Tiffany Henyard loses by landslide in Dolton, Illinois mayoral primary
Challenger Jason House overwhelmingly defeated Tiffany Henyard in the Dolton mayoral primary, with House receiving 3,896 votes to Henyard’s 536.
Fox – 32 Chicago
A northeastern Illinois politician and self-proclaimed “Super Mayor” was defeated by a landslide in Tuesday’s democratic primaries.
Tiffany Henyard (D), the scandal-plagued mayor of the village of Dolton, ran against Jason House (D). Henyard lost with 536 votes, while House reeled in 3,896, or 87.91% of the votes Tuesday, according to the Cook County Clerk’s Office.
While campaigning to stay in office as Dolton mayor on Tuesday, Henyard reminded residents of the repaved streets, alleys and sidewalks she brought to fruition, as well as a $1.5 million grant for infrastructure and a $3 million grant to rebuild Dolton.
Henyard went live on Facebook Tuesday night encouraging residents to vote for her.
“We’re almost to the finish line,” she said. “One hour left before we make history once again in the village of Dolton and take this by a landslide.”
Henyard has accepted election outcome
According to television station WGN-TV, Henyard said she has accepted the election outcome.
“The people have spoken,” Henyard told the station. “God must have a different plan.”
Her opponent, House, told CBS Chicago that he is “ecstatic” about the outcome. Seemingly commenting on Henyard’s past behavior, he said “this does not represent Dolton.”
“We had one rogue individual,” he said. “I’m sure Dolton is proud, and we are happy that we are ready to change the narrative.”
When asked how he felt about Henyard failing to get 1,000 votes, he said he is proud of the residents of Dolton.
“For the last four years, she was taking us in the wrong direction,” House said. “The board saw that … Anybody that goes off in the wrong direction needs to be corrected.”
Why is Henyard called ‘Super Mayor’?
Henyard designated herself “Super Mayor” after she was elected mayor and then in 2022 became supervisor of Thornton Township, the largest township in the state of Illinois, reported television station WMAQ-TV. Henyard’s self-proclaimed “Super Mayor” title is a play on her two former titles as mayor and supervisor.
Who is Tiffany Henyard?
Henyard was elected in February 2021 after serving as a village trustee for eight years. She is Dolton’s first and youngest woman mayor in the village’s 130-year history, according to the village’s website.
Henyard has had multiple issues with the Village of Dolton’s Board Trustees and has previously said some board members were out on a “power and a money grab.”
Community members have previously accused Henyard of mishandling the village’s finances, and hired former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot to investigate.
Lightfoot announced her findings last month, noting that credit cards were used for unauthorized projects. One example she provided included $48,000 spent on an ice rink. The fees were charged to village credit cards without board approval and no competitive bidding process, according to WGN-TV.
According to Lightfoot, spending was at its highest in 2023. Expenses included $775,000 on credit cards, of which more than $200,000 went to Amazon. More than $117,000 was spent on travel, including business trips to Las Vegas, WGN-TV reported.
Lightfoot suggested that the village board create monthly financial reports to share with the public and adopt a credit card spending policy, the television station reported.
Henyard was previously found in contempt of court because although the board had previously approved some businesses to receive liquor licenses, Henyard failed to sign the licenses, WGN-TV reported.
Henyard has called negative remarks about her service a “smear campaign.”
“I am rare and truly care about my communities,” she wrote online in September 2024.
This story has been updated to clarify Henyard’s self-proclaimed title of ‘Super Mayor’.
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY’s NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.
