Mickey Straub is convinced issues more important than the prospect of which politicians will have the right to call Springfield their headquarters are on the ballot with the March 20 election.
“The biggest question for voters is how much to do you really love Illinois and how much do you want to make the state great again,” he told the Will County Gazette. “This election is just that important, and that is one of the single-most important issues.”
Straub finds himself right in the thick of the battle. The Burr Ridge mayor is running in the Republican primary for the seat held by House Minority Leader Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs) in the 82nd District on a platform of fiscal responsibility and government accountability.
Republican Mickey Straub, Mayor of Burr Ridge
“Voters of the 82nd District can now decide if they want to continue with a career politician as their representative or someone who has been a successful mayor and businessman,” he said. “They have the option of staying on course with everything that's going wrong or bringing about the level of change so many of them have talked to me about that is needed.”
Straub said one recent example of how residents have insisted to him they’ve finally had enough came when a man left a message for him that all four people in his home had already early voted for him, and altogether 18 people in his family had done the same.
“That was a humbling experience,” Straub said. “As we continue to go door to door, we’re hearing more and more that people are just tired of Durkin.”
Straub said he thinks it’s that vibe that has led his opponent to spend so much of his time lying about and distorting his record.
“His latest ad claims are that I can’t be trusted and that he is a trusted conservative just because the Sun-Times and Tribune both endorsed him,” he said. “In another ad, he claims that he’s against career politicians like Mike Madigan. How can he be when he’s the exact same? Until I actually got in the race, I didn’t know just how bad I needed to be running.”
In the end, Straub said he now feels like he can’t lose, no matter what the results are at the ballot box.
“Either way, I’m walking away victorious,” Straub said. “It’s like my wife said, at least I’ve learned who my friends are, and along the way I’ve met a lot of great new ones that are all dedicated to trying to get Illinois back on the right path.”
The 82nd District includes Darien, Homer Glen, Lemont and Willowbrook.
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