October 26, 2024
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Mike Turner will try for 4 more years as Woodstock mayor, and other local leaders who’ve said they’ll run

By Claire O'Brien
WGN-TV chief meteorologist Tom Skilling laughs as Woodstock Mayor Mike Turner knocks to wake up Woodstock Willie so he can look for his shadow Friday, Feb. 2, 2024, during the annual Groundhog Day Prognostication on the Woodstock Square.

Woodstock Mayor Mike Turner, with now-retired WGN-TV chief meteorologist Tom Skilling, laughs as knocks to wake up Woodstock Willie so he can look for his shadow on Feb. 2, 2024, during the annual Groundhog Day prognostication on Woodstock Square. Turner has announced he will seek another term in office in next April's local election. (Gregory Shaver/Gregory Shaver)

Woodstock Mayor Mike Turner has announced that he will seek another term in office next year.

In announcing his reelection run, Turner said on his mayoral Facebook page earlier this week: “If the voters are willing, it would be my honor to serve as mayor of Woodstock for four more years. I have thoroughly enjoyed being mayor and working for the residents of Woodstock over the past 3½ years.”

Turner was first elected mayor in 2021. Before that, he had been on the Woodstock City Council since 2005. He succeeded current McHenry County Board member Brian Sager, who had been mayor since 2005.

In Turner’s term as mayor, the city completed the Old Courthouse renovation project, but costs exceeded initial plans on the project, and the building has seen some vacancies arise since the remodeling wrapped up last fall. A new restaurant, Squire on the Square, is set to open in the coming days.

The City Council approved the controversial Riverwoods subdivision this past spring, and this summer fulfilled a goal of Turner’s since joining the council: approving plans for a hotel in downtown Woodstock.

The municipal elections are on – and this is not an April Fool’s Day joke – April 1. So far, no one else has publicly announced a run for Woodstock mayor. Local positions up for election in April include three Woodstock City Council seats and a number of school board and other governing body seats.

McHenry Mayor Wayne Jett is among other incumbent municipal leaders who have announced on Facebook several weeks ago that he, too, is running for another term. Crystal Lake Mayor Haig Haleblian is not up for reelection this term, but many other McHenry County communities will see races for mayor or village president on their ballots.

Other leaders who have indicated plans to seek another term include Lake in the Hills Village President Ray Bogdanowski, Algonquin Village President Debby Sosine, Huntley Village President Tim Hoeft, Fox River Grove Village President Marc McLaughlin, Lakewood Village President David Stavropoulos and Prairie Grove Village President David Underwood.

But no one is officially on the ballot until after they file nominating petitions in mid-November and then survive any potential challenges to those papers.

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