Preckwinkle Takes Office as Cook Co. Board President
CHICAGO - The nation's second most populated county has a new leader.
Toni Preckwinkle took office as Cook County board president on yesterday. The Democrat is a longtime Chicago alderman who easily captured the seat in the largely Democratic county.
Her first task in the job overseeing some 24,000 jobs is balancing the budget. Preckwinkle anticipates a $487 million budget gap and has already told county elected officials that they'll need to trim their budgets.
Preckwinkle campaigned as reformer and has vowed to end patronage hiring and corruption allegations that have plagued the county office. She says she'll start by auditing the president's office and taking a pay cut.
The 63-year-old replaces outgoing president Todd Stroger. He came in last among four candidates in February's primary.
A leader with a no-nonsense demeanor and who doesn't drink alcohol or coffee, Preckwinkle told employees to expect audits of their work to eliminate unnecessary positions, and she's taking a 10 percent pay cut on the $175,000 salary. She also met last month with elected Cook County officials like the sheriff and assessor and told them to be prepared to cut 16 percent from their budget for the year.
Associated Press
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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