Naperville Township Republican caucus pushes Vician out
By Cathy Janek For The Sun December 5, 2012 2:28PM
Naperville Township Supervisor Gary Vician Stands in front of the township offices on Monday, July 31, 2012. |Steven Buyansky~Sun-Times Media
Updated: January 8, 2013 6:16AM
Attendees of the Naperville Township Republican caucus came prepared for an eventful evening, and they certainly got it. As residents lined the walls and stairs of the Naperville Park District Barn, some jokingly took seats to the side to avoid any potential “chair throwing.”
In the end, all previously endorsed candidates by the Naperville Township Republican Organization were voted their nominees for the general election April 9.
With a vote of 158 to 94, the group nominated Rachel Ossyra for township supervisor over current Supervisor Gary Vician.
“I am taking the April general election very seriously,” Ossyra said. “I anticipate we will face a good slate from the Democratic caucus.”
The Republican group also nominated Janice Anderson, Kerry Malm, Paul Santucci and Bob Wegner for the four township trustee positions.
Long-time Naperville resident Tom Laz, who is the father of five with three serving in the U.S. Army, fell short in the trustee rac,e receiving 110 votes.
The assessor, highway commissioner and clerk did not face opposition in the Republican caucus.
While ultimately not leaving the caucus a victor Tuesday evening, Vician certainly put up an effort to keep his job.
“If you took a survey of the entire township, the results of Tuesday’s caucus would have ended differently,” Vician said.
He said a caucus has disadvantages over a general primary election where people can vote early or can vote anytime throughout the day.
“People with families are home on Tuesday nights,” he said. “The advantage is given to the political insiders and those that had a vested interest in the outcome of the caucus.”
“I am still going to keep fighting the good fight to try to improve government in Illinois,” he said. “I do a lot of volunteering in the community.”
Vician said he has been happy to have had the chance to bring attention to issues of spending taxpayers’ money.
“Over the last 20 years, businesses have learned to be more careful with their spending,” he added. “Government did the opposite, and just raised taxes.”
At the meeting’s outset, Vician brought forth a proposed rule change that would have required candidates to run together on a slate. This motion was rejected by the standing-room only crowd at the event.
Subsequently, another motion was presented that would have allowed nominations to be taken from the floor for each office and handwritten ballots used.
Vician said potential candidates for township positions that previously hadn’t come forward were in attendance at the caucus and prepared to throw their names in the race. This motion also was rejected.
After more than one hour of discussions related to how the voting would occur, a motion was made and accepted to vote on the originally presented rules of the caucus, rejecting any new motions or proposals from the floor.
According to the 2013 township caucus guide, Vician’s participation in the Republican caucus prevents him from becoming an independent candidate for the post in the same election.
If elected, Ossyra hopes to make the township more transparent, more collaborative, and communicate its services better to all residents.
However, she added, “Naperville Township always has been well-run.”
Warren Dixon III is running for the office held by his father Warren Dixon Jr., who is retiring. Dixon is a certified Illinois assessing officer and has been in private practice as a licensed real estate appraiser for 18 years.
“It is important to have an assessor who can keep commercial and residential appraisals at their appropriate levels,” he said.
Highway Commissioner Stan Wojtasiak said he was seeking another term to continue to work out the details of a $32 million intergovernmental agreement between the city of Aurora, the city of Naperville and Naperville Township. The agreement would widen North Aurora Road from two lanes to five and rebuild the bridge on North Aurora Road.
Fred Spitzerri who had previously indicated he was a candidate for township clerk was not in attendance at the meeting. Republican nominee, attorney Bob Greenberg, is seeking to replace Township Clerk Carol Bertulis, a Republican who will be retiring at the end of her term.
