SE Illinois News

Republican state House hopeful Lisa Ciampoli has already completed what she sees as her first order of business in Springfield.

“I signed the ‘No Madigan Pledge,’ the first step in achieving comprehensive ethics reform in the statehouse,” she said, referring to embattled House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago). “I urge my opponent, Katie Stuart, to join me in signing this pledge.”

Ciampoli joins fellow Metro East Republican candidates Amy Elik in the 111th District and David Friess in District 116 in signing the pledge against Madigan, who now finds himself at the center of an ongoing federal corruption probe involving ComEd and an alleged pay-for-play scheme in which benefits were steered to the longtime house speaker.

“Mike Madigan has been in office for 35 years and enough is enough,” added Ciampoli, who is challenging Stuart in the 112th District. “We need a new culture in Springfield and this pledge is the start of that change.”

As part of the sea of change, Ciampoli is also demanding that Stuart return the “hundreds of thousands” of dollars she has received from Madigan over time in campaign contributions. Ciampoli is also highlighting her stance against Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the progressive tax proposal he is hoping will become law on Election Day.

“As a fiscal conservative, I oppose the tax hike amendment that would give more money and power to Springfield politicians like Speaker Mike Madigan," she said. “On the county board, I worked to keep taxes low, while Chicago Democrats in Springfield were working to hike taxes over and over.”

Ciampoli has long been an opponent of the progressive tax proposal that Pritzker continues to sell as just a tax on the state’s most affluent residents. To pass, the measure requires approval from 60% of those who vote on the issue or a majority of those who vote in the election overall.