Will County Gazette

Mickey Straub isn’t surprised to hear that Gov. Bruce Rauner might be attempting to run the Republican Party as his own entity.

“Much of the GOP is bought and paid for by Gov. Rauner,” Straub told the Will County Gazette. “That’s just the way he’s sought to govern from the time he’s been in power.”

As Exhibit A, Straub and a growing number of Republican leaders are now pointing to and complaining about the GOP endorsement process being “rigged” in Rauner’s favor.

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner

In one recent instance, Republican leaders at a Palatine Township Republican Organization endorsement session charged that Chairman Aaron Del Mar, a longtime Rauner supporter and 2016 appointee of his to the Illinois International Port District, argued he wasn’t required to provide other group members with rules for the meeting.

Eyebrows were also raised when Rauner won the Cook County Republican endorsement over Rep. Jeanne Ives (R-Wheaton), despite her winning 55 percent of the city vote.

“I’ve heard discontent from people all over the county with the way some things are being done,” Straub, who is running for the seat held by House Minority Leader Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs) in the 82nd District, said. “But, at the end of the day, I think people are so fed up with what’s happening in state government they aren’t going to let anything stop them from getting the changes that are needed in Springfield.”

As he’s campaigned across the district, Straub said the state’s out-of-control taxes have proven to be one of the biggest concerns for voters.

“I recently traveled to Texas and while on the way I met and spoke with another man from the state and the first thing he said to me was he can’t wait until he can get out of Illinois altogether,” he said. “The bottom line is people have had enough and they know the change has to come from them. The only way that happens is by taking out the career politicians and replacing them with new leadership.”

Straub said he plans to spend the last few weeks of his campaign “putting himself in front of as many voters as he can” making sure they hear his message and know what he stands for.

“We’ll do even more going door to door and we have a number of rallies and meet-and-greets planned,” he said. “At this point, it’s all about interacting with the voters.”

The 82nd District includes Darien, Homer Glen, Lemont and Willowbrook.