The city of Bloomington will have four new council members in May, including two candidates who campaigned on devoting more attention to the city’s historic neighborhoods and urban core.
Council seats in five of the city’s nine wards were up for election; only one incumbent was on the ballot.
Ward 4
In Ward 4, which includes historic neighborhoods east of downtown, State Farm attorney and city planning commission member John Wyatt Danenberger defeated Steven Nalefski, a retired highway engineer, with 54% of the vote.
At a campaign watch party at Keg Grove Brewery, Danenberger commended Nalefski for a running a “congenial” campaign.
“He’s an absolute asset to this community, and he has seen things in ways I don’t see, so I would hope that he would … be a thought partner for me,” Danenberger said.
Danenberger ran on a campaign of emphasizing Bloomington's older neighborhoods and improving the city’s aging infrastructure.
Nalefski said earlier in the evening he never planned a life of public service after retiring, but a local elected official asked him to run for the council seat.
“I think I did about as much as I could that was humanly possible,” Nalefski said during a campaign watch party at Golden Dragon Restaurant.
Danenberger will replace Julie Emig, the McLean County Museum of History director who did not seek a second term.
Ward 6
Ward 6, which includes downtown and some surrounding neighborhoods, went to Cody Hendricks, a history teacher at Olympia High School and a former Pekin City Council member.
Hendricks won with 59% of the vote over Jordan Baker, a former legislative aide to state Sen. Jason Barickman and an elections staffer in the McLean County clerk’s office.
Hendricks said the decision to start campaigning last August paid off.
“We were criticized by some for starting a little too early, getting involved before the November election was over, but local elections matter so much,” said Hendricks, indicating Baker came to his election party to concede and congratulate him on his win.
Hendricks ran on a campaign of constituent services and “radically transforming” downtown.
He will replace De Urban, a downtown business owner who was appointed in 2021 and did not file for election.
No contests
Two other newcomers did not face opposition. Jenna Kearns, who works for a legal philanthropic foundation, ran uncontested in Ward 1 (south Bloomington.) Grant Walch, who was appointed last year, did not run for the four-year seat.
Kent Lee, an insurance analyst at State Farm, ran unopposed in Ward 8 (southeast Bloomington). Jeff Crabill did not file for re-election.
Donna Boelen, who is also mayor pro tem, won re-election to a second term in Ward 2 (southwest Bloomington).
New council members will be sworn in May 1. The mayor’s seat is up for election in April 2025.
Voter turnout in Bloomington was 23%. Turnout was under 10% for the last municipal non-mayoral election in 2019.
