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Locally, there are three contested races, all Republican, set for
the Feb. 5 primary.
Current State's Attorney Timothy J. Huyett is being challenged by
Michael McIntosh, a county board member and lawyer for the Illinois
State Police.
Logan County Board District 2 has Richard "Dick" Logan, currently
serving on the board, and Janet "Jan" Schumacher seeking that one
seat.
District 4 has a three-way contention between George M. Mitchell,
current board member; David R. Hepler, a past board member who left
due to a change in address; and newcomer Nathan Turner.
Of the above, only Mitchell was not present to speak.
The candidates were each given three minutes to present
themselves and their positions. Then they were given a
question-and-answer period.
Most of the questions directed to the candidates were about how
they would help improve the future of Logan County, whether it was
regarding economy, crime or improvements.
However, Huyett was questioned more personally on several of his
actions as state's attorney: the possible prosecution of a local
lawyer, releasing certain sensitive information to the public and
reportedly not prosecuting cases with "good arrests."
He responded in full to each of the issues.
Business owners present asked for more help collecting on bad
debts that some downtown merchants said are killing their
businesses.
McIntosh agreed to finding and adopting a program, should he be
elected.
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Interested in representing Logan County in Washington as U.S. Rep.
Ray LaHood retires from his 18th District congressional seat were
Jim McConoughey and John Morris.
McConoughey indicated he has a diverse background that lends well
to the position sought, but his greatest asset is in his economic
development skill. On his entry into private industry, he and his
partners began by building three hotels, which became 211 hotels in
10 years. (See
Jim McConoughey for Congress.)
Morris claims he's a conservative for less government. He has
served eight years on the Peoria City Council and says he would take
that experience as a local official to Washington. His top emphasis
would be safety and security of the U.S.
Two prominent currents flowed during
the candidate presentations:
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A concern for
building the economy and securing a future with jobs for our
children
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Protection from crime
and world evils
All recognized the commitment, the willingness to take on the
long days and long hours of meetings, including today's 7:30 a.m.
gathering, of a public servant. Each expressed interest in listening
to people and working with their constituents to do the job.
The forum was filmed by Integrity Data and will become available
online from the Lincoln/Logan County Chamber of Commerce at
www.lincolnillinois.com.
[By JAN YOUNGQUIST]
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