Homer Markel, Democratic candidate for 12th Congressional District in Illinois
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Name: Homer “Chip” Markel
Political party: Democrat
Age as of June 28, 2022: 61
Campaign website or social media page: ChipMarkelForCongress.com
Office seeking: Democratic nominee for U.S. representative, 12th Congressional District in Illinois
Are you an incumbent? No
Have you run for elected office before? (Please list previous offices sought) No
Occupation: Illinois Department of Corrections-Retired
Education: High School and United States Navy
Please list highlights of your civic involvement: During my career in the Department of Corrections, I was the union president at Menard Correctional Center. During the 1980s and the first half of the 1990s, the maximum security Institutions were extremely violent. As union president, I initiated the movement for Illinois to build a supermax prison. After 2 1/2 years of continuous lobbying in Springfield and Chicago, the Illinois Legislature passed the resolution to build a supermax prison. This may not be considered as “civic” involvement but the violence that correctional officers and inmates endured during that time dropped by at least 95 percent.
Who are your top three campaign contributors? I do not feel it is necessary to answer this question as all information will be available through the FEC.
Why are you running? I have always tried to make a difference wherever I’ve been. I wanted to improve the quality of life for people and make things a little easier. During my time in the U.S. Navy, I came to understand what it meant to serve my country and honor my oath to the Constitution. Now more than ever, I feel the need to serve my country, honor my oath and try to make things better for the average American. If we don’t change the partisan politics that has taken over Congress, where will we be in five years? What kind of place will this be for our children and grandchildren? With my background and accomplishments, I can make a difference in Washington and that’s what I plan to do. The only promise I will make is that I will do my very best to serve the people of Southern Illinois and the country.
What is the top issue in your race, and how would you address it? My top priority will be to protect and preserve our Democracy! I will be truthful and honest with people about what is going on in Washington. I will hold face-to-face town hall meetings to give people access to their elected Representative. I will form working relationships with serious members on the other side of isle that will create real bipartisan cooperation.
Why should people vote for you? I will work hard to correct the issues that are causing the inflation problem. I will push to end Wall Street speculators & big oil companies controlling and manipulating the oil futures and production. This is causing 50 percent of inflation problem. Another major factor is our dependence on China’s manufacturing. This needs to be treated as a national security issue. When we have to wait for China to manufacture life saving drugs or personal safety equipment for our health care professionals, that is a problem. We must bring manufacturing jobs back to this country. I will work to create permanent solutions not just quick fixes.
This story was originally published May 31, 2022 at 6:00 AM.