Strange goings-on in the land to the North.

As candidates for county-wide office enter the final weeks of campaigning, challengers for two usually low-profile races are ratcheting up the pressure on their incumbents.

Dr. Richard Keller, the Democratic candidate for coroner, is pressing his attacks against incumbent Jim Wipper’s acceptance of public aid money and use of a county vehicle to cremate indigent bodies.

The Lake County States Attorney’s office has formally asked the state Attorney General’s office to look into the practice. [Snip]

Meanwhile, in another countywide race, Democrat Mary “Margo” Nelson has criticized Republican incumbent circuit clerk Sally Coffelt for sending out office e-mails to staff last year seeking help with political activities. Coffelt previously came under fire from her Democratic challenger for hiring relatives to the office.

Keller, a Waukegan physician, said Wipper has reportedly received as much as $1,000 in state public aid reimbursements for having the indigents cremated at a Lake Villa crematorium at a cost of $150.

“It’s definitely an ethical problem to profit from the death of indigent individuals through his office as coroner,” he said.

That’s some creepy stuff about the coroner’s race. You definitely should read the rest of the article.