Douglass Widens Lead Over Mazzochi In State House Race

ELMHURST, IL – With more than 42,000 votes cast, Democrat Jenn Ladisch Douglass has widened her lead over Republican state Rep. Deanne Mazzochi in the District 45 race, according to unofficial returns.

The latest tally shows that Douglass has 21,572 votes to Mazzochi's 21,398 votes. The difference is 174 votes. Both candidates are from Elmhurst.

Mail-in ballots can come in for weeks. They must be postmarked by Election Day.

As of Thursday morning, Douglass' lead was six votes, reversing Mazzochi's election night edge.

In a statement Wednesday, Douglass accused Mazzochi's supporters of disrupting the vote-counting process at the DuPage County Clerk's Office. Douglass did not give details. Mazzochi has not returned Patch's messages for comment.

In an analysis, Patch found that Douglass' strength was in Elmhurst and Westmont, while Mazzochi did well in Hinsdale, Clarendon Hills and Oak Brook.

In the months leading up to the election, Mazzochi denounced Elmhurst School District 205 a number of times over curriculum issues. She called for the superintendent to "clean house."

In 2020, Mazzochi took 54 percent of the vote against Clarendon Hills Democrat Jennifer Zordani.

Mazzochi, a lawyer and former College of DuPage board president, took office in 2018.