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Name: Bradley Hoey
What office are you seeking? City Clerk, City of DeKalb
What is your political party? Independent
What is your current age? 63
Occupation and employer: Special Projects Manager, DeKalb County Convention and Visitors Bureau
What offices, if any, have you previously held? I have not previously held any political office(s).
City: DeKalb
Campaign Website: voteforhoey.com
Education: I have a Bachelor of Arts degree from Northern Illinois University.
Community Involvement: Hoey served 10 years as a member of the DeKalb County Convention and Visitors Bureau’s (DCCVB) Board of Directors, including serving in the role of the organization’s board president for four years (2016-2020). During his time on the DCCVB board, Hoey helped craft the DeKalb County/NIU bid to host the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Football State Championships during odd years from 2013-2021. As a member of the coordinating committee for the IHSA State Football Championships, Hoey developed the IHSA Destination DeKalb brand and served as point person on marketing initiatives associated with the event.
Hoey currently serves as chair for the City of DeKalb’s Citizens’ Community Enhancement Commission and has been intimately involved in promoting and perpetuating the city’s public art initiatives.He is a member of the Family Service Agency of DeKalb County (FSA) board of directors, and he is involved in the #ProudlyDeKalb group In 2020, Hoey became a member of the newly formed DeKalb County UNITES group, which assisted local small businesses, business owners and employees with information and resources to navigate the economic challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, Hoey joined the DeKalb County Economic Development Corporation’s (DCEDC) Opportunity Unbound initiative as a marketing consultant.
Hoey involvement with the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce spans nearly three decades. He was intimately involved with the chamber and City of DeKalb’s early efforts to bring the IHSA Football State Championships to DeKalb County. He was an inaugural member of the DeKalb Chamber’s Proudly DeKalb marketing initiative and has served as a panelist and presenter for several Leadership Academy classes. He is a member of the DeKalb Chamber Ambassadors and has served as a volunteer at numerous chamber events over the years.
Hoey has also served as host and emcee for dozens of Northern Illinois University (NIU) athletics and university functions. These events include awards ceremonies and banquets (22 years as emcee of the Huskie Football awards banquet) fundraising and charity auctions, NIU Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, NCAA Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships welcome and awards ceremonies, conference tournament welcome ceremonies, university town hall meetings, and the rededication of NIU’s Fay Cooper Cole Hall. Hoey has also served as a reader/announcer at NIU Commencement ceremonies. He is a long-time member of the NIU Athletics Hall of Fame selection committee and the Huskie Fan Advisory Board.
Hoey is parishioner at Christ the Teacher University Parish in DeKalb and has served for years as a Lector and has been a sponsor for the parish’s OCIA (Order of Christian Initiation for Adults) program.
Along with his role as a public address announcer for Huskie men’s and women’s basketball, football, volleyball, baseball, softball, wrestling, and gymnastics,
Hoey also assisted in the university’s marketing initiatives associated with NIU football’s appearance in 2013 Orange Bowl, including coordinating the student “Huskie Street Team” media blitz in December 2012.
Hoey is an NIU Supportive Professional Staff (SPS) Award recipient and was recently honored with a 2024 NIU College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) Alumni Award, the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce’s 2024 Ambassador of the Year, and was inducted into the DeKalb Chamber Hall of Fame in 2025. He is also a recipient of a City of DeKalb “Key to the City.”
Prior to his career at NIU, Hoey was a news and sports anchor and reporter at WIFR-TV (CBS) in Rockford, IL from 1985-90. During his time at WIFR, Hoey and his news/sports team received two Associated Press (AP) awards for downstate sports reporting, and he helped establish WIFR’s southern Wisconsin Rock County News Bureau. He began his media career as a play-by-play announcer at WRHL-AM/FM in Rochelle (1984-85) and later served as the “voice” for the Machesney Park Harlem High School Huskies doing play-by-play for WLUV AM/FM (1985-87).
A native of Rockton, IL, Hoey attended Hononegah Community High School and is a proud alumnus of Northern Illinois University. He has resided in DeKalb for over 30 years.
Marital status/Immediate family: Single, no children.
Questions:
Why are you running for this office?
I am running for the office of City Clerk to bring continuity, professionalism, integrity, and respectability to the office. The office of City Clerk in the City of DeKalb has essentially been a revolving door of personnel over the past decade. Several past office holders have been derelict in their duties, have not effectlvely or efficiently performed the duties of clerk, and have, at times, obstructed city staff members and elected officials for performing the necessary duties of the office. These issues and others are unnecessary and have caused the city embarrassment and cost taxpayers money. We currently have a good team of hard working, dedicated, and competent staff currently working at City Hall. If elected, I will serve the City of DeKalb as City Clerk to the best of my abiliy, and would be proud to work along side the staff and elected officials at City Hall.
