Republican candidates seeking to turn Illinois House District 112 from blue to red are sparring over voting records and conflict of interest allegations.
Jennifer Korte of Edwardsville lobbed the first salvo at fellow Republican Joe Hackler of Granite City, arguing that his position as communications director of the Illinois Republican Party is a "blatant conflict of interest and he should take a leave of absence while running his campaign."
“The Illinois Republican Party as a matter of practice should stay out of primaries especially in races where there is no Republican incumbent," Korte stated in a press announcement. "It is hard for the Illinois Republican Party to argue they are not taking sides when one of their own is running in a contested primary. Joe Hackler should take a leave from his job to assure voters there is no impropriety in his run for State Representative.”
The Illinois Republican Party has not endorsed Hackler, nor contributed to his campaign.
In response to Korte's accusations, a spokesperson for Hackler pointed to his rival's "on the sidelines" voting record.
“While Jen Korte sat on the sidelines election after election, Joe Hackler has been fighting to elect Republican candidates throughout southern Illinois for almost a decade," stated Jayme Siemer, executive director of House Republican Majority.
"In fact, Korte didn’t even bother to vote in the 2020 election to support our Republican president, local Republican candidates, or even to vote ‘No’ on the tax hike amendment.”
The 112th District includes portions of both Madison and St. Clair Counties, containing parts of Edwardsville, Maryville, Glen Carbon, Granite City, Venice, Caseyville, Fairview Heights and O’Fallon.
Korte, 46, and Hackler, 30, face off in the June 28 primary. The winner will challenge three-term incumbent Katie Stuart (D-Edwardsville) in the November general election.
Since Stuart first ran for state representative in 2016, she has raised 94 percent of her itemized revenue - $4.28 million - from outside the Metro East counties.
The Illinois Democratic Party, led by former House Speaker Mike Madigan until January 2021, directly paid $960,536 for Stuart’s campaign payroll, postage, phones, and polls.
Madigan also transferred $555,000 to Stuart from his Democratic Majority committee. All in, Madigan – currently under indictment on fraud charges – has given Stuart $1.5 million through committees he controlled.