races contested in McHenry County

By Aaron Dorman
Election 2024
The Republican primary race for the 35th Senate District includes Dave Syverson and Eli Nicolosi while the one for the 66th House District includes Arin Thrower and Connie Cain.

The Republican primary race for the 35th Senate District includes Dave Syverson, top left, and Eli Nicolosi, top right, while the one for the 66th House District includes Arin Thrower, bottom left, and Connie Cain, bottom right. (Provided by candidates)

Voters weighed in on two state legislative races in McHenry County during the state’s primary election Tuesday.

They include the race for the 35th Senate District, in which incumbent Dave Syverson, R-Cherry Valley, faces a challenge from Eli Nicolosi, a Rockford-based business owner who also is the Winnebago County Republican Party chairman.

The winner of that primary is currently running unchallenged in the fall.

The new 35th legislative district was approved last year by the Illinois state assembly and includes portions of five counties including Boone, DeKalb, Kane, McHenry, and Winnebago.

The new 35th legislative district was approved last year by the Illinois state assembly and includes portions of five counties including Boone, DeKalb, Kane, McHenry, and Winnebago. (Provided by the Illinois State Board of Elections)

Syverson was leading in the race as of about 11:15 p.m., according to The Associated Press, which estimated about 60% of the votes had been counted.

As of those unofficial results, Syverson had 9,875 votes, or 75% of the vote, while Nicolosi had 3,227 votes, or 25%.

The race is among two contested primaries, both on the Republican ballot, for the state Legislature in McHenry County.

The other contest was in the 66th House District, where Connie Cain and Arin Thrower are vying for the chance to face incumbent state Rep. Suzanne Ness, D-Crystal Lake, in November.

As of about midnight, the race between Thrower and Cain was separated by 64 votes, or less than a percentage point, with the AP estimating about 82% of the vote had been counted. Thrower had 3,339 votes while Cain had 3,403 votes.

Thrower is currently the Dundee Township supervisor, and Cain, a longtime accountant living in Gilberts, said she had been active with the Lincoln Lobby, an offshoot of the Illinois Policy Institute, which focuses on government accountability on economic issues.

Both Cain and Thrower said they were motivated to run to reinstate the parental notification law that was ended last year, which previously had required doctors to notify parents of a minor seeking an abortion.

Both districts were redrawn as part of the state’s redistricting process.

The new Illinois House District 66 includes parts of Kane and McHenry counties and runs through Algonquin, Carpentersville, Crystal Lake, East Dundee, West Dundee, Elgin and Sleepy Hollow.

The new Illinois House District 66 includes parts of Kane and McHenry counties and runs through Algonquin, Carpentersville, Crystal Lake, East Dundee, West Dundee, Elgin and Sleepy Hollow. (Provided by Illinois State Board of Elections)

The new 66th House District includes parts of Crystal Lake, Algonquin, Carpentersville, East Dundee, West Dundee and Sleepy Hollow, and is almost aligned north-south with Randall Road, going as far south as Elgin.

The 35th Senate District includes portions of western McHenry County, including Harvard, Huntley, Lake in the Hills, Lakewood and Marengo, encompassing portions of Rockford to the west and going as far south as Somonauk in DeKalb and La Salle counties.

Syverson is the current Republican caucus whip in the Senate, having served as a state senator since 1993. He ran unopposed in 2018.

Nicolosi, who announced his intention to run for the seat last July, said he had helped on Syverson’s previous campaigns but decided to run himself because he felt a newer, younger perspective was needed.