Primary elections will be held Feb. 28, and the general election will be held April 4. | File photo
Primary elections will be held Feb. 28, and the general election will be held April 4. | File photo
The Massac County Republican Party is gearing up for the spring 2017 election following its success in November.
The party boasted about its wins nationally, and members are hoping to continue that success by taking back local offices.
“We support Republican candidates in offices -- locally to nationally,” Republican County Chairman for Massac County Sam Stratemeyer recently told Southeast Illinois News.
In Massac County, two alderman seats, the mayor, clerk, treasurer and school board will be up for election come spring.
Stratemeyer is still reviewing the county school board and treasurer candidates. He is unsure regarding the two candidates for mayor but has made decisions for the other seats.
“All the candidates are from Republican families, from Republican backgrounds and have a history of being Republican activists,” Stratemeyer said.
For one of the alderman seats, the party will be supporting Andra Kerley, a local businesswoman who owns her own H&R Block franchise. For the other alderman seat, Andy Anderson has gained the support of the party. Anderson worked for many years at the Illinois Department of Corrections.
Jan Adams has won the support for the city clerk. She comes from a family with a business background.
Primary elections will be held Feb. 28, and the general election will be held April 4.
Although no candidates have been mentioned yet, the party has already begun thinking about the 2018 elections and winning more Republican Senate and House seats, as well as the gubernatorial race.
In addition to the local races, there are several issues Stratemeyer and the county party will be looking to support in the General Assembly.
Stratemeyer is passionate about cutting taxes and business regulations. New social programs were started during the Obama administration; Stratemeyer plans to maintain those programs without cutting back on business regulations.
“We can’t have social programs unless you have people in businesses to support them,” he said. “Without businesses paying taxes, there are no social programs.”
The other issue Stratemeyer will focus on is reducing the tax imprint.
“Every time you are going to the store and paying something -- whether it be a Coca-Cola or something else -- you have exchanged a large portion of your life to the government,” he said.
Stratemeyer believes that, if tax on an item is 10 percent, then businesses paying that amount creates a much greater margin than the profit a business will make from said item. By reducing the taxes businesses are required to pay the government, companies are able to stay open longer and be more successful.
Stratemeyer and the county party hold an open-door policy for voters who are interested in learning more about the candidates and the issues.
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