How do you get on the Caucus?
Residents who embrace community service as their civic responsibility and wish to volunteer are encouraged to become members of the Caucus Committee. A 36 member Caucus Committee, 9 members from each of the 4 Wards identify, interview, recruit and recommend qualified fellow Lake Forest residents to serve on various City boards and committees.
Each year the Caucus Committee must replace 12 of its 36 elected members. This helps ensure the complexion of the community is diverse and reflects the ever changing voice of the community. Also, with ⅓ of the committee changing each year, it ensures fresh perspectives are brought to the Caucus each year. Residents interested in serving either in City government or on the Caucus Committee can contact their Ward Chair and complete a Volunteer Profile Sheet (VPS). Steps for the vetting process can be found HERE.
All Lake Forest registered voters are eligible to serve on the Caucus Committee and new members are chosen by mail-in ballots (Caucus Connection) sent in March each year to all Lake Forest households. You can only serve on the Lake Forest Caucus one time and the term for a Caucus Committee member is 3 years. The Caucus Committee meets approximately 2-3 times per month for about 2 hours. These time commits vary depending on the workload assigned each year.