Thanks for the support!

Meredith Reid Sarkees and Patrick Murfin wish to thank all of our volunteers, contributors, supporters and the voters. We lost the election, but are proud to have stood up to be counted.

Here are the results as posted on McVote. These results are not final. Early and absentee ballots have not yet been recorded. But early voting was very light and will not significantly affect the out come.

NUNDA TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE
Vote for 4
Precincts Reporting 29/29 100.00%

TOM PALMER REP

2468 19.08%
JONI SMITH REP 2565 19.83%
JAMES C. SCHLADER REP 2356 18.21%

KELVIN JENNINGS REP 2206 17.05%
PATRICK MURFIN DEM 1656 12.80%
MEREDITH SARKEES DEM 1685 13.03%

So what happened?

Support for the Democratic Party candidates closely tracked the turn out in most Democratic Primaries (the last Presidential Primary excepted.) In other words folks who are so strongly committed to the party that they have been willing to let their friends and neighbors in a traditionally overwhelmingly Republican area know who they are came out to vote. The much larger number of folks who now vote Democratic in state and national elections, but traditionally pay no attention to local races, could not be turned out despite a concerted effort. Some how we have to get the “national Democrats” to recognize the importance of local races.

Meanwhile the Republican Party, stung by the loss of McHenry County last November, was highly motivated to re-assert their traditional dominance of local governments. The party raised and spent unprecedented money in support of their Team Nunda slate and in support of Algonquin Township trustee candidates challenged by another Democratic slate.

The township was blanketed by hundreds of Team Nunda signs and hundreds more signs for each individual candidate. By contrast the Change for Nunda campaign could only afford 50 signs at least half of which were stolen. There were also multiple mailings and robo calls. Change for Nunda got out one targeted mailing and volunteers made about 1000 phone calls in concert with McHenry County College Trustee candidate John Darger. The Republicans also actually got out and canvassed door-to-door in some areas, which has been unheard of in recent elections. They had ceded the shoe leather department to Democrats who have tried to make up for less well funded campaigns with personal campaigning.

So it became a turn-out-your-base election. And the sad fact is that in Nunda Township the Republicans can still turn out a bigger base than the Democrats.

The Nunda Open Space Referendum was also a factor. Murfin and Sarkees enthusiastically supported the referendum, which would have issued bonds to buy and preserve open space for the protecttion ground water reserves. Although the funding mechanism failed to pass it by a mere handful of votes the last time it was offered, bringing it back to the voters in hard economic times was risky. But it was a matter of conscience for both candidates.

NUNDA TOWNSHIP OPEN SPACE REFERENDUM
Precincts Reporting 29/29 100%

YES 1705 40.89%

NO 2465 59.11%

You can see that the yes vote closely paralleled the Change for Nunda numbers. Murfin and Sarkees got the majority of yes voters. On the other hand support for the referendum undoubtedly cost the candidates some votes even among Democrats voting their pocket books over environmental concerns.

Finally, did the last minute smear campaign launched against Murfin have much effect? For all of the strum und drang it was essentially shouting down the rain barrel. It got half a dozen lunatics into a froth in the on-line comments to letters to the editor in the Northwest Herald. “Discussion” there quickly spun out of control and ended with accusations that Murfin was an actual “Communist.” But most voters of either party disregarded the noise. It certainly did not effect the Democratic base. At worst may have motivated a couple of dozen knuckle draggers to turn out to vote for Team Nunda—and to oil their guns in preparation for the upcoming insurrection against the “socialist/facist/muslim/terrorists/gun grabbing/baby killing regime in Washington.”

But despite the defeat, this election was an important skirmish in the on going guerilla campaign to “Turn McHenry County Blue.” By not ceding local races to the Republicans, Democrats force them to spend large amounts of cash. We keep our campaign organizations intact and in practice between even-year general elections. And we develop experienced candidates who learn the ropes and can go on to bigger things. First time candidate Sarkees, who outdrew old timer Murfin, has all of the credentials to go on to other races.

CHANGE FOR NUNDA CANDIDATES ENDORSE OPEN SPACE REFERENDUM

Patrick Murfin and Meredith Reid Sarkees, candidates for Nunda Township Trustee, announced their endorsement of the Nunda Open Space Referendum on Tuesday, March 17.

Democrats Murfin and Sarkees are running together as the Change for Nunda ticket and are opposed by four Republican Team Nunda candidates.

Both Sarkees and Murfin supported the last Open Space Referenda in which the authorization to establish the program was passed, but the funding mechanism was narrowly defeated. Both, however, wanted to take a careful look at the new proposal.

“One of our main campaign issues,” Murfin said, “has been ‘how can we best preserve our threatened ground water resources and preserve open space as citizens buffeted by the economy while tax revenues stagnate or fall?’” He said a close examination of the referendum question in its present form convinced the candidates that it was the best option for preserving ground water and maintaining open and undeveloped land in a responsible and affordable manner.

Responding to critics of the referendum Murfin noted that intense development with its roads and rooftops really is a demonsratable threat to scarce ground water resourses. Land purchases under the program will insure that more rain water and snow melt will recharge the aquifer.

The program, which will save smaller and isolated parcels, does not in anyway duplicate or compete with the McHenry County Conservation District’s land acquisition program, which the MCCD itself has acknowledged.

