Will County board member Lauren Staley-Ferry was leading Lockport Township Clerk Denise Mushro-Rumchak in the Democratic primary Tuesday for Will County clerk.
Current Clerk Nancy Schultz Voots is retiring at the end of her fourth term.
In unofficial results, Staley-Ferry had 59 percent of the vote, compared to Mushro-Rumchak’s 41 percent with all precincts reporting.
The winner will face Republican Laurie McPhillips in the November general election. McPhillips was unopposed in the primary.
Staley-Ferry, who was backed by the Democratic Party and the unions, held close to a 60 percent of the vote throughout the night.
During the campaign, Mushro-Rumchak claimed to be the “only candidate with real experience for the position and a demonstrated record of trustworthiness in public office.”
She cited her 18 years of knowledge and experience as the township’s deputy clerk and her three years as clerk. Her brother George Mushro is former head of the county’s Democratic Party.
Mushro-Rumchak said she asked the party for support, but members early on had “primed” her opponent.
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“It’s hard to say what made a difference. She had a lot of backing” and more funding, she said.
“Of course it’s disappointing. But I ran an honest campaign and my team worked really hard. I can hold my head up high,” Mushro-Rumchak said.
During the campaign, she highlighted the issue of “trustworthiness” after it was reported that Staley-Ferry faced a felony forgery charge in 2002 in Maricopa County when she wrote herself a $500 check from her Arizona employer and moved out of state. The charge was dropped in 2012.
That did not appear to be an issue for voters.
On the county board, Staley-Ferry is Democratic Minority Whip and serves District 9 which is spread across parts of New Lenox, Homer, Lockport, Joliet, Plainfield and Troy townships.
She could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.
She worked in various roles at Capital One from 2006-2017. In 2015, she earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from Rasmussen College.
She said her combination of corporate skills and county government were “a perfect fit” for the clerk’s office.