Soldier serving in Afghanistan re-elected as alderman
CHICAGO HEIGHTS, Illinois (AP) -- An Army Reserve officer serving in Afghanistan survived a challenge to his City Council seat, thanks in part to his wife's door-to-door campaigning in his absence.
Sgt. Francisco "Frank" Perez is a two-term alderman who missed the last three months of the election season because of his sudden deployment in January. Unofficial returns from Tuesday's election showed Perez, a Democrat, winning a third term by 81 votes.
Laretta Perez said she spoke with her husband by cell phone on Wednesday and told him of the victory.
"He was, to say the least, ecstatic," she said.
Perez, 29, is assigned to a mobile postal unit.
Laretta Perez said she put off work on a master's degree to campaign for her husband. Relatives and friends handed out fliers in Chicago Heights, a Chicago suburb.
"We were determined not to let Frank down," Laretta Perez said.
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