Morris mayor, city clerk retain positions according to unofficial election results

The Grundy County Clerk’s Office has tallied the votes from Tuesday’s Republican primary election, and the unofficial results show Morris Mayor Chris Brown retaining his position, 1,045 votes to Alex Clubb’s 386 votes.

City Clerk Lori Werden would also retain her position, according to the unofficial election results. She has 1,141 votes to opponent Karla White’s 274 votes.

Tuesday’s election was a primary election for the Republican Party, but Brown and Werden will run unopposed in the Tuesday, April 1 consolidated election.

Grundy County Clerk Kay Olson said Tuesday’s turnout was unusually high for a consolidated primary compared to the last two in 2009 and 2015, though this is the first February primary to decide the mayor that she can recall.

“We ended up with 15.02% turnout, which is actually pretty good for a consolidated primary,” Olson said. “We rarely get into the double digits.”

There were 9,539 registered voters, of which 1,433 cast ballots. Olson said there are still 30 outstanding ballots that will be counted.

“I think everything went really well,” Olson said. “It was smooth, and everything here today went nice and easy. It was uneventful, which is what we like on an election day.”

Brown issued a statement on his Facebook page thanking voters for their support.

“We are humbled by the outpouring of support from our community,” the post reads. “We are excited about the next four years and our work continuing to make Morris the greatest city it can be.”

Clubb made a post conceding the election, thanking the voters for support. Clubb will remain in his seat as the 4th Ward Alderman.