Election 2023: Buscher unseats Langfelder as mayor of Springfield

9:37 p.m.: Langfelder concedes; Buscher elected mayor of Springfield

Two-term mayor Jim Langfelder conceded Tuesday night following an unsuccessful bid for a third term as the city's top official.

The concession means that City Treasurer Misty Buscher will be just the second woman elected mayor of Springfield. With all precincts reporting, Buscher defeated Langfelder by 772 votes, getting 51.5% of the vote to Langfelder's 48.5%.

Buscher was first elected city treasurer in 2015, the same year Langfelder was elected mayor. Both were endorsed in that election by the Sangamon County Democrats; however, Buscher appeared at a rally for then-candidate Donald Trump and identified as a Republican. Eight years later, the county Republicans endorsed her against Langfelder in what turned out to be a successful attempt to dethrone him.

Prior to her political service, Buscher spent 20 years in the city's banking industry, serving as a vice president for Marine Bank.

The defeat of the incumbent means that Langfelder suffers the same fate as his father, Ossie, who lost a bid for a third term in 1995 to Karen Hasara and Mike Curran in a top-two primary.

9:28 p.m.: Purchase cruises to victory in Ward 5

Incumbent Ward 5 Alderman Lakeisha Purchase won a full term on the Springfield City Council, winning a convincing victory over former Alderman Sam Cahnman and write-in Calvin Pitts.

Purchase won the seat by 615 votes, taking 70.5% of the vote to Cahnman's 29.5%. Purchase had been endorsed by the Sangamon County Democratic Party, the third Democrat to win a seat tonight on the council.

9:12 p.m.: Carlson wins in Ward 7

Brad Carlson, a legislative aide for Illinois Senate Republicans, has won a seat on the Springfield City Council, taking the Ward 7 election over John Houlihan.

Carlson won the seat by 430 votes, taking 56.6% of the vote to Houlihan's 43.4% of the vote. Houlihan also had a job in the Statehouse, serving as a staffer for Illinois Senate Democrats.

At the moment, Carlson is the lone candidate endorsed by the Sangamon County Republicans to win a contested aldermanic seat tonight, a stark contrast to their success in the city's executive offices, where both Misty Buscher and Colleen Redpath Feger lead in their respective mayoral and treasurer races, respectively.

8:46 p.m.: Buscher takes the lead; Williams, Rockford, Notariano win council seats

City Treasurer Misty Buscher has taken a 470-vote lead over incumbent Mayor Jim Langfelder in a tight fight for Springfield's top office.

Buscher is currently pulling in 51% of the vote, with Langfelder taking in 49% of the vote with 92.2% of the precincts reporting.

In addition, Ward 3 Alderman Roy Williams, Jr. held onto his seat on the Springfield City Council tonight as Larry Rockford and Jennifer Notariano picked up seats in Ward 4 and Ward 6, respectively.

With all precincts reporting in Ward 3, Williams picked up 54% of the vote, with challenger Bill Eddington winning 46% of the vote. Williams won by 121 votes in the northeast side district.

Rockford won by 206 votes over his closest challenger, former Sangamon County Board member Jason Ratts. Rockford received 44.9% of the vote, with Ratts getting 37% of the vote. David Yankee finished third with 18.1% of the vote.

Notariano picked up 58.2% of the vote in the south-side ward, winning by 379 votes over local attorney Alyssa Haaker. Haaker picked up 41.8% of the vote.

8:30 p.m.: Buscher, Langfelder locked in tight mayoral race

Springfield's mayoral race has significantly tightened from where it was earlier in the night, giving hope to supporters of challenger Misty Buscher's bid for the office.

Incumbent Jim Langfelder holds a 370-vote lead over Buscher with 68.6% of precincts reporting. Langfelder currently has 51% of the vote, with Buscher carrying 49% as of now.

8:22 p.m. Early results from election night

Over an hour after polls have closed, here's how the key races are shaping up:

Springfield Mayor: Jim Langfelder currently holds a 1,097-vote lead over challenger Misty Buscher, with 42.2% of precincts fully reporting. Langfelder has 53.5% of the vote (8,332 votes), with Buscher pulling in 46.5% (7,235 votes).

Springfield City Treasurer: Colleen Redpath Feger holds a 1,566-vote lead over her closest challenger, Lisa Badger. Redpath Feger is pulling in 42.1% of the vote (6,330 votes), while Badger has 29.2% of the vote (4,399 votes) with 42.2% of precincts fully reporting. City budget director Bill McCarty currently has 28.7% of the vote (4,313 votes)

Ward 3 Alderman: Incumbent Roy Williams, Jr. leads challenger Bill Eddington by 207 votes with 63.6% of precincts reporting in the ward. Williams is pulling in 58.7% of the vote (699 votes) while Eddington has 41.3% of the vote (492 votes)

Ward 4 Alderman: Larry Rockford leads his closest challenger, Jason Ratts, by 161 votes with just 8.3% of precincts reporting in the ward. Rockford currently is pulling in 46.2% of the vote (527 votes), while Ratts has 32.1% of the vote (366 votes). David Yankee currently has 21.7% of the vote (247 votes).

