About the Riverside Community Caucus
~ Mission Statement ~
To select, nominate, and work for the election of qualified candidates for Village Office. We strive to preserve the Village tradition of stable government - free from special interest and political partisanship. Our members include a broad band of people from all areas of the village, several civic organizations, and retired trustees - we have a mix of ages, interest, and longevity in the village. We seek candidates that are strong leaders, trustworthy, respectful of others, team players, visionary, good backgrounds/experience to lend to the running of the Village government, and are not oriented to a single issue.
~ Our History~
The caucus system was established in 1927 by a group of active Riverside community leaders who believed that Village government should not be subject to the influence of major political parties or the prospect of entrenched dynasty building by those holding Village offices.
Operating under the slogan that "The office seeks the man" and not the man seeking the office, a Caucus Committee was formed from residents selected from each of the 6 election precincts in the Village to seek out qualified candidates from those in the community with a proven record of community service to the schools, civic organizations or churches. The committees from the two political parties were also members of the Caucus Committee.
Emphasis was placed on selecting 6 Village Trustee candidates from each of the designated election precincts so that all parts of the Village would be represented on the Village Board. Resident members of the Township, County or other governmental entities and local businessmen were not eligible for selection due to the possible conflict that could arise in intergovernmental agreements or in zoning, licensing, or other regulations affecting business operations in the Village. The same rule applied with respect to those citizens employed in a decision making capacity with companies having contractual relationships with the Village.
The goal of the Caucus Committee was to select Trustee candidates who would administer Village government for the best interests of all its residents, free from any special interest or political aspirations. To further insure the stability of Village government, those candidates selected for Village Trustee had to agree to serve no more than 2 consecutive 4 year terms. Such fixed term limits allow new blood and new ideas to be introduced into the Village government while at the same time eliminating the prospect for entrenched, self perpetuating political dynasty or machine to take hold, as was the fate of other neighboring communities in the 1920's.
The first Village election of the Caucus nominated candidates was held on April 16, 1929. Louis B. Dent was elected as Village President. Among the elected Trustees was Ernst Wagner, who would later be selected to serve as Village President, and Henry Babson, a wealthy businessman, who would later offer his large Riverside estate to the Village for golf course and recreational use.
During the first 50 years the Caucus selected candidates for all elected offices in the Village, including Library Board members. The Village president was selected from among the sitting Board of Trustees, in order to capitalize on his experience with Village affairs as a Trustee. This selection practice continues to this day with respect to the Village President.
For the past 30+ years the Caucus has expanded the number of Committee members selected from the 6 precinct areas of the Village, all of whom serve for fixed terms as in the past, and has opened up its participation to the representatives selected by the local chartered civic organizations within the Village. Pas Caucus selected members of the Village Board also server on the Caucus Committee.
In addition to seeking out worth candidates for Village offices the Caucus Committee now advertises its willingness to receive and interview any person who desires to run for such offices. Library Board members, like the school districts, select their own candidates pursuant to their own internal caucus procedures.
For 81 years the Riverside Community Caucus has played an instrumental role in maintaing stable government in the Village of Riverside, under the able direction of its 7 appointed Chairmen: Schofield B. Gross, Sr., Harold Smith, John C. Lewe, Jr,., Caroline Tecson, John Kiwiet, William Suriano, and Jennifer White. The roster of Trustees reads like a who's who of Riverside citizens who have been active participants in civic, church, school, and governmental affairs within the Village. The Caucus record is proof that community efforts to screen and select its own candidates for Village office, free from political pressures or those having a special interest agenda to pursue or an ax to grin, results in government dedicated to serve the best interests of all the residents in the Village of Riverside.
