In an election that could pit her against the alderman who ejected her from an Elmhurst city council finance committee meeting in June, Darlene Heslop has announced she is running for the office of 4th ward alderman.

Heslop, who has lived in Elmhurst for six years, is seeking election to the seat now occupied by Ald. Stephen Hipskind, who did not return calls or e-mails Tuesday seeking comment on whether he will run for re-election.

Hipskind asked Heslop to leave a June 14 finance committee meeting for allegedly rolling her eyes and sighing during discussion of a proposal to hire a state lobbyist.

Heslop said her ouster from the finance committee meeting had no bearing on her decision to run for office in the April election.

“It had nothing to do with anything that transpired in the last couple of months,” she said.

She wants to focus on the issues rather than who may oppose her candidacy.

“It makes no difference to me who my opponents are,” she said. “I’m focusing on the issues and the issues that are pertinent to the people of Elmhurst and the people of the fourth ward.”

She said she wants to see the city council take a new direction.

“I think the city council needs to listen more to what the people want,” Heslop said. “It’s not the city council’s government. It’s the peoples’ government.”

Heslop works as a registered nurse at Elmhurst Memorial Hospital. She has lived in Elmhurst for six years.

She is excited about the new hospital under construction at York and Roosevelt Roads and wants to work to see that the current hospital on Berteau Avenue continues to be a vital part of the fourth ward.

Heslop also wants to focus on the property tax rate, declining property values as well as infrastructure improvements related to record flooding in Elmhurst this summer.

“We’ve had to cut the budget and increase taxes this year,” she said. “I’d like to have more input in the budgetary process and what goes on in the city.”

Currently, Heslop serves as a commissioner on the City of Elmhurst Commission on Youth, is a middle school mentor, and is a member of the Mentor Advisory Board. She previously served as a committee co-chairman of the 2005 Elmhurst School District 205 Referendum Campaign.

“I am committed to transparent government, independent decision making, as well as being available and fully accountable to my constituents,” Heslop said on her Web site.