What is the duty of the DeKalb City Clerk? How do you plan to execute these duties to the best of your ability if elected?
The duties and responsibilities of the City Clerk in the City of DeKalb include:
- The recording and preparation of minutes of City Council meetings, including the results of resolutions, ordinances, and other official actions approved by the city council.
- Oversight of the review, approval, and release of all minutes associated with executive session of a city council meeting.
- Maintains regular office hours for the transaction and execution of the city’s business.
- Maintains one of the city’s corporate seals, and applies the city’s seal to various official documents.
- Receives and tracks legal notices sent to the city.
- Administers oaths.
- Responsible for the administration of the local election process that occurs every two years, and notifies individuals elected to public office of the during an election within five (5) days after the election results have been declared.
I have extensive experience in maintaining and leading a communications office and team (at NIU) and am intimately familiar with the State of Illinois Freedom of Information Act (FIOA) and the Illinois Open Meetings Act. I will work effectively and tirelessly with City of DeKalb staff and elected officials to manage and execute the duties and responsibilities of the office of City Clerk.
The DeKalb City Council in 2024 got rid of the part-time $8,000 annual salary for the DeKalb City Clerk’s Office. If elected, as it stands now, the work you do will be unpaid. Do you agree with this? Why or why not?
Due to the a history of performance issues, particularily by the most recently elected City Clerk along with other individuals who have held the role of City Clerk over the past decade, the City of DeKalb has had to take extraordinary measures to ensure that the duties and responsibilities associated with the office of City Clerk are satisfactorly addressed. While it is unfortunate that the City has eliminated any salary associated with office of City Clerk, I do understand the extraordinary circumstances that forced the City Council to execute such a measure. The business of the city needs to get done, and official records of proceedings of a municipality, by statue, must be maintained. If elected, I pledge to perform the duties and responsibilies of the office City Clerk, despite of the lack of salary. It is at the discretion of the elected leadership of the City to revisit in the future an opportunity to reinstate an annual salary for the part-time City Clerk position.
The DeKalb City Clerk’s Office has been at the center of controversy for a number of years related to the duties of the office, who performs them, attendance and legal disputes. Most recently in early 2024, the sitting clerk was ousted from his office by a DeKalb County judge. The City of DeKalb has not filled the role since, instead allocating the duties to a city staffer, citing a need for more consistent and reliable performance of duty. Do you agree with this decision? Why or why not?
As I mentioned in my response to the previous question, The business of the city needs to get done, and official records of proceedings of a municipality, by statue, must be maintained. The dereliction of duties and obstructionist attitude and performance by the most recently elected City Clerk of DeKalb forced the city’s elected leadership to take unprecidented legal action to extract from office the sitting clerk. I support the action by the City to oust an individual who openly exibited great disdain for local government, and who betrayed the trust of the citizens of DeKalb. Such behavior by an individual elected to the office of City Clerk or any position in municipal government is unacceptable.
If elected, how would you work with existing city staff and fellow elected officials toward an efficient, professional and productive clerk’s office?
If elected as City Clerk, my goal is to serve as an additional asset in office’s efforts to efficiently and effectly perform the required duties and responsibilities of the office of City Clerk. I have a long and decorated history of public and community service and have served in a leadership role on several boards of directors, municipal commissions, and committees during me time as a resident of DeKalb. I have a reputation as a connector and a collaborator, and I believe these qualities along with my leadership experience, positive attitude, and strong work ethic would be a valuable contribution to the good work being done by our elected officials and professional staff at DeKalb City Hall.
DeKalb voters in November voted down a referendum which asked if they supported changing the office from an elected to an appointed clerk. Do you agree with the voters? Why or why not?
Unfortunately, due to the a history of performance issues, particularily by the most recently elected City Clerk along with other individuals who have held the role of City Clerk, the City of DeKalb has had to take extraordinary measures to ensure that the duties and responsibilities associated with the office of City Clerk are satisfactorly completed. The role of the City Clerk is to effectively and efficiently conduct the business of the city, serve as the keeper of record for official city proceedings of the city and is responsible for the city’s corporate seal and the affixing of the official seal to various documents, among other responsibilities. While many municipalities within the state and across the country in recent years have transitioned to an appointed position to fulfill city clerk duties, the voters in DeKalb have spoken, and I am running for City Clerk for that reason.