2022 Primary: Hanson leads Boxenbaum in 83rd House District, Syverson ahead of Nicolosi in 35th Senate

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

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

Syverson was leading in the race by a wide margin as of about 12:09 a.m. Wednesday according to the Associated Press, which estimated about 88% of the vote had been counted.

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

The other race is in the state’s 83rd House District, where Arad Boxenbaum, 21, of Geneva is running against Matt Hanson, 49, of Aurora for the Democratic nomination. The district extends from St. Charles to Oswego.

According to the Associated Press, as of 12:17 a.m. Wednesday, Hanson was leading with 4,325 votes to Boxenbaum’s 2,051 votes.

Boxebaum recently earned his undergraduate degree from DePaul University in political science with a double minor in history and public policy studies.

He said he would work to ensure that middle and lower-income Illinoisans as well as small businesses are protected from high taxation.

Boxenbaum said he became involved in politics in his teen years to do something to prevent gun violence in the wake of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida. He has worked on several political campaigns and for a congressman.

Hanson, an engineer for the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad, served two years on the Kane County Board. He said one of his priorities is to find ways to avoid adding to middle-class taxpayers’ burden, such as by closing loopholes in corporate taxes.

The winner will face incumbent Keith Wheeler, R-Oswego.