BOLINGBROOK – Voters in southwest suburban Bolingbrook were surely surprised Saturday morning as declared Democrat candidate for governor J.B. Pritzker knocked on neighborhood doors to gin up support for mayoral challenger Jackie Traynere.
Traynere decided to challenge incumbent Mayor Roger Claar after he hosted a fundraiser to then-GOP candidate Donald Trump early in 2016. Traynere was a delegate to the national Democratic Convention for Bernie Sanders, so Claar's support for Trump was just too much for Traynere to be left unchallenged.
“Trump’s visit to Bolingbrook, invited by the mayor to a publicly funded golf club – that was the catalyst. It’s not the reason. There’s plenty of reasons to run against [Claar],” Traynere told the Herald-News.
Boasting endorsements of Senators Dick Durbin, Tammy Duckworth and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Traynere is an organizer for the American Federation of Government Employees and serves with the new Democrat minority on the Will County Board.
Claar, who says he has "tough skin", is running for re-election on the Bolingbrook First Party ticket with Michael Lawler, Sheldon Watts and Maria Zarate for village trustees and Carol Penning as village clerk.
He said he did not ask Donald Trump for his endorsement.
New York Times photo of Claar's campaign office
The 71 year old Claar has been mayor since the early 1990s, and has seen the village double in size. He's being criticized for his $140,000 plus salary and two pensions, but the New York Times found when talking to residents that much of the discontent seems to stem from party line politics.
Hillary Clinton beat Donald Trump in the village two to one. If national level politics matters at the municipal level, Tuesday night the returns in Bolingbrook will be the ones to watch.
J.B. Pritzker will most certainly be watching.
