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Nine candidates filed petitions to run for East Peoria City Council from 8 a.m. Dec. 13 to 5 p.m. Monday.
Three incumbents, Dan Decker, Gary Densberger and Tim Jeffers — all running for a second term — filed at 8 p.m. Dec. 13 for the four open commissioner seats as well as three newcomers, John Kahl, Chad Joos and Zachary Oyler.
Mayor Dave Mingus, who is running for a second term as mayor, also filed at 8 a.m. Dec. 13. He is uncontested.
Two new faces also turned in their petitions for city commissioner right at the deadline. At 3:44 p.m. Monday, Judy Minner turned in her paperwork, and at 4:59 p.m. Seth Mingus turned in the last petition.
The new candidates for commissioner all explained reasons for running.
John Kahl, 44, of 101 Field Court, is married and a father of four. He works as a territory manager with Sysco Guest Supply, a manufacturer and distributor of hospitality supplies.
He is also a Gulf War veteran who served for more than six years on active duty in the Marine Corps.
“I’ve always followed politics. I feel like every citizen deserves to have their voice heard,” Kahl said. “I’m a man of the people, for the people. It’s just time for me to step up to the plate.
“Having served in the Marine Corps, I’m certain that I can bring leadership and dependability that the people need from their government.”
If elected, Kahl said he would be a proponent of fiscal responsibility.
“Obviously, everyone knows the state of the economy. I have been affected by it,” he said. “I lost a job a year and a half ago. I know what it means to live within your means.”
Chad Joos, of 100 Field Court, is a local developer and real estate broker.
He said he has been self employed since college.
Joos was appointed to the Zoning Board of Appeals this year, a position he will keep through May.
“I’ve started following local politics a little bit more,” Joos said. “It’s important to get a person with a small business perspective involved. I’ve learned a wide-variety of skills working with small businesses that I think would be a great asset to council.”
Joos said, if elected, he would bring a conservative stance to the council.
“I’m a conservative person, particularly fiscally conservative. I’m a big opponent of tax increases,” he said. “Any form of government has budget issues, but I don’t see any situation where I would support tax increases.”
Nine candidates filed petitions to run for East Peoria City Council from 8 a.m. Dec. 13 to 5 p.m. Monday.
Three incumbents, Dan Decker, Gary Densberger and Tim Jeffers — all running for a second term — filed at 8 p.m. Dec. 13 for the four open commissioner seats as well as three newcomers, John Kahl, Chad Joos and Zachary Oyler.
Mayor Dave Mingus, who is running for a second term as mayor, also filed at 8 a.m. Dec. 13. He is uncontested.
Two new faces also turned in their petitions for city commissioner right at the deadline. At 3:44 p.m. Monday, Judy Minner turned in her paperwork, and at 4:59 p.m. Seth Mingus turned in the last petition.
The new candidates for commissioner all explained reasons for running.
John Kahl, 44, of 101 Field Court, is married and a father of four. He works as a territory manager with Sysco Guest Supply, a manufacturer and distributor of hospitality supplies.
He is also a Gulf War veteran who served for more than six years on active duty in the Marine Corps.
“I’ve always followed politics. I feel like every citizen deserves to have their voice heard,” Kahl said. “I’m a man of the people, for the people. It’s just time for me to step up to the plate.
“Having served in the Marine Corps, I’m certain that I can bring leadership and dependability that the people need from their government.”
If elected, Kahl said he would be a proponent of fiscal responsibility.
“Obviously, everyone knows the state of the economy. I have been affected by it,” he said. “I lost a job a year and a half ago. I know what it means to live within your means.”
Chad Joos, of 100 Field Court, is a local developer and real estate broker.
He said he has been self employed since college.
Joos was appointed to the Zoning Board of Appeals this year, a position he will keep through May.
“I’ve started following local politics a little bit more,” Joos said. “It’s important to get a person with a small business perspective involved. I’ve learned a wide-variety of skills working with small businesses that I think would be a great asset to council.”
Joos said, if elected, he would bring a conservative stance to the council.
“I’m a conservative person, particularly fiscally conservative. I’m a big opponent of tax increases,” he said. “Any form of government has budget issues, but I don’t see any situation where I would support tax increases.”
Zachary Oyler, 26, of 117 James Court, is a logistics planning analyst for Caterpillar Inc.
He also is a recent graduate of the Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership School.
“For me, it’s about serving the people,” Oyler said. “It seemed like a good opportunity to get in there and do some ground work.
“I’ve had a strong interest in politics for a while.”
Oyler said, if elected, he would push for more transparency with the city council as well as protect police and fire pensions.
“A lot of the development is great, but we need to keep our city in the black. I’d hate to see East Peoria in the red like many other communities,” he said.
Judy Minner, 46, of 3418 E. Washington St., is married with three children.
Having been a stay-at-home mom when her children were younger, she is now a realtor with Coldwell Banking.
“I would like to partner with the people in East Peoria and serve them,” Minner said. “I think I can add and bring a new perspective and solutions to the council.
“I’m well accounted with authenticating and putting into practice a working budget.”
If elected, Minner said, she wants to see transparency on the council and push for road improvements, such as Hill Road.
When asked about being the only woman running for commissioner, she said, “I don’t look at it in terms of gender. I look at it as in what we can do to work together to make sure those that come to East Peoria stay, and those that live here want to stay.”
Seth Mingus, 31, of 2904 Fondulac Drive, is married with two children.
He started work as Dean of Students at Pekin High School this school year, having worked for seven years prior as a U.S. history teacher at Central Junior High.
He has served for 10 years on governmental boards; six on the Fondulac District Library Board and the last four on the Fondulac Township Board.
“I think our city is doing some wonderful things,” Seth Mingus said. “I think my experience in education has qualified me to assume one of these positions.
“This is a good time to run, and something I really want to do.”
If elected, he said he would work to maintain basic public services, improve infrastructure and continue fiscal responsibility.
Although he is the son of the mayor, he said that is not the reason why he decided to run.
“I wanted to do this myself,” he said. “On the issues, we don’t always agree.”
Since the first six candidates for commissioner filed at the same time, a lottery is scheduled at noon Dec. 28 at City Hall to determine the order of the general election ticket on April 5.
Minner and Seth Mingus will hold the last two slots on the ballot.
