It's been a long, four-year marathon, but we are entering the final sprint to the 2020 elections. These last four years have taught us many, many things — one is the fundamental truth that LOCAL ELECTIONS MATTER. Perhaps we used to yawn when we blindly looked over names for local offices. Now we know that these offices are essential to the integrity of our local government and vital cornerstones to state and federal politics.

Each and every office matters. Who is in charge of our election process is critical. Local judges are vital. The county board and its ties to holding the sheriff accountable are crucial. The state senator enacts (or blocks!) absolutely essential laws. These offices all touch our lives and, therefore, their beliefs in Black Lives Matter, in immigration, in affordable health care, in all topics touch every single one of us.

Find out more at our September meeting, where we will meet the local candidates and find out who they are, why they're running, what they believe in. We will save the end of the meeting for a robust Q&A session that lets us really understand who we want representing us in the future.

Confirmed candidates include:

• IL State Representative District 47 Jennifer Zordani

• DuPage County Board District 1 Zahra Suratwala

• DuPage County Board District 2 Paula Deacon-Garcia

• DuPage County Board District 6 Greg Schwarze

• DuPage County Circuit Court Clerk Candice Adams

• DuPage County Forest Preserve District 2 Tina Tyson Dunne

• DuPage County Coroner Greg Whalen

• DuPage Forest Preserve Commissioner District 4 Jeff Gahris

• DuPage County Auditor Bill White

• Judge of the Circuit Court (O’Shea) Azam Nizamuddin

• Judge of the Circuit Court (Sutter) Jill Otte

• Judge of the Circuit Court (Anderson) Jeff Jacobson

• Judge of the Circuit Court (Bakalis) Peggy O’Connell

Come ready to learn and ready to ask questions. If time permits, we will discuss how to help the campaigns in a time of Covid-19.