Frankfort resident announces run for Will County Board

A Frankfort Republican has announced he is running for a seat on the Will County Board in 2022.

Anthony Granata, a former Frankfort Square Park District commissioner, said in a news release he is running for a seat representing District 2 on the board, which will likely include much of Frankfort and Manhattan.

Granata touted his election to public office at the age of 19 and service as a Republican precinct committeeman.

“I served on one of the most fiscally sound and responsible local governing boards in the area,” he said in a statement. “We kept taxes low, paid our bills, managed our debt, and provided award winning opportunities to the community. That’s what local government should do.”

He also unsuccessfully ran for Will County circuit clerk against incumbent Democrat Andrea Lynn Chasteen in 2020.

Granata blasted Democrats on the board for engaging in “identity politics and government overreach,” citing the new taxes the board imposed, including a 4-cent gas tax. That increase was in addition to the doubling of the state’s gas tax.

“When is enough enough?” he said.

He has also been vocal about county government, including advocating for fairly drawn district maps, which the board is in the process of finalizing. The new boundaries will remain in effect for the next decade once approved.

Granata said he is a 2009 graduate of Lincoln-Way East High School and that he studied political science at Eastern Illinois University and Governors State University before getting involved in politics.

Jim Mousits, R-Frankfort, and Amanda Koch, D-Frankfort, represent District 2 on the board.

The primary election is June 28.