Democrats formally took majority control over the McLean County Board for the first time Monday, with new members being sworn in and new leadership chosen following November's election.
Previously, Republicans and Democrats each held 10 seats on the board. Now, Democrats have a 12-to-8 majority.
Democrats occupy both the chair and vice-chair roles on the board. The vice chair will be Jim Rogal, who also will head up the Legislative and Justice committees. As expected, the board chair will be the longest-serving Democrat, Elizabeth Johnston. Both were nominated unopposed and voted in unanimously.
Committee assignments for the newly composed board also were announced Monday. In addition to the Justice and Legislative committees, the Liquor Control Board and Property Committee were previously chaired by Republican members, and now by Democrats.
With the balance of power changing, Johnston said she still expects cooperation on the board.
“I think today really was setting us off on a good foot. I think everyone was aware of the dynamics and you saw that reflected in the vote,” Johnston said in reference to the unanimous vote that named her chair. “And I hope that is our path forward.”
With a high number of new members joining the board, Johnston confirmed that members’ experience outside the board and their policy interests played a role in committee assignments. She said committee chairs remain experienced board members.
“We’ve had so much turnover, but everyone who is a chair has been previously elected. This is not their first time. So, we did focus on people who that was their kind of interest," she said.
In another matter, Johnston confirmed she supports an investigation into alleged violations of county rules by administrator Cassy Taylor, who was accused by a former county employee of using her position to gather financial support for eliminating the county auditor position. Johnston said though she supported the referendum, she isn’t involved with the PAC that received funds from the alleged misconduct, which she said is McLean County Citizens for Government Accountability.
