12 candidates file for city council seats in Decatur

DECATUR — There will not be a late February primary for the Decatur City Council in 2021. Twelve candidates made candidate filings to City Clerk Kim Althoff for the past week. The filing deadline for cities with over 10,000 residents and home rule municipalities across Illinois was at 5 p.m. today. Of the 12 filings, two are current aldermen. David Horn and Chuck Kuhle are both seeking re-election to their seats in the April consolidated election.

A look at some of the Decatur council contenders

Challengers include Anthony S. Chapple, Adolphis Cooper, Ed Culp, and Elijah England. Other candidates who made their filings were Hardik Shah, Marty Watkins, and William Wetzel. These candidates would file last week. Three candidates filed their petitions Monday: Jacob Jenkins, John Phillips Jr., and Marc Girdler. Phillips Jr. is not a stranger to local politics, having previously run for city council and for Macon County Board. To force a primary, there would have had to be 13 candidates filing paperwork. Had that taken place, the primary determines the top six to advance to the consolidated general election.

Decatur city clerk to hold ballot placement lottery

There will be a ballot placement lottery taking place on December 2. Culp, Horn, Kuhle, and Watkins were present on November 16 when the clerk’s office opened that morning. Pat McDaniel, who currently holds the third seat up next spring, previously made an announcement that he was not seeking re-election. The April 6 consolidated election will also feature other local races. They include school, park, and community college boards, as well as townships and other lesser districts. In contrast to the City of Decatur’s races, the filing period for those races is not until December.

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