Contested presidential election forming in Northfield

Trustee Tracey Mendrek has earned the support of the Northfield Village Caucus in a 2025 run for village president, but it appears she won’t be alone on the ballot.

Fellow Trustee Charles Orth told The Record of his intent to run independently for the position.

Mendrek’s first term as trustee is expiring in 2025, and she bested multiple applicants to win the caucus’s endorsement, which was announced Saturday, Oct. 12.

“It seemed to me that this was the next natural progression for me to serve as village president after spending four years as a trustee,” Mendrek told The Record. “I felt like my strengths lend themselves to leading this board forward. I think we need strong and compassionate leadership, and I would love to see us have a way to begin again and move forward in a more cohesive way.” 

The caucus interviews interested candidates before members vote for whom the caucus will endorse. Without providing more detail, Beverly Smith, president of the caucus, said the organization interviewed multiple candidates for village president, as well as for open trustee seats, and was pleased with the level of participation this cycle. Smith said 20 caucus members voted.

Orth and Trustee Barnaby Dinges told The Record that they interviewed with the caucus for the village president position.

After not gaining the caucus’s endorsement, Dinges, whose trustee term expires in 2025, is unsure if he will seek office again — whether for another trustee term or the village presidency as an independent candidate. The deadline to file a candidate application with the county is Nov. 18.

Orth, however, said he is collecting signatures with the intent to run against Mendrek for village president.

“I’ve lived in Northfield 65 years, I have 45 years experience in municipal government and am in my second term as a village trustee,” he said. “I think I know the issues and would bring the board together, bring honesty, bring integrity and open government. I think the residents need to be heard and I think a lot lately the residents’ feelings have not been listened to.”

This would not be Orth’s first independent run. He was not a caucus candidate when he was first elected to the Northfield Village Board in 2019. The caucus did slate Orth for his re-election in 2023.

Mendrek was caucus-slated during her successful run for trustee in 2021. She said that even after winning the caucus endorsement, she was expecting a contested race; however, she is not sure that is a good thing for Northfield.

“When it’s really, really important, all of the trustees vote unanimously on issues,” Mendrek said, referring to aligning with Orth and Dinges. “It makes me wonder why we have to have a contested election. I don’t think it is in the best interest of Northfield to have a contested election.”

The last Northfield village president election — when Greg Lungmus won the seat in 2021 — was not contested. But it almost was.

Joan Frazier, the town’s president from 2017-2021, initially said she would challenge caucus-endorsed Lungmus, but did not follow through with her candidate filing. Lungmus will be finished after one term as village president in 2025.

The Northfield Village Caucus also endorsed three candidates for village trustee with the terms of Mendrek, Dinges and Matt Galin expiring. Galin, Edwin Elfmann and Andrew Juedes are the caucus recommendations and it is unclear by press time if they will face any challengers.

In a caucus press release, Elfmann said, “I truly believe Northfield is a hidden gem on the North Shore. I look forward to working on behalf of the Northfield residents to advance our community’s interests and ensure that it continues to be a great place to live and work.”

And Juedes said, “I … am deeply committed to the Village of Northfield. I believe in fostering a collaborative approach to decision-making and want to ensure that Northfield remains a vibrant and inclusive place to live.”

The Record is a nonprofit, nonpartisan community newsroom that relies on reader support to fuel its independent local journalism.

Subscribe to The Record to fund responsible news coverage for your community.

Already a subscriber? You can make a tax-deductible donation at any time.