So you want to run for County Board. Where do you start?

This question comes courtesy of a NewsTribune reader who tweeted the paper noting the La Salle County Board website is “an endless pit of not being helpful.”

It’s hard to disagree. The board’s website leads to the county clerk’s site, and while that page has plenty of information on voting it says nothing about running for office. It’s easy enough to find a phone number but not an email address, which seems impossible in 2022. (I’d support a law mandating counties publish email addresses for each department.)

To compare, I googled “DeKalb County Clerk,” and from that page clicked on the link for “Voter & Election Information,” which points to yet another page that has a clearly marked “Candidate Information” menu that leads to downloadable economic interest statements, blank nominating petitions and the State Board of Elections’ candidates guide (although a more current version is available from ISBE directly).

The McHenry County Clerk’s website is similarly informative. The Will and Lake County clerk websites have petition packet buttons on the main landing pages, as easy to access as information on marriage licenses. Whiteside County tracks more like La Salle: copious resources for voters and election judges, but nothing easily accessible for prospective candidates.

It is worth noting that Carrie Senica, chief deputy clerk in La Salle County, quickly responded to my email with important dates and times as well as four attachments that would give anyone abundant information to start the nomination process. When I’ve called the Whiteside clerk for other columns, they were similarly responsive.

These seem to be people who really understand the “servant” part of public servant, but the online presence leaves a bit to be desired. Many prospective candidates may not even visit those sites in the first place because they’re already plugged in to the established political parties, which are rife with veterans well versed in campaign procedures.

Further, if people aren’t addressing county commissioners about perceived shortcomings in online presence, the incumbents may not be aware of what upgrades would be helpful. Which all points to the larger ideal of simply speaking up and asking questions. It doesn’t have to be confrontational or contentious, but it never hurts to try.

Websites aren’t free, and few people who run for countywide office have extensive experience in HTML coding. But some counties have better sites than others and hopefully there are conversations amongst officials about best practices and sharing resources.

In the meantime, if you want to run for office, those petitions are due by 5 p.m. Monday. There’s little more frustrating to educated voters than November ballots with uncontested races. Make a difference.

• Scott T. Holland writes about state government issues for Shaw Media. Follow him on Twitter @sth749. He can be reached at sholland@shawmedia.com.