Election Season starts February 5th at clerks office
It's that time again...primary election season. Between February 5 and March 17, 2026, citizens will be asked to make choices for who serves in various government positions again. March 17 is the actual voting day, but in Illinois, it is just the final day of election season since mail in ballots go out, and early voting begins February 5. Vote by Mail in Illinois began in earnest during the Covid pandemic in the 2020 election, and has advanced to offer permanent vote by mail status. 619 voters in White County have opted for permanent vote by mail.
The biggest local race in the upcoming Republican primary is sure to be the White County Sheriff's race. First term Sheriff Jordan Weiss of Norris City is in the running for his second term, but retired Carmi police officer Chris Pollard has launched a challenge to Weiss for that job.
In other County positions, Republicans are fielding Kayci Heil for a second term as County Clerk, Micheal Baxley for his second term as County Treasurer, and Gary Baxley for a second term as Supervisor of Assessments. There are no Democrat candidates for those positions at this time.
For County board, David South is seeking another term in CB1 and Amanda Cannon also wants to retain her seat for CB2. J. Alan Knight is running for the seat in CB5 being vacated by Clint Spencer. All three are Republicans and there are no Democrat challengers.
Moving on to the Representative races, 116th Representative Dave Severin (R) has a challenger in Angela Evans for the seat he has held for ten years. In the 117th Rep. District, Patrick Windhorst is unopposed in the Republican primary.
Senator Dale Fowler in the 59th Senate district is retiring from his seat. 118th District Representative Paul Jacobs and Franklin County Treasurer Steve Vercellino are vying for that slot.
There is a race for Regional office of Education with Sarah Emery, who is currently serving as assistant to Beth Rister (current holder of that position), and challenger Shain Crank, who is currently superintendent of the Galatia School district. The Regional District covers nine southern Illinois counties, serving Edwards, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Pope, Saline, Wabash, Wayne, and White Counties.
Republican candidates have been attending the fall and winter White County GOP meetings to introduce themselves and speak to voters. Other candidates on the ballot will be precinct committeemen from their respective townships.
