Bill Roth looking at reelection to Kane County Board District 12

Unofficial vote totals show incumbent Republican Bill Roth of St. Charles leading Democrat challenger Ricky Rivard in the race for Kane County Board District 12. With all precincts reporting, unofficial vote totals as of 4 p.m. Nov. 8 showed Roth leading with 6,394 votes over Rivard with 5,185 votes. Turnout was 79.5%.

Roth said he ran a similar campaign to the one he ran in 2022, going door to door, touting his accomplishments and detailing his plan “to bring normal back to politics.” He said the time he invested, his commitment and the trust he gained in his first term were what he thinks resonated with voters.

Roth said while he ran as a conservative, he doesn’t think party politics should play a major role at the county level.

“I leave my ego at home. I’m representing the voters and I think that’s critical,” Roth said. “I think there’s too much politics on the local level. We’ve got to be willing to compromise. There’s too many extremes on the left and the right.”

Roth said the biggest challenges the board faces are inefficiency and financial hurdles. He said during his second term he will continue to push efficiency by improving processes and transparency and implementing the use of technology.

Rather than raising taxes, Roth believes the financial restraints the board faces can be solved by cutting expenses and making smarter, more strategic investments.

“We can’t keep spending our way down the road,” Roth said. “We’ve got a great county and I want to continue to make that great.”

Roth said he’s proud of what he accomplished in his first term, and with two years of experience under his belt, he said he is off the learning curve and ready to continue making improvements.

“I plan to keep doing what I’ve done the past two years because it’s been working,” Roth said. “If we do it the right way, we can continue to improve Kane County.”