Champaign County elections underway

The+mayoral+debate+for+Urbana+that+took+place+at+the+Urbana+City+Council+Chambers+on+Jan.+30.+Marlin+will+be+the+next+mayor+of+Urbana%2C+defeating+Rex+Bradfield+with+86.25+percent+of+the+vote.+

Jessica Jutzi

The mayoral debate for Urbana that took place at the Urbana City Council Chambers on Jan. 30. Marlin will be the next mayor of Urbana, defeating Rex Bradfield with 86.25 percent of the vote.

By Daily Illini Staff Report

Across the country, local elections are taking place and here in Champaign County, the race for Urbana mayor is underway.

Democrat Diane Marlin and Republican Rex Bradfield are competing to be Urbana’s next mayor, following the democratic incumbent Laurel Prussing.

In the democratic primary in February, Marlin won 57 percent of the vote, beating the incumbent mayor Laurel Prussing and the third candidate Evelyn Underwood.

Rex Bradfield is a University alumnus, engineer and business owner in Urbana.

On campus, there are several polling places, including residence halls, Illini Union, University YMCA and Activities and Recreation Center (ARC). Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Get The Daily Illini in your inbox!

  • Catch the latest on University of Illinois news, sports, and more. Delivered every weekday.
  • Stay up to date on all things Illini sports. Delivered every Monday.
Thank you for subscribing!

Around 3 p.m. today, Diane Marlin told The Daily Illini that she is feeling good on this election day.

“I’m feeling very optimistic,” she said on her chances of winning.

Marlin believes that it’s important for students to vote in Champaign County’s election.

“Some issues I’ve worked on are related to students directly such as apartments and housing, fire protection and police protection,” she said.

Marlin said she looks forward to serving the city of Urbana, including its many students and faculty.

Jennifer Aguilar, junior in LAS, believes that students can make a difference when they vote.

“Some people say they don’t want to vote because they don’t know what they’re talking about, but I just sat there, in the voting place for 30 minutes researching these people because I didn’t know who they were.” Aguilar said. “I feel if you blindly vote, that could do more damage than not voting at all.”

Aguilar did not share which candidates she exactly voted for, but she said she voted for someone of color who valued the importance of diversity.

Hannah Bader, sophomore in DGS, voted in Champaign today because she is registered here and not back home in Chicago.

“I feel your voice matters more in a small community,” Bader said. “Back in Chicago, one vote would not make a large difference because there are hundreds of thousands of people. I saw that only 90 people have voted so far. So I feel one in 90 makes a bigger difference than one in a hundred thousand.”

Bader said she voted for a democratic woman because she believes that there ought to be more women in government.

Both Aguilar and Bader believe that an issue on the ballot regarding the funding of the county nursing home is a problem.

“I voted today because I feel that our senior citizens are most vulnerable in society,” Aguilar said. “A lot of these senior citizens don’t have families that care enough for them and some have needs that require special treatment. I feel they are a generation of people who have done a lot for society and now it is time for society to take care of them.”

Bader also thinks that students should vote.

“I would encourage students to vote because their voice matters,” Bader said. “Everyone’s voice matters.”

[email protected]