Kankakee Times

"Home is worth fighting for," Kankakee's Lindsay Parkhurst, the Republican candidate for state House District 79, said.

Parkhurst was tapped as the Republican challenger to incumbent state Rep. Kate Cloonen (D-Kankakee) by the Kankakee County Republican Central Committee in December 2015. While she had never run for political office, she was well-known for her advocacy and willingness to fight for the little guy. She received the 2015 Prairie State Legal Services Pro Bono Attorney of the Year Award for her work with clients who couldn't afford a lawyer. Running for office is simply a progression to a larger platform where she can help the residents of District 79 and Illinois.

"I’m not a politician," Parkhurst said. "I never planned to run for office. I’ve been focused on raising my family, serving my clients and taking care of my father, but my time of sitting on the sidelines is over. I’ve seen firsthand how entrenched politicians fail to help taxpayers and Illinoisans in need and continue to waste our hard-earned tax dollars while lining their own pockets."

Parkhurst reminded voters that Illinois has a long history of embracing freedom and opportunity, from President Abraham Lincoln to basketball star Michael Jordan. As time passed, however, career politicians took control of the state's finances and gradually opportunities for the average Illinoisan faded.

While surrounding states have recovered from the 2007-09 Great Recession, Illinois has lagged on job creation. High pension costs, high income and state taxes and an unbalanced budget have hindered the state's recovery. Businesses and families have left Illinois for other states where the economic climate is business and family friendly.

With the ongoing budget impasse, the state has seen a decline in essential services and education. Without a budget, social services, colleges and universities, and other agencies have struggled to provide services to the poor, disabled, seniors, veterans and other disadvantaged citizens. Despite the lack of a budget, court orders from 2015 ensured that foster care operations would continue to receive funding and state employees and Medicaid providers would be paid.

The House passed a last minute, unbalanced budget in June that was voted down by the Senate. The Senate's budget was in turn voted down by the House, leaving the state without a budget and meaning essential services, including education, are unfunded. Parkhurst took the opportunity at a debate in May to point out that her opponent, Cloonen, voted in favor of the $7 billion in the red budget.

While the legislature passed a stop gap budget in late July, the temporary measure did not address all of the state's financial issues. Education and essential services were funded, but the state's backlog of unpaid bills was not addressed. Mooney's Investor Services warned that the current backlog of bills could reach $14 billion by the end of the fiscal year.

Despite the continuing bleak news on the budget, job losses and families leaving the state, Parkhurst holds an optimistic view of the future. By removing entrenched politicians from office and working together to rebuild the state's finances, she believes that Illinois can again become a land of opportunity. A balanced budget, job growth, term limits and redistricting reforms are among her priorities.

While Parkhurst supports many of Gov. Bruce Rauner's reforms and has taken a stand against additional taxation, when the topic is education she diverges from the governor's proposals. She promised to fight for education funding that would provide a world-class education to all Illinois children.

"Illinoisans deserve a state government that cuts wasteful spending, balances its budget and lives within its means," Parkhurst said. "We deserve a state government where our politicians are term-limited. We deserve a state government that ensures all children, regardless of their ZIP code, have access to well-funded, high quality schools."