(Listen to an audio only version of this report)
So, this is what happens when you have an early primary date.
By now, all of you have seen the results of the February 2nd primary election. To say things didn’t go as planned is an understatement. As a state and as an organization, we are faced with greater challenges than we ever could have imagined.
Going into this election, we were excited about the opportunity to make a real difference and show we can impact elections at the state level. In some cases, we did that. In the Democratic race for Comptroller, its clear that IEA had an impact. We played a big role in getting State Representative David Miller across the finish line. Additionally, most of the IPACE recommended candidates that ran for the General Assembly were winners on Tuesday.
However, in the race for Governor, we fell short. We know that the turnout among voters in the general public was well below what was anticipated. It is our hope that the same is not true for IEA members. It is clear that, in both the Democratic and Republican gubernatorial elections, IEA members could have made the difference for Dan Hynes and Kirk Dillard.
Over the next few weeks, we expect to know who the candidates for governor will be from both major parties.
Looking toward the fall election, IEA Government Relations will do everything necessary to inform our leaders, members and staff about the importance of getting the vote out in support of IPACE/IEA-recommended candidates.
It’s not enough for the IPACE and the IEA Board of Directors to identify the individuals who care about public education, who care about teachers and who care about sustaining the pension system that we currently have in place. The more than 138,000 IEA members need to support those candidates and urge others to do so.
Below is a listing of the results from Tuesday’s Primary Election for those IPACE-recommended candidates who were in contested primary races.
| IPACE-Recommended Candidates | |||
| 2010 Primary Election | |||
| Governor | |||
| Kirk Dillard | Republican | No winner declared yet. | |
| Dan Hynes | Democrat | Lost | |
| Comptroller | |||
| David Miller | Democrat | Won | |
| Illinois State Senate | |||
| Senate District | Candidate | Political Affiliation | |
| 1 | Tony Munoz | Democrat | Won |
| 7 | Heather Steans | Democrat | Won |
| Illinois House of Representatives | |||
| House District | Candidate | Political Affiliation | |
| 4 | Cynthia Soto | Democrat | Won |
| 10 | Annazette Collins | Democrat | Won |
| 11 | Ann Williams | Democrat | Won |
| 18 | Eamon Kelly | Democrat | Lost |
| 32 | Andre Thapedi | Democrat | Won |
| 40 | Joe Laiacona | Democrat | Lost |
| 41 | Brien Sheahan | Republican | Lost |
| 50 | Kay Hatcher | Republican | Won |
| 60 | Eddie Washington | Democrat | Won |
| 62 | Sandy Cole | Republican | Won |
| 94 | Rich Myers | Republican | Won |
| 114 | Eddie Jackson | Democrat | Won |
Responsible Budget Coalition
Schools, child care providers and other public services are facing massive budget cuts due to the state budget crisis. Illinois needs a real budget solution that will fairly raise the revenue needed to stop cuts and fully fund vital services.
On February 17, thousands will rally at the Illinois Statehouse for a Responsible Budget. Rally begins at 11 am. For more information, go to the Responsible Budget Coalition page on our website.
IEA is a member of the Responsible Budget Coalition.
What’s Next
The Senate will be in Session on Monday, February 8, and the House of Representatives comes back Tuesday, February 9. Thursday, February 11 is the deadline for introduction of substantive bills in each chamber.
Please mark your calendars for April 21 – IEA Lobby Day.