Vermilion County voters — few voters, as it turns out — stopped by the polls Tuesday to cast votes for nominees in their respective parties. Most look at election results as the end of a process, but in the case of a primary the final tally really just gets things going.
With few contested races on the local ballot, most of the attention became focused on the state’s list of potential nominees, especially for the governor’s job.
Local school districts and other governmental bodies face considerable financial challenges in the months ahead unless Illinois lawmakers can do something to resolve the state’s fiscal crisis of $12 billion in red ink.
The situation lends itself to a candidate who puts together a proactive plan that cuts spending by eliminating redundant and unnecessary programs, assesses fair fees for those who use the state’s special services and calls for cuts — deep cuts — in state spending.
Many voters will be willing to go through a tight year or two in terms of state spending if they know they will gain stability and consistency once all the bills are paid.
What the long primary campaign yielded, however, was much more of the same rhetoric to which Illinois voters have become accustomed — vague claims of fiscal responsibility coupled with almost constant attacks on opponents.
Now, in the week after the primary, we can add the uncertainty of who will win the Republican nomination for governor due to an incredibly close race and the Democrats turning on their party’s nominee for lieutenant governor for a past history of alleged domestic abuse.
The key to winning this fall will not be more trash and burn of opponents or promises filled with more fantasy than a George Lucas film.
The key will be to present a pragmatic fiscal plan without trying to sugarcoat the effects it will certainly have on state services.
The candidate who gives the voters straight talk will win. Now voters will just have to wait to see whether any of the candidates have the courage to do it.
