Democrat Bill Gentes Announces Run for Senate Seat Bill Peterson Is Vacating in East Central McHenry County District

During the 2006 election, Democrats in Hoffman Estates adopted a strategy of backing a candidate attractive to those who speak Spanish. Combined with the fervent opposition to long-term incumbent State Rep. Terry Parke by abortion supporters, Parke lost his office.

Now, Bill Gentes, a Democratic Party candidate who is fluent in Spanish by reason of having spent 8 years in Mexico, has announced his candidacy for the state senate that State Senator Bill Peterson (R-Long Grove).

The district comes into McHenry County north of Crystal Lake and has much of McHenry in it, plus parts of Cary and Fox River Grove.

The challenger to Parke was a Republican village trustee in Hoffman Estates before he was recruited by the Democrats.

Gentes is the two-term mayor of Round lake, which the press release below points out is “one of the fastest growing…communities in Illinois.”

The issues he has staked out are transportation, jobs, real estate tax relief and education reform.

The mayor is a real estate agent now and has a blog.

His press release is posted on McHenry County Blog, as are ones from State Rep. Jack Franks and Mike Tryon.