Dixon voters listen 
to candidates sound off

DIXON – The Dixon High School cafeteria was packed Tuesday night as curious voters came to meet Dixon Township supervisor and Dixon School Board candidates.

Six candidates are campaigning for township supervisor, and nine are vying for four school board seats.

Tiffany Woodward, 25, of Dixon, a KSB nurse, came to learn about their platforms. “Since there are so many candidates for these positions, I wanted to hear how they are all different and see why they are running,” she said.

“Usually these races are uncontested – it’s been that way for so long,” she said.

Gerry Stevens, 70, said her No. 1 concern is township finances.

“I think we all definitely need to be concerned about how money is being spent,” said Stevens, a former Franklin Grove Township clerk.

In her experience, most people do not know what a township government is or how it works, which is why the forum is so important, she said.

“When it comes to elections, I think most people vote for the person who they think will do the best job for the citizens,” Stevens said. “Consequently, most don’t go to [township] meetings and just hope that those they elect are doing what they’ve promised.”

Eldon Moser, 77, of Dixon, also came to hear what the candidates had to say.

“There are so many people running, so it must be a pretty important job,” he said. “I just wanted to come out and see what [the candidates] are all about.”

Vince Melendrez, 50, a highway maintenance worker for the Illinois Department of Transportation District 2, said road conditions in the township are a concern for him.

“There are a lot of roads out there that definitely need work done as long as it’s within the budget,” he said.

Coming this week

Thursday: A profile of the race for the Dixon Public Schools Board of Education

Friday: A profile of the race for Dixon Township supervisor