Ward 5 Alderman: With 30% of precincts fully reporting, incumbent Lakeisha Purchase leads former Ward 5 Alderman Sam Cahnman by 375 votes. Purchase is pulling in 70% of the vote (656 votes) while Cahnman has 30% of the vote (281 votes)

Ward 6 Alderman: Jennifer Notariano holds a 384-vote lead over Alyssa Haaker with 71.4% of precincts reporting in the district. Notariano is pulling in 60% of the vote (1,151 votes), with Haaker bringing in 40% (767 votes)

Ward 7 Alderman: Brad Carlson leads John Houlihan by 40 votes with 18.2% of precincts reporting in the district. Carlson is pulling in 51.2% of the vote (842 votes), with Houlihan getting 48.8% of the vote (802 votes)

7 p.m.: The polls are closed!

Polls have officially closed in Sangamon County for the consolidated election.

Much of the attention in Springfield is placed on the mayoral election between incumbent Jim Langfelder and City Treasurer Misty Buscher, but a wide range of different races are up for grabs as the first results come in, from City Council to school boards to various governing bodies.

6:16 p.m.: More from the voters at the polls

Those who took time out of their busy day to vote Tuesday had a wide range of opinions on who they were voting for and why. At the Knights of Columbus Council #4175 on the north end, Johnny Guinn made his decision mainly on principle, as he isn't a big fan of incumbent politicians.

"(I voted for) Misty Buscher," Guinn said. "Whoever was in (office), I want them out for new blood. It's not really (that) I'm Democrat or I'm Republican, it's like, 'You guys did a (poor) job, give somebody else a swing at that."

At Union Baptist Church near the city center, Helen Williams, voted for Langfelder in large part because she couldn't see Buscher "in any of us."

"When you're promising something that you're going to do for a city, you don't pick the people that you know," Williams said. "You pick the people that you know you're going to help. I didn't see that on (her) side."

AG's office to monitor elections

More than 140 teams of assistant attorneys general and investigators from Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul's office will monitor the consolidated elections throughout the state Tuesday.

Raoul urged voters to call his office if they encounter suspected improper or illegal activity.

Central and southern Illinois voters can call 1-866-559-6812 (TTY 1-877-844-5461).

1:30 p.m.: 'I'm just doing my civic duties'

Emerging from Precinct 76 on the city's east side, Elvia Washington said she had a simple reason for voting in Tuesday's consolidated election.

"Change doesn't come by sitting," Washington said. "I'm just doing my civic duties, putting my opinion on the ballot and moving forward."

Washington said she is a regular voter in every election, sometimes voting early, depending on her schedule.

As rail project continues, Madison and Jefferson shut down between Ninth and 11th streets

Washington said she was moved by the mayor's race, pitting incumbent Mayor Jim Langfelder against treasurer and challenger Misty Buscher, as well as the treasurer's three-way race between Colleen Redpath Feger, Bill McCarty and Lisa Badger.

"I like to stay the course," Washington said, about her vote for mayor.

Steve Sommer and his wife, Debra Sommer, said they are also regular voters, preferring Election Day voting, as they came from the Lutheran High School gymnasium where they cast their votes.

Steve Sommer said he thought it was voter apathy keeping off-year-election voting numbers down.

"I think people think no matter who they vote for, they're not going to get much of a result," he said.

12:30 p.m.: Langfelder votes with his family at Lutheran HS

Mayor Jim Langfelder said that it was an Election Day tradition putting out campaign signs at polling places, going back to when his father, Ossie Langfelder, served as the city's mayor from 1987 to 1995.

"I didn't do it because they delegated it to someone else, not to my liking," Langfelder said with a laugh after voting with his wife, Billie, and daughter, Lauren, at Lutheran High School on the city's far south side, Tuesday morning.

The main difference between this election and other runs Langfelder made against Paul Palazzolo in 2015 and the late Frank Edwards in 2019 was the amount of money being spent. He's been outspent by city treasurer and challenger Misty Buscher more than 2:1.

Langfelder said while he hopes that isn't a signal for what's to come in the future with campaigns, he said his established name and trust with the community helped.

"It would be very difficult to win (otherwise)," Langfelder admitted. "The other thing that's helped is the power of the office. Good government is good politics, and I've always ran on that.

"Has it been a little contentious than previous ones on the other side? Without a doubt. You have outside forces inserting themselves into the process and that always raises a question: what's their interest?"

