Will County Democrats have tapped William “Billy” Morgan as the next chair of the county’s Democratic Party, replacing Burke Schuster who held the post for three years.

Morgan has been a Monee Township trustee since 2021, a precinct committeeman since 2018, vice chair of the Will County Democratic Party and chair of the Monee Township Democratic Party.

He grew up in Crete, graduated from Crete-Monee High School earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago, where he is employed as the associate director of communications for the Harris School of Public Policy.

Morgan said one of his main focus will be on county offices next year, including reelecting countywide Democrats and flipping the county clerk and regional office of education seats from Republican to Democrat.

“I’m focused like a laser on our county,” Morgan said.

Democratic Treasurer Tim Brophy is seeking reelection and will face in November the primary winner between Republicans Carmen Maurella III and Raj “Pi” Pillai.

Will County Sheriff Mike Kelley, a Democrat, is retiring. Deputy Chief Dan Jungles and Sgt. Patrick Jones will be on the Democratic primary ballot March 17 while Justin Fialko, James “Jim” Reilly and Brian Conser will run in the Republican primary.

The Will County Clerk switched from Democratic to Republican control in 2024. The clerk’s race next November will feature a rematch from last year when Republican Annette Parker beat Democrat Michelle Stiff in a special race for a two-year term, following the resignation of Lauren Staley Ferry, a Democrat.

Four years ago, Republican Elizabeth Caparelli-Ruff beat Democrat Shawn Walsh for regional superintendent of schools. Because only one candidate per party has filed for the seat, Caparelli-Ruff will face Democrat Theresa Rouse, the superintendent of Joliet Public Schools District 86, in November.

Morgan said in addition to the countywide races, he wants to break the tie on the County Board and help get other Democrats elected. The board’s makeup now consists of 11 Republicans and 11 Democrats, with County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant, a Democrat, breaking potential tie votes.

Eight out of the 11 districts for the Will County Board are up for election, and each district has two representatives.

“Billy Morgan is exactly the kind of steady, responsive, and genuinely committed leader this organization deserves,” Schuster said in a statement. “I have complete confidence that his follow through, his campaign experience, and his sincere care for our members will move this organization forward in the right direction.”

Morgan said he would like to unite county Democrats, noting the large geographic reach of Will County, which extends from portions of Naperville and Aurora to the Indiana border.

“We need to do as much work as possible to earn the vote of the hardworking residents of Will County,” Morgan said. “It feels like history has its eyes on us. We need to stand up for the fundamentals of democracy. We need to stand up for each other.”

Morgan got his start in local politics as an advocate for Crete-Monee School District 201-U. When the district proposed closing two schools in University Park and Park Forest in 2018, he helped gather signatures to get a referendum on the April 2019 ballot. Voters ultimately chose to keep those schools open.

He is also a past candidate for the 79th Illinois House seat, which encompasses portions of Will, Kankakee and Grundy counties, where he lost last year to incumbent Jackie Haas of Bourbonnais.

Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.