Republican
John Shimkus
Collinsville
Age: 54
Married
Children: 3
Job: U.S. Representative
Phone: (618) 344-1919
Web: www.volunteersforshimkus.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/#!/VolunteersForShimkus
Twitter: http://en.twitter.com/RepShimkus
E-mail: campaign@volunteersforshimkus.com
Education: Graduate of West Point, M.B.A. from SIUE
Previous offices: Collinsville Township trustee, Madison County treasurer
Qualifications: Senior member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce where I bring a free-market approach to the intersection of energy, healthcare and telecommunications policy. Staunch pro-life, pro-Second Amendment conservative who fights for lower taxes, less regulation, and greater economic opportunity for all. A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and earned my MBA from SIUE. An experienced member of Congress who will put my expertise on agricultural and energy issues to work for the new 15th Congressional District.
Top issues: The new 15th Congressional District is comprised of all or parts of 33 counties and spans from my hometown of Collinsville down to Metropolis and then north of Champaign and Danville. The district is heavily focused on agriculture and energy production, and fits the rural values that I have championed as Congressman. I have focused my legislative accomplishments on the nation's energy policy, serving on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and chairing the Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy. In 1998, my legislation changed our nation's alternative fuel policy from one of vehicles purchased to one of actual fuel usage. This pro-biodiesel provision continues to aid farmers, protect our environment, and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. In 2005, I was instrumental in the energy bill signed by President Bush and the renewable fuel standard (RFS). This legislation has been the primary engine to excite ethanol production in Illinois. I have also been a staunch defender of coal. My commitment to conservative and rural values has earned me the Faith & Freedom Coalitions' 2012 Friend of Freedom and Illinois Farm Bureau's 2012 Friend of Agriculture awards. I have also been endorsed by the National Right to Life Committee, with a 100 percent voting record in the last Congress.