Asked why he thought he could garner a third term as mayor, something that eluded his father, Langfelder fell back to a familiar story about his father telling him "even his friends" had quit talking to him in the 1995 primary, which he lost.

"He got squeezed out of the vote," said Langfelder, recalling 1995. "This time it's one-on-one.

"People are talking to me now more than ever. So that tells you the engagement that gives me the great confidence in moving forward."

11:15 a.m.: Buscher heads out to vote at north-end precinct

City Treasurer Misty Buscher, who is looking to unseat Jim Langfelder as mayor of Springfield, stopped by her north-end polling place at the Knights of Columbus Council #4175 to cast her ballot Tuesday morning, greeted by friends who wished her well as her political fate is decided.

It was already an eventful morning for Buscher, who visited several polling places to check on the status of yard signs and greeted people while eating breakfast at Papo's Cafe on the west side. She felt confident that she could end Langfelder's tenure as mayor and provide a change for the city.

"I feel good," Buscher said. "All the reception I got knocking on doors (was that) people were very confident and said they were voting for me. If the people who said they were voting for me vote, that's a good sign. I just don't know who's going to go out and actually cast that ballot, which is the most important part.

"I want to be the change I see in the community, so I'm running to make big changes in the city of Springfield. I want the voters to know that there would be changes with me as your mayor and I would appreciate their consideration and their support when they hit the ballot box."

7:30 a.m.: Who's endorsing who in Springfield

While the consolidated elections are, by law, a nonpartisan affair, the reality is that both major parties put their thumbs on the scale through endorsements of various candidates, even for seats that one wouldn't expect would be that partisan, such as the Springfield Park Board and the Springfield Metropolitan Exposition and Auditorium Authority (SMEAA).

In a political environment as fractious and partisan as this one, the endorsements can make the difference for formerly undecided voters on Election Day.

Here's who's endorsing who in Springfield's races today:

Mayor

Democrats: Jim Langfelder (incumbent)

Republicans: Misty Buscher

City Treasurer

Democrats: Lisa Badger

Republicans: Colleen Redpath Feger

Ward 3 Alderman

Democrats: Roy Williams, Jr. (incumbent)

Republicans: Bill Eddington

Ward 4 Alderman

Democrats: David Yankee. Larry Rockford is also Democrat.

Republicans: Jason Ratts

Ward 5 Alderman

Democrats: Lakeisha Purchase

Republicans: None. Purchase's main challenger, Sam Cahnman, is also a Democrat.

Ward 6 Alderman

Democrats: Jennifer Notariano

Republicans: Alyssa Haaker

Ward 7 Alderman

Democrats: John Houlihan

Republicans: Brad Carlson

School Board District 2

Democrats: Micah Miller (incumbent)

Republicans: Emerson Weed

School Board District 3

Democrats: Jessica Bandy

Republicans: Spurgeon Johnson

School Board District 4

Democrats: Jeff Tucka (incumbent)

Republicans: None. Neither Ken Gilmore nor Donna Hopwood was endorsed by either party.

Park District

Democrats: Winfred "Earl" Winfong

Republicans: Mary Aiello, Charles Hoogland, Kris Theilen (incumbent) and Mary Beth Rodgers (incumbent)

SMEAA District 3

Democrats: Steven Simpson-Black

Republicans: Jason Loftus (incumbent)

SMEAA District 4

Democrats: Deborah Grant, Derek Griffin and Michael Paoni

Republicans: Steve Ettinger (incumbent), Tony Smarjesse (incumbent) and Bill Taft

SMEAA District 5

Democrats: Mike Malany, Garret Selinger and Gail Simpson

Republicans: Marissa Lesko and Brad Mills (incumbent)

Lincoln Land Community College Board District 1

Democrats: Samantha Raymond (incumbent)

Republicans: Sean Dickerson

Lincoln Land Community College Board District 3

Democrats: Gordon Gates (incumbent)

Republicans: Melissa Hahn Moseley

7:27 a.m.: Shortly after polls opened

Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray seemed pleased about how things kicked off for the consolidated elections, with all polling places across the county opening in a smooth fashion at 6 a.m.

"(The) polls opened fully staffed (with) no troubles that I know of," Gray said.

With the smaller scale of the election relative to a presidential year or a midterm year, Gray was nervous about how turnout would look and how people would utilize the relatively new automatic vote-by-mail system in place. He said his fears were assuaged when he opened up the drop box at the county complex and saw that it was full.

"That tells me we're going to get a good chunk of (mail votes) back today and keep it moving," Gray said. "That's a bit of a new challenge that we haven't experienced before in the past of having to do this in the last remaining hours of an election on Election Day, but we're stoked and ready to get that done."

About 8,000 mail ballots were outstanding as of 6 a.m. today, with Gray pointing out that the new mail balloting system has allowed for people who don't normally vote in an off-year consolidated election to cast their ballot.

