Newly elected Sangamon County Recorder Frank Lesko tried but failed to give a former employee of his in the city clerk’s office a 15% raise to become his second-in-command.
Both Democrats and Republicans on the GOP-controlled County Board’s Building and Grounds Committee pushed back on the proposed $80,000 pay level for Nicole Cunningham, and the panel reduced the amount to $72,000 before approving the chief deputy clerk salary.
Lesko, a Republican, said Cunningham, whose annual salary as a deputy registrar with the city was $69,413, agreed to join the recorder’s office at the $72,000 level and started work on Jan. 14.
The previous chief deputy recorder, Michelle Landess, under former recorder Josh Langfelder, a Democrat, was paid $69,413 per year and resigned Dec. 30. Lesko was sworn in as recorder on Dec. 2. His annual salary as county recorder is $113,936.
Cunningham is treasurer of Lesko’s campaign fund, according to the Illinois State Board of Elections. Her last day with the city was Jan. 5.
Lesko campaigned on a platform of saving taxpayers money and pushed for elimination of the recorder’s office so the office’s duties could be folded into the county clerk’s office.
He told the Building and Grounds Committee on Jan. 9 that he wanted to pay his chief deputy recorder more because of additional duties she would take on. He said he also hoped to save $18,000 by not filling a temporary position in the recorder’s office.
The committee approved a motion from Brad Miller, a Republican who lives in between Springfield and Chatham, to set the pay level at $72,000. The pay level also received the required approval from the County Board’s Finance Committee.
The full board, at its Jan. 13 meeting, voted 24-2 to put a binding referendum on the April 1 ballot asking voters to approve eliminating the county recorder’s office, effective Dec. 1, 2026.
This article appears in Healthy, wealthy and wise 2025.
Lesko hasn’t been in the Reorder’s position for 90 days yet and he is already blowing taxpayers money like he doesn’t care. He must be Pritzker’s brother!!!!! The voters are going to regret voting for Lesko instead of Josh Langfelder and I am a Republican! Langfelder did a good job in that department. They were just trying to get all Democrats out of it. Now look what we are dealing with.