County Board District 5 Vacancy Declared; Republican Central Committee Backs Cody Gudgel

The Montgomery County Board Coordinating Committee on Thursday | April 30 Meeting

Article Summary: The Montgomery County Board Coordinating Committee on Thursday, April 30, 2026, formally declared a vacancy in County Board District 5 and was told the Montgomery County Republican Central Committee will recommend Cody Gudgel to fill the seat. A separate vacancy in District 7 remains unfilled, with no recommendation yet from the central committee.

District 5 Vacancy Key Points:

• A vacancy in County Board District 5 was formally declared at the April 30 Coordinating Committee meeting.
• The Montgomery County Republican Central Committee will recommend Cody Gudgel to fill the District 5 seat.
• A second vacancy in District 7 also remains open, with no central committee recommendation reported.
• Committee assignments will need to be reshuffled once both seats are filled, Chairman Doug Donaldson told the committee.

HILLSBORO — The Montgomery County Board Coordinating Committee on Thursday, April 30, 2026, formally declared a vacancy in County Board District 5 and signaled that a successor is on the way.

The motion to declare the District 5 vacancy was made by committee Chairman Doug Donaldson — also the County Board Chairman — and seconded by Ethan Murzynski. The committee voted unanimously to declare the vacancy.

Donaldson then reported that the Montgomery County Republican Central Committee will be recommending Cody Gudgel to fill the District 5 seat. The minutes do not record additional biographical information about Gudgel, the timeline for the formal appointment, or the circumstances that created the vacancy.

District 7 Still Open

A separate vacancy in County Board District 7 also remains unfilled, Donaldson said. As of the April 30 meeting, the Republican Central Committee had not made a recommendation for that seat.

Under Illinois law, vacancies on county boards are typically filled by appointment by the county board chairman, with the consent of the board, from a candidate recommended by the central committee of the political party that previously held the seat. Republican-held vacancies in Montgomery County therefore route through the Montgomery County Republican Central Committee.

Committee Reassignments Ahead

Donaldson told the Coordinating Committee that he will ask the full county board to approve committee reassignments based on the vacancies in Districts 5 and 7 and the appointments to fill them. The minutes did not specify which standing committees would be affected or which current members might shift roles.

Other Committee Business

The same meeting saw the committee recommend approval of a Montgomery County Slip/Trip/Fall Prevention Policy and a Montgomery County Safe Lifting Policy, both pending review by the HELP Safety Committee, which next meets May 12. The motion was made by Donaldson and seconded by committee member Connie Beck and passed unanimously.

Information Services Director Curt Watkins told the committee his department has been working on updating door access in the Court Complex and is finishing PC installations this week. He said he will soon have a date for the switch to a new county phone system and has been involved in planning for use of the building at 127 N. Main. The department’s move into a new building at the Cress Hill tower is scheduled to begin the week of May 11.

EMA/EPA/911 Director Dan Hough distributed an action report from the county’s March 30 tabletop exercise, told the committee he has been busy responding to spring weather events, and indicated he will soon meet with the National Weather Service to finalize weather radio transmitter placement.

Circuit Clerk Daniel Robbins recapped legislative changes that will impact his office, and County Board Vice Chair Dr. Patty Whitworth — who arrived at the meeting at 9:15 a.m. — later reported on an Elysian sequestration meeting she attended in Nokomis.