VIDEO: Rep. Wilhour Says Democrats’ Last-Minute Election Change is ‘Typical Games’

Rep. Blaine Wilhour (110th District) with the united Republican Caucus talks to the media on Wednesday at the Illinois State Capitol about the "typical political games" used by the Democrats.

State Representative Blaine Wilhour (R-Beecher City) and the Republican members of the Illinois House of Representatives cast a 'protest vote' Wednesday by voting present on a last-minute piece of legislation that would eliminate candidates for the General Assembly. Senate Bill 2412 was completely gutted today and replaced with language that would also place three non-binding referenda on the November 5^th ballot that would not do anything even if most Illinois voters voted yes on them.

"Democrats followed their typical playbook yesterday, drop a major omnibus bill at the last minute that does several things without giving us any prior notice," said Rep. Wilhour. "One of those things is to deny ballot access to candidates who want to be slated to run in the general election."

Rep. Wilhour explained for example that if there is no Republican candidate in a primary, and it is a Democrat held seat, the Republican Party can slate a candidate and give the voters a choice in the General election. The Democrats are taking away the ability for the Republicans to slate a candidate to run against a Democrat in that election, and this only applies to legislative races, not any other races.

"This proposal is a blatant grab for more power to try to keep their supermajority. It is pure politics," added Wilhour, a member of the Ethics and Elections Committee.

Wilhour continued that the bill also includes three non-binding referenda he finds peculiar. The Democrats have 78 members and have no need to put non-binding referenda on the ballot when they can pass any legislation they want with their supermajority. The maneuver smacks of a move for purely political reasons.

"One of these non-binding referendums is about property taxes," Wilhour said. "If you are a sitting legislator and you need a referendum to tell you to lower oppressive property taxes in Illinois, you're an idiot. We've got all kinds of good ideas on the Republican side that would significantly lower proper taxes, properly fund education and prioritize the services that we all think are important to the people of Illinois. The only thing standing in the way is the Democrats who would rather play politics than get things done."