Gorman takes first spot on Cook County election ballot

Gorman takes first spot on Cook County election ballot

Cook County Commissioner Elizabeth "Liz" Doody Gorman won the top spot on the ballot for her re-election in March 2014 over controversial challenger Barbara Bellar in the Republican Primary.

Although honestly, her name could have been off the ballot and Gorman would still win. Gorman's record of fighting for the rights of taxpayers is unprecedented in Cook County. Her persistence in her bid to repeal the hated one cent sales increase imposed by former Cook County Board President Todd Stroger. It won her tremendous public respect. Most officials wanted to drop the fight after the first repeal effort failed, but Gorman refused to give up.

She won my undying respect and she deserves you.

Not much is known about her challenger, Bellar, except that she was profiled in the past in a few columns in the Southtown by writer Phil Kadner.

Bellar is described as a "darling of the Tea Party," which means she is way off the radar when it comes to extremism. The Tea Party is not very popular in centrist Illinois.

Worse, when Bellar was running for the Illinois 18th Senate District seat in 2012 against incumbent Bill Cunningham, she claimed on her website she had been a "Nun." Bellar's campaign slogan was "There's Nun Better."

That would be pretty impressive, if it were true. Kadner wrote about how he tried to confirm it with her but she ducked and dodged him everywhere. Apparently she studied one year to become a Nun but never finished, which means she wasn't even close to becoming a Nun.

Although maybe she is good with rapping knuckles with rulers in classrooms, I don't know.

Bellar is also from wealthy Burr Ridge and frankly that's a bigger issue for Orland Park residents. Do you really want to hand the district over from an Orland Park native to a Burr Ridge carpet-bagger?

Regardless, Gorman couldn't have it better. She's been on a roll. But there are a lot of people who would love to take her down, including some at Orland Park's Village Hall. There seems to be a detente in the rivalry with Orland Mayor Dan McLaughlin, the Democratic Committeeman. It's a smart move. The two of them together could do wonders for the region. But a few trustees still don't like her after she took out the scion of the Hynes dynasty, Pat Maher, a few years ago in a smack-down that is unprecedented in Cook County politics.

All the plans the old 19th Ward had for Orland Park went up in smoke with that questionable candidacy.

In 37 years in political reporting and coverage, I'd never seen anyone beat down as bad as Maher had been.

And, there are a few others who are still smarting from the changes at METRA. Egos always get in the way of what's in the best interests of the public.

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