Thornton Township, Illinois elects new trustee after Supervisor Tiffany Henyard was denied pick
SOUTH HOLLAND, Ill. (CBS) -- A special election was held Tuesday to pick a new Thornton Township trustee — a pick that Thornton Township Supervisor Tiffany Henyard wanted to make herself.
New trustee Stephanie Wiedeman won nomination and was sworn in at the Tuesday night assembly. She replaced Jerry Jones, who resigned.
Despite single-digit temperatures, Thornton Township residents stood in line to enter the rec center at South Suburban College in South Holland for the special election. Hundreds ended up packing into the gymnasium — including Mary Smith of South Holland.
"This has brought the whole Thornton down," she said.
Jones resigned from his position back in October. That resignation left Henyard with the authority to select the trustee of her choice within 60 days.
Trustees Chris Gonzalez and Carmen Carlisle had refused to attend meeting since Jones' resignation this past fall. The trustees' absence prevented a quorum, and thus prevented Henyard from making that appointment before those 60 days expired.
"We weren't going backwards," Gonzalez said Tuesday night. There's no way we were stepping back."
Voters in the gymnasium nominated three people to fill the vacant trustee seat — and selected Wiedeman with a show of panels.
Wiedeman is no stranger to Thornton Township. She served as the executive assistant to the late former township supervisor Frank Zuccarelli — only to be fired by Henyard.
Wiedeman said she could not say under all circumstances whether she would side with the Gonzalez and Carlisle or with Henyard.
"I am going to be the voice of the residents," Wiedeman said. "That means I'm on the side of what I think is best for the collective."
As quickly as the vote took place, this gymnasium cleared out. But people left more optimistic about the future of Thornton Township.
"Because she is the best," Smith said. "She was one of the ones that worked under Frank Zuccarelli, and we were great under Frank."
But getting to the special election did force services and insurance to lapse in the township, as the Gonzalez and Carlisle boycotting meetings prevented township business from getting done.
When asked whether the meeting boycott tactic was detrimental or helpful to the township, Gonzalez said, "It was what was necessary."
Wiedeman will serve until May 2025 when the new trustees are sworn in.
Henyard was noticeably absent from the special election.
Last month, a Democratic Party Caucus for Thornton Township resulted in Henyard herself being denied a place on the ballot for reelection as township supervisor. She lost to Illinois state Sen. Napoleon Harris, who also serves as the Thornton Township Democratic committeeman.
In Thornton Township, a fight has also ensued over lapsed insurance.
Henyard continues to face criticism of her spending as supervisor of Township and separately as mayor of Dolton.