MENDOTA – Todd Martin of Mendota has been elected as the new LaSalle County State’s Attorney. Unofficial totals from the Nov. 3 General Election show Martin edging out incumbent State’s Attorney Karen Donnelly by 1,718 votes out of 50,712 ballots cast.

For Martin, the victory came only after an evening of uncertainty. “Election night was unlike anything I've ever seen or been a part of before,” he said. “We saw the same type of thing play out on the federal level over the few days after election night where, when the mail-in ballots were counted, things turned around.

“I am overwhelmed at the amount of support I received,” Martin continued. “Obviously, being from Mendota, I have many friends who are staunch Republicans. Several of them told me that I was the only Democratic vote they cast or that it was the first time in their lives that they pulled a Democratic primary ballot. I am extremely grateful to everyone for the support.”

Now, Martin is able to focus on the future. “I am excited to return to the State’s Attorney’s office and rebuild relationships with local law enforcement agencies. I hope to repair those relationships so that those departments regain trust in the decisions that are made by the office,” he noted. “I recognize that we are at a pivotal time in our society where trust and transparency is important. I will make my decisions based upon what I believe to be best for LaSalle County residents and taxpayers and not based upon any personal vendettas or campaign promises.”

First on Martin’s list of priorities is the felony review process. “It needs to be sped up so that charges result sooner and there needs to be a clear line of communication with police about why cases are not filed if that is the result,” he said. “I recognize that things will not happen over night and that reform may be a marathon instead of a sprint, however, I also recognize that we are all headed toward the same finish line so we need to work together.”

Unlike Martin’s close contest, most other races in LaSalle, Lee and Bureau counties were more one-sided, according to the unofficial tally. The final numbers will be announced after all votes are counted and official results are released by each county.

Vote counting

On Election Day in Illinois, all Early Voted Ballots, Grace Period Ballots and Absentee Ballots are counted at the County Clerk’s Office. State statute further requires these ballots be tabulated after 7 p.m. on election night. Representatives of the two major political parties are present for the tabulation. The results of the tabulation of these ballots is added to the Election Day voted ballots as all precincts are reported from the regional reporting sites.

Additionally, Provisional Ballots determined to be valid, and mailed Absentee Ballots postmarked before Election Day and received in the office of the County Clerk up to 14 days after the election will be counted on the 14th day after the election. Results become official after validating and counting of the Provisional Ballots and the counting of mailed Absentee Ballots postmarked before Election Day and received by the County Clerk within 14 days of Election Day and after a canvass of the results has been conducted by the LaSalle County Canvassing Board.

Voter turnout

Among the three counties, voter turnout for this election was highest in LaSalle County with 79.47% of the county’s 65,981 registered voters casting a ballot. Lee County reported 73.83% of its 22,291 registered voters taking part and Bureau County had a 73.3% turnout out among its 23,651 registered voters.

Unofficial results

President

LaSalle Co. - Trump 56.7% (29,482); Biden -  41.4% (21,491)

Bureau Co. - Trump - 59.9 % (10,296); Biden -  38.1% (6,545)

Lee Co. - Trump - 58.8% (9,584); Biden - 39.0% (6,368)

State of Illinois - Biden - 51.1% (2,899,016); Trump - 43.0% (2,261,219)

United States Senator (top 3 candidates)

LaSalle County

Mark C. Curran Jr. (R) - 26,827 - 52.35%

Richard J. Durbin (D) - 21,910 - 42.75%

Willie L. Wilson (WWP) - 1,406 - 2.74%

Lee County

Mark C. Curran Jr. - 9,142 - 56.72%

Richard J. Durbin - 6,408 - 39.76%

Willie L. Wilson - 213 - 1.32%

Bureau County

Mark C. Curran Jr. - 9,379 - 55.19%

Richard J. Durbin - 6,960 - 40.96%

Willie L. Wilson - 280 - 1.65%

Statewide

Richard J. Durbin - 2,139,766 - 52.3%

Mark C. Curran Jr. - 2,737,256 - 40.9%

Willie L. Wilson - 205,922 - 3.9%

Rep. in Congress-16th Dist.

LaSalle County

Adam Kinzinger (R) - 62.05%

Dani Brzozowski (D) - 37.85%

Bureau County

Adam Kinzinger - 66.9%

Dani Brzozowski - 33.1%

Lee County

Adam Kinzinger - 66.2%

Dani Brzozowski - 33.8%

District-wide

Adam Kinzinger - 65.2%

Dani Brzozowski - 34.8%

74th District State Representative

Lee County

Dan Swanson (R) - 67.55%

Christopher Demink (D) - 32.45%

Bureau County

Dan Swanson - 73.87%

Christopher Demink - 26.13%

76th District State Representative

LaSalle County

Lance Yednock (D) - 53.85%

Travis Breeden (R) - 46.15%

Bureau County

Lance Yednock 3,427 - 59.49%

Travis Breeden 2,334 - 40.51%

90th Dist. Representative

LaSalle County

Tom Demmer (R) - 70.32%

Seth Wiggins (D) - 29.68%

Lee County

Tom Demmer - 64.88%

Seth Wiggins - 35.12%

LaSalle County State's Attorney

Todd L. Martin (D) - 51.69% (26,215)

Karen Donnelly (R) - 48.31% (24,497)

LaSalle County Auditor

Stephanie Jo Thompson (R) - 55.87%

Nikki Baer (D) - 44.13%

LaSalle County Board Chairman

Donald E. Jensen (R) - 53.15%

Jim Olson (D) - 46.85%

LaSalle County Board Member-Dist. 1

Curtis W. Faber (R) - 100% (1,470)

No candidate filed (D) - 0

Lee County Circuit Clerk

Amy Johnson - 53.55%

46. McCaffrey Ehrmann - 46.45%

Bureau County Circuit Clerk

Russell Miller (R) - 50.15%

Dawn Reglin (D) - 49.85%

Retain Kilbride-3rd Supreme Court

LaSalle County

YES - 51.02%

NO - 48.98%

Constitutional Amendment- Illinois Graduated Income Tax

LaSalle County

Yes - 31.49%

No - 68.51%

Bureau County

Yes - 28.5%

No - 71.5%

Lee County

Yes - 28.2%

No - 71.8%

State

Yes - 44.9%

No - 55.1%