Lake Forest residents can cast ballots on two open school board seats Tuesday, Oct. 20, at Gorton Community Center between 4 and 8 p.m.

The Lake Forest Caucus Committee is recommending Ryan Wiedmann for the District 67 board and Kent Novit for the District 115 board. Voters must bring a valid Illinois photo ID showing a Lake Forest address, according to the Caucus's special meeting notice.

The two seats opened after voters rejected the Caucus Committee's original nominees at the Oct. 6 Annual Meeting. Out of 1,126 ballots cast, Kristin Vallaly lost her District 67 bid 471–652 and Jennifer Neubauer lost her District 115 bid 430–696, according to the Caucus's results page. Ten other Caucus-recommended candidates for mayor, City Council and school boards were approved.

The committee said it conducted additional interviews over the following week before selecting Wiedmann and Novit. Rather than pit the original nominees against the new picks, the committee said it chose to present one candidate per seat, stating it was "listening to and honoring the community's original vote," according to a Caucus statement posted Oct. 14.

As we reported Oct. 14, Wiedmann has lived in Lake Forest since 2021 and has two children at Deer Path Middle School. He volunteers as a youth soccer coach and works as a global marketing executive, according to his Caucus biography.

Novit has deep local roots. He has lived in Lake Forest for more than 34 years and is an attorney who has practiced real estate law for 42 years. He previously served five years on the Zoning Board of Appeals, six years as a city alderman and sat on the District 67 school board, according to his Caucus profile. His wife, Nancy Novit, serves as a Lake Forest alderman.

The Chicago Tribune first reported Oct. 12 that the special meeting was planned. That coverage noted that several residents, including former state Sen. Susan Garrett, had emailed concerns about the original candidates before the Annual Meeting vote. Caucus President Scott Nehls defended the committee's nonpartisan vetting process in that report.

Candidates who receive the Caucus endorsement historically run unopposed in the general election, the Tribune reported.