In an overwhelming victory, incumbent Ald. Stephen Engelman carried the Seventh Ward with nearly 60 percent of the vote. The Seventh Ward is home to many Northwestern students, but according to the city clerk’s office, only 29 people from the Ninth Precinct turned out to vote in Patten Gym.
In the crowded race, Howard Levin attracted 24 percent of the vote and came in second. Karl Gromelski received 13 percent, and Junad Rizki came in fourth with 63 votes, or just under 5 percent.
Engelman stayed home Tuesday night, relaxing in casual clothes. He did not send anyone to watch polls, instead relying on the Internet for updates.
Supporters and friends visited Engelman throughout the evening. At around 9:30 p.m., he declared victory.
Engelman said voters chose him over his three opponents because of his years of experience dealing with city issues.
“Evanston has challenges facing it regarding fiscal problems,” Engelman said. “The problem with Gromelski was that he really didn’t know the city.”
Gromelski, who is a marketing consultant, campaigned on a platform of increased fiscal responsibility. He said the city should seek creative alternatives, such as city-business partnerships, instead of resorting to property tax increases to pay for growing budgets. Gromelski also wanted NU to contribute more to Evanston to offset problems.
Levin also incorporated the fair share issue into his campaign, making it the centerpiece of his platform. He said NU should pay Evanston $14.5 million each year.
Levin was not in Evanston Tuesday night, but campaign manager Gerald Adler was in town to monitor the election.
“The impact of the local election is more important than the presidential election,” Adler said before results were announced. “If we win, it will be foot-leather over checkbook voting.”
Engelman, who was first elected to the council in 1991, said the aldermanic elections, in which all returning incumbents won, showed that “the public doesn’t want to deal with angry politics and confrontation.”
Engelman pointed to the First Ward race, in which Ald. Art Newman defeated Kellogg Prof. Allan Drebin by 57 votes out of more than 1,500 cast. That race had been particularly bitter, with Newman and Drebin trading barbs on a nearly daily basis.
“What surprised me was that if you take away the student vote, the result is still close,” he said. “It is a wake-up call for other aldermen that bullying tactics are not what the community wants or needs.”
The Daily’s Ben Winograd contributed to this report.
