Metro East Sun

Cheryl Goessman Maguire was elected Wood River mayor, making her the first woman to hold that office. 

With 502 votes, Maguire bested former Councilman Scott Miner (429), Tom Kane (432) and Scott Levan (177).

Wood River saw a plethora of candidates including those that sought to increase government transparency, a common battle cry during the campaign in the region. Miner, who left his city council seat to run, said residents have the right to know where their money goes. The 22-year-old, was the youngest city council member ever elected in Illinois when he was first elected to council in 2013. 

Wood River Mayor Frank Akers did not seek re-election.

Trustee Patrick McRae kept his seat, garnering 1,963 votes after a campaign in which he vowed to continue his crusade against spending, and act as a one-man oversight committee for taxpayers.

Alton Results

In Alton, Mayor Brant Walker was re-elected to a second term, beating Scott Dixon 2,242 votes to 1,452.

During the campaign, Alton voters saw Walker and Dixon, a local business owner, participate in a real-time question and answer forum at the Riverbender.com Community Center. Walker raised more than $20,000 to aid his campaign during the election cycle. Dixon raised more than $8,000 by the middle of March. 

East Alton Results

Earning 77 percent of votes, East Alton overwhelmingly opted to keep Mayor Joe Silkwood for another term. 

Challenger Jamie Goodwin fell flat with voters, garnering just 190 votes to Silkwood's 654.

During Goodwin's attempt to unseat the incumbent, she spoke about the value of teamwork and her belief that specific acts of kindness would improve the local climate. Goodwin criticized Silkwood, saying he should spend more time overseeing East Alton and less time campaigning. 

She campaigned to increase policing, lower taxes and improve roads, though she was vague on the details of how to finance such projects. 

Hartford Village Results

James Hickerson bested Kristie Luebbert to become the next Hartford Village mayor, 266 votes to 166. Hickerson replaces outgoing two-term mayor James Spann.

Chessie Brame (238 votes) was elected village clerk over Amy Martin (196 votes). To fill three trustee seats, voters selected Chris Fulkerson, Jamie Harrup and Clinton Caldwell, edging out newcomer David Fields, a pastor.

Glen Carbon Results

Voters re-elected Glen Carbon Mayor Robert Jackstadt over challenger Steve Slemer with a margin of 852 votes. 

This will be Jackstadt's fourth term as mayor, adding to what has already been a long career in local public service in the Madison County village totaling nearly 20 years. In the 1990s, he served four years as a village trustee for four years. He also previously had a seat on the Glen Carbon Planning & Zoning Commission and the District 7 Board of Education.

Initial vote tallies were reported by the various county clerks, with all precincts reporting. These results are reliable, but final results have to be certified before being entered into permanent record. You can see these results in full at the county clerks' website.