"There's a larger, substantial amount of folks who have normally not voted in consolidated elections that have received those ballots and we're seeing a dramatic increase in transition of those ballots," Gray said. "Pre-Election Day, we were up 180% from 2019. Coming in this morning and witnessing the amount of ballots still coming back with 8,000 out, I think we're going to get a good amount of them returned today. That's a substantial, almost game-changer situation in terms of participation for these smaller elections."

If there's one sign of the smaller nature of this Election Day, it's that there are fewer poll workers than what would be needed for a presidential year or midterm year. Gray said that there are three poll workers per polling place, down by two from the five dispatched for a bigger election. In total, Gray said that there were 540 poll workers out today, down from 900 for a bigger election.

"That's still a lot of people and we're fully staffed," Gray said. "We have a sufficient number of backups. We've had some vacancies of folks who fall ill the morning of or have to deal with their children unexpectedly, but we're filling them with the backups we have in place and I'm proud of the team that we have coordinating this. It's a challenge, but in Sangamon (County) that challenged is conquered and we're fully staffed and prepared."

6 a.m.: Good morning!

Happy Election Day.

The polls have opened in Sangamon County for Tuesday's consolidated election and will remain open through 7 p.m.

Among the high-profile races is the Springfield mayoral election between incumbent Jim Langfelder and treasurer and challenger Misty Buscher.

Langfelder is seeking a third term for the city's top spot, something that eluded his father, Ossie Langfelder who served as mayor from 1987 to 1995.

"Our barometer has always been going to door to door and we continue to reach our goal of walking the top 50 voting precincts and we've covered a lot more of the other precincts as well," Langfelder said recently. "The response has been very good."

Buscher, who has served two terms as treasurer, has outspent the mayor a little over 2:1.

"Honesty and integrity is deep within my family and working as a vice president at Marine Bank and earning the trust of (owner) Coyn Richardson and the Richardson family who put me in that position means something to me, so the taxpayers will get the same Misty Buscher working for them that Coyn Richardson did," she said. "That's just who I am."

For Buscher's soon-to-be former office, deputy treasurer Colleen Redpath Feger, City of Springfield Office of Budget and Management director Bill McCarty and Springfield Park District trustee Lisa Badger square off.

In the aldermanic races, incumbent Roy Williams Jr. faces off with Bill Eddington in Ward 3. In Ward 4, Larry Rockford, Jason Ratts and David Yankee are vying for the seat.

It is also a three-person race in Ward 5 with Lakeisha Purchase, an incumbent, squaring off with Sam Cahnman. Calvin Pitts is a write-in candidate.

Like Ward 4, Wards 6 and 7 will get new faces. Jennifer Notariano and Alyssa Haaker match up in Ward 6 with Brad Carlson and John Houlihan matching up in Ward 7.

Three Springfield public school subdistricts have contested races.

In Subdistrict 2, incumbent Micah Miller takes on challenger Emerson Weed. Sarah Blissett tries to hold on to her seat in Subdistrict 3 against challengers Spurgeon Johnson and Jessica Bandy.

In Subdistrict 4, Jeff Tucka, an incumbent, is matched up with challengers Ken Gilmore and Donna Hopwood.

Voters also will pick candidates for the Springfield Metropolitan Exposition and Auditorium Authority (SMEAA) board, the Springfield Park District board and the Lincoln Land Community College board.

A number of area villages also have contested races. In Chatham, voters will weigh two advisory referendum questions pertaining to the sale and production of adult-use cannabis.

Voting contingencies with threat of weather

A threat of severe weather has prompted Sangamon County authorities to take proactive measures regarding Tuesday's consolidated election.

State's Attorney Dan Wright prepared an order Monday that could give the county's election office to extend voting hours or redirect polling locations.

That order could be executed by Chief Circuit Judge Ryan Cadagin if some weather situation interferes with voting, said county clerk Don Gray, who is the election administrator.

"It's the responsibility of the county clerk and election office to take into consideration all contingencies that could affect opportunities to be able to cast ballots or conclude an election," Gray said, at his office Monday.

As of early Monday afternoon, the county was still at "an enhanced risk" of severe weather, including the possibility of tornadoes, Tuesday afternoon going into the evening.

Polls in the county open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m.

Gray said he has been in contact with authorities from the Office of Emergency Management, the County Board office and the sheriff's department.

If the order warrants execution, Gray said he will consult with Wright who will submit the order to the court.

Park District candidate out

Winfred Earl Wilfong voluntarily withdrew as a park district candidate late Monday afternoon.

Wilfong was running for a four-year term.

Kris Theilen, Charles Hoogland II and Mary Aiello remain on the ticket for four-year terms. Leslie Sgro has re-filed for president and Mary Beth Rodgers is seeking a two-year unexpired term.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Buscher unseats Langfelder as Springfield mayor