Kankakee Times

Former state legislator and gubernatorial candidate Jeanne Ives has raised concerns about the heavy financial backing Democrat Patrick Joyce is receiving from unions and party affiliates as he seeks re-election.

Ives, who is the CEO of Breakthrough Ideas, laid out the spending by the Democratic Senate Caucus and labor union interests. 

"In just the last three weeks, the Illinois Senate Democrats have pushed a staggering $508,290 into Patrick Joyce's campaign account," Ives told the Kankakee Times. "And in the last month alone, unions and affiliated PACs have sent the Joyce campaign $118,700 in donations."

Recent Philip Nagel ad slamming State Sen. Patrick Joyce's support of Gotion. | Philip Nagel campaign

Joyce, who took office in 2019, is part of a political legacy. He is the third member of the Joyce family to serve as a state senator from the area.

“Democrats and unions are spending big to try to keep Joyce in office,” Ives said. 

Ives highlighted the family's political history. 

"His father served in the position, then resigned mid-term and gifted the seat to his wife, Patrick's mother, for the remainder of his term," she said. 

Despite running on a platform that promised to lower taxes for constituents, Ives argued that Joyce's tenure has seen the opposite effect. 

"When Joyce was elected, he promised voters he would go to Springfield to lower their taxes. However, since he has been in office, taxes have increased, and the budget has ballooned by 30% since 2020, now sitting at $53 billion," she said.

A recent analysis from the Cook County Treasurer's Office has revealed significant increases in property taxes for homeowners in the south and southwest suburbs, with the median tax bill soaring by a record 19.9%. 

In 15 suburbs, some homeowners experienced tax hikes of 30% or more, with Dixmoor and Phoenix seeing staggering increases of over 100%. 

Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas expressed concern, stating these areas already face some of the highest property taxes in the county. 

"Many homeowners are going to be shocked and angry when they get their bills," Pappas told Fox 32. 

Overall, the property tax increase across Cook County amounts to approximately $706 million, predominantly impacting residential property owners.

Ives continued, emphasizing the impact on local property taxes. 

"Joyce ran on lowering people's property taxes, yet no reform has taken place,” she said. “His party holds supermajorities in the House and Senate, and with Governor Pritzker at the helm, you would expect change. Instead, parts of Joyce's district have experienced some of the highest property tax increases in the state, with Park Forest seeing taxes rise by an astonishing 56% just in the last year."

Despite his inaction, Joyce, who has been in office since 2019, recently told the Chicago Tribune that property taxes remain a critical issue. 

Meanwhile, 40th Senate District challenger Braidwood resident Philip Nagel, a former U.S. Air Force member who has lived in the southern Cook County community for the past 20 years, has argued for attracting more businesses to Illinois and proposes tax breaks as an incentive, while criticizing the Democrats’ spending policies for creating a bloated budget.

The demographic diversity in Joyce's district, which encompasses parts of south suburban Chicago as well as rural areas around Kankakee, adds to the complexity of his campaign. 

"In the northern part of the district, the Joyce campaign has put out signs aligning himself with the Harris-Walz campaign," Ives observed. "But in the rural areas, Joyce has tried to distance himself from the Democratic presidential ticket."

One of the more contentious issues in the Kankakee area is Joyce's support for Gotion, Inc., a company with ties to China that has faced allegations of slave labor.  

"Governor Pritzker awarded Gotion $536 million in tax subsidies, and the company received further local tax breaks, including a 30-year freeze on property taxes. This decision shifts the financial burden onto homeowners," she said. "Joyce celebrated the Chinese coming to Kankakee and receiving these tax breaks—this is directly at odds with his supposed goal of lowering taxes for middle-income families in the district."

In 2023, Joyce announced the arrival of the electric vehicle battery gigafactory by Gotion in Kankakee County, praising the investment as a significant boost for the region. 

The factory is receiving upwards of $1 billion in subsidies to build the plant. 

Nagel has created an ad regarding Joyce's support.

 

“Gotion could not have picked a better place for this new factory,” Joyce said in a press release. “This is a huge investment in Kankakee County, and will result in good-paying jobs for residents. This is a huge win for our region.”

In contrast, Gordon G. Chang, American journalist, lawyer, political commentator and writer, argued in a recent op-ed published in Newsweek against the establishment of Gotion Inc.'s electric vehicle battery plants in Manteno, emphasizing that U.S. taxpayers are effectively financing a company tied to the Chinese Communist Party, which he argues is linked to forced labor and genocide. 

“The company intends at the Manteno plant to use components tainted by forced labor in China. Containers from China have already arrived in the village,” Chang wrote. 

Chang has called for stronger enforcement of laws against importing products linked to forced labor, urging that the U.S. should not become dependent on adversaries like China.

The 40th Senate District is located in parts of Will, Kankakee and Cook counties and includes the communities of The 40th district, located partly in the Chicago area, includes all or parts of Bourbonnais, Bradley, Chicago Heights, Coal City, Essex, Flossmoor, Frankfort, Glenwood, Hazel Crest, Homewood, Joliet, Kankakee, Manhattan, Matteson, Mokena, Monee, New Lenox, Park Forest, Richton Park, Steger, University Park and Wilmington.