New state senator for parts of St. Clair, Madison counties talks about his top issues
A committee of Democratic party leaders from Madison, St. Clair and Jersey counties have announced who will replace State Sen. Rachelle Aud Crowe in the 56th District after her resignation.
Capt. Kristopher Tharp, of the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, was sworn in Friday as the region’s new senator through the end of Crowe’s term.
The term ends Jan. 11, 2023, when the new General Assembly is sworn in. Tharp is also expected to be the committee’s pick to run for the 56th District seat in the Nov. 8 General Election, according to Randy Harris, Madison County Democratic party chairman. They have until July 25 to announce their nomination for the ballot.
Crowe resigned from the state Senate to take a job as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Illinois.
The 56th District includes parts of Madison, St. Clair and Jersey counties.
Tharp grew up in Wood River and has 25 years of experience in law enforcement, including as jail administrator for the sheriff’s office and as a deputy commander of the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis today. (He said he plans to continue working in those roles while serving constituents of the 56th District.)
“In my 25 years of police service, I’ve been just immersed in the district, whether I was fighting for victims of violent crime with the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis or advocating for seniors with the Madison County Triad,” Tharp said after the swearing-in.
“All roads in my career, all roads in my life have led to this point and the chance to advocate and fight for this district that raised me, the district that invested in me, is just a tremendous honor and it’s something that I’m excited to be able to do.”
The committee that selected Tharp was comprised of Democratic party chairmen from each county: Harris from Madison County, Robert Sprague from St. Clair County and Mark Pohlman from Jersey County.
They announced his appointment Friday morning at a meeting in Wood River, just three blocks from Tharp’s childhood home.
Tharp was the only eligible candidate to apply for the role, according to Harris. He said one other person applied, but they lived outside the district boundaries.
Harris added that he thinks Tharp will be “a fighter” for the district.
What issues matter to new state senator for 56th District?
Tharp said Friday that one of the issues that matters most to him is crime. To address it, he said the region needs a “healthy and supported law enforcement community.”
Tharp said some of the challenges for law enforcement are recruitment and retention.
“We absolutely must back our law enforcement,” Tharp said. “We must ensure they have the resources they need to do their jobs. People that live within this district need to feel safe in their homes, feel safe within the community, feel safe going out shopping and visiting restaurants.
“This area cannot thrive if it does not have healthy police, if it does not have a supported police force. This district supports its police, and we’re going to continue to do so.”
Tharp said education, including trade school opportunities for students, is another issue that matters to him. He also said he knows people are struggling day-to-day with higher costs.
“We need to work on driving costs down,” he said. “How do we do that? We need to buy American. We need to buy Illinois products. We need to ensure that our infrastructure within this district is strong and can support the type of industry that will help drive down costs.
“We have tremendous assets in this district,” Tharp added. “We have a tremendous port district on the river. We have tons of warehouses, tons of highways. We have the railway system. We have to ensure that all those can meet the demand that’s gonna be required to get the commodities to the families in this district when they need it, in the interest of ensuring they have what they need and in driving prices down.”
Another issue within the 56th District is the possible loss of nearly 1,000 jobs at the steel mill in Granite City. This summer, the steel mill’s owner, United States Steel Corp., announced plans to stop making steel at the plant and sell two blast furnaces.
“We’re going to fight for the workers down there that have been dealt a gut punch,” Tharp said. “U.S. Steel should be doing better by the men and women who allowed that company to profit for all of these years. The men and women that work in that steel mill are the lifeblood of this community.
“... They deserve better and we’re going to do all that we can to ensure that they get better.”
This story was originally published July 8, 2022 at 11:49 AM.
