League of Women Voters of Central Kane County to Host Candidate Forums for Batavia, Geneva, and St. Charles Candidates for Mayor and City Council

BATAVIA, IL – The League of Women Voters of Central Kane County has announced a series of upcoming Mayor and City Council candidate forums in St. Charles, Geneva, and Batavia. The forums will feature candidates on the April 1st, 2025 Illinois Consolidated Election ballot who are in contested races in their respective communities.

All three forums will be live, in-person, and open to the public. They will also be live-streamed and available for later viewing on the websites of the League of Women Voters of Central Kane County (lwvckcil.com) and the Illinois Voter Guide (illinoisvoterguide.org).

All candidates will be allowed time at the beginning and at the end of their respective segments for opening and closing statements. During each segment, candidates will respond to audience questions submitted during registration and throughout the event. Audience members’ questions will be reviewed by trained LWV members for appropriateness prior to asking. 

The three forums are as follows: 

The St. Charles Mayor and City Council Candidate Forum will be held at 6:00pm on Wednesday, January 29th at the St. Charles Public Library, located at 1 S. 6th Avenue in St. Charles. The following candidates were extended invitations to participate: 

• Mayor: Clint Hull, Lora A. Vitek 
• City Council: Ronald Silkaitis, Robert Kasper, Ryan S. Bongard, Angela Churchill, Vicki Spellman, Paul D. Lencioni, Carolyn Waibel, Steven Weber, Lauren Duddles 

The Batavia Mayor and City Council Candidate Forum will be held at 6:30pm on Tuesday, February 4th at Batavia City Hall, located at 100 N. Island Avenue in Batavia. The following candidates were extended invitations to participate:

• Mayor: Thomas M. Connelly, Jeffery D. Schielke
• City Council: Doug Eldrenkamp, Dustin Pieper, James Fahrenbach, Garran DeWain Sparks, Matthew Anderson, Kate Cuneo

The Geneva Mayor and City Council Candidate Forum will be held at 12:00 noon on Sunday, February 9th at the Geneva Public Library, located at 227 S 7th St. in Geneva. The following candidates were extended invitations to participate: 

• Mayor: Kevin Burns, Karsten Pawlik
• City Council: Lee W. Eysturlid, Larry Furnish, Kevin J. Ziegler, Amy Mayer, Erin M. DiSilvestro, Patrice Bertheau, Jeff Palmquist, Kim Edwards

Patti Lackman is the Voter Service Chair of the League of Women Voters of Central Kane County. She shared, “The decisions we make and the officers we choose through local elections can have a profound effect on the health of our schools, businesses, and community. These forums are a great opportunity for voters to see and ask questions of their candidates. We encourage every candidate invited to these forums to participate fully. The League of Women Voters provides forums such as these as a service to the public. We are a non-partisan organization, and we never support or endorse candidates or political parties.”

Nonpartisan information about voting in Illinois can be found at https://illinoisvoterguide.org/. 

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.