The total bonding authority being requested has been reduced to 15 million dollars from the measure as it last appeared on the ballot. Yet currently falling land prices means that the same amount—or even more—land will be able to be acquired for preservation.

The twenty year level tax rate to repay the bonds means that costs to individual homeowners are reasonable and predictable—they will not rise. An average 250,000 home, for example, would see only a $44 yearly cost. “And open space is proven to enhance property values in the long run,” Murfin said, “many homeowners could find their costs offset by the rise in the value of their property.”

Murfin and Sarkees join elected officials from both parties in supporting the referendum including Nunda Township Supervisor John Heisler, State Senator Pam Althoff, and County Board District 3 members Kathy Bergan Schmidt and Barb Wheeler.

The measure is also endorsed by virtually every environmental organization in the county including the McHenry County Conservation Foundation, the Land Conservancy, Boone Creek Watershed Alliance, USDA Natural Resources Conservation District, The Sierra Club, McHenry County Audubon Society, Friends of the Fox, Environmental Defenders of McHenry County, and the McHenry County Soil and Water Conservation District Open Lands Project.

Agricultural and land owning interests including the McHenry County Farm Bureau and the Bull Valley Association are also on board.

“We feel we are in good company joining this broad support for the public good,” Murfin said.

And the Winners are…

Change for Nunda candidates Patrick Murfin and Meredith Reid Sarkees congratulate the winners of the Republican Party Primary, Tom Palmer, Joni Smith,
James C. Schlader, and Kelvin “Lee” Jennings. We look forward to engaging them in a vigorous debate about the future of our township. The vote totals courtesy of McVote are:

NUNDA TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE

Vote for 4

Precincts Reporting 29/29 100.00%

TOM PALMER 581 19.95%
JONI SMITH 540 18.54%
JAMES C. SCHLADER 512 17.58%
KELVIN JENNINGS 480 16.48%
RICHARD MEYERS 412 14.14%
KEVIN SARNWICK 388 13.32%

All four trustee candidates ran together as part of Team Nunda, which was led by powerful Highway Commissioner Don Kopsell, who was unopposed in the primary. Dennis Jagla crushed Alan Weaver, the candidate who ran as a “soft” Republican and who appealed for Democratic support with a disingenuous mailer.

All in all, it was a triumph for the regular Republican political machine and business as usual. Team Nunda can leave out all of those campaign signs already dotting the township. They probably believe that they can sprint toward victory in the April 7 Consolidated Election while hardly breaking a sweat.

But only about 850 voters participated in the primary. They represent, for the most part, the core of party diehards. The spring election is also typically a low turn-out affair. But this time Democrats and the many Independents, who are loath to identify party preference to their friends and neighbors, will be in the mix. And these voters are eager to see the refreshing winds of change and reform blow through this corner of the county as they have blown through Washington. They know that the economic crisis faced by all of us will bring new challenges to township government that can only be met with fresh eyes and hands.

Democrats and Independents have often skipped the spring off-year election because the races are low profile and they have assumed the contests—when there are any—have been decided by an unchallengeable GOP machine. But if we can get only one quarter of the folks who cast Democratic ballots in the 2008 Primary or who in the privacy of the voting booth changed the political landscape of McHenry County forever by decisively supporting Barack Obama, we can win. Yes we can!

It is our job to make sure those Democrats and Independents know what is at stake. You will be hearing from us. We will be reminding you to vote—and to cast your votes only for Sarkees and Murfin.

You can help us get the message out by hitting the PayPal button in the left-hand column and donating now to the Friends of Murfin and Sarkees.

--Patrick Murfin

Republican Candidate Sends Phony Democratic Mailing

I came home from work and was mystified to find a slick postcard mailing splashed with Democratic blue and featuring prominent donkey logos promoting Alan Weaver for Nunda Township Assessor. I went to his web site and confirmed that he is running in the Republican primary. My guess is that this was a special targeted mailing to Dems to get us to vote in the Republican primary under the theory that anyone opposed to the incumbents are our allies. It does mean that he is pretty well financed for a Township campaign if he can afford to print and send a special mailing to Democrats. I am not sure if he will succeed in attracting any votes. I think his message is confusing. And as a real Democratic candidate for office in Nunda Township, I certainly won't be voting in a Republican primary or encouraging anyone else to do so.

Patrick Murfin,

Candidate,

Nunda Township Trustee

SARKEES AND MURFIN ENTER RACE FOR NUNDA TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE

On Tuesday, January 13, 2008 Democrats meeting at the Nunda Township Hall selected Meredith Reid Sarkees and Patrick Murfin as candidates for trustee in the April 7 local elections.

Sarkees of unincorporated Crystal Lake is a ten year McHenry County resident is a professor of political science who has published widely on international relations, war and women. She told the caucus voters that she felt the time had come in her life and career to turn her attention to local government and service.

Murfin of Crystal Lake is the Secretary of the Democratic Party of McHenry County and previously ran for Crystal Lake City Council in 1997 and for McHenry County Board from District 3 in 2002.

Nunda Democrats identified groundwater preservation, open space, and regional planning as top issues in the upcoming campaign.

Watch this space for more information on Meredith and Patrick, news, events, and examination of the issues.

Early voting begins Monday March 16 and Election Day is Tuesday April 7.