Candidates vie in unusual three-way race in
First Senate District

By Bethany Pozzi-Johnson 

The Senate 1st District includes parts of Bridgeport, Pilsen, and Tri-Taylor, and is unusual in that it features three candidates.

Dorian Breuer is running as the Green Party candidate, and he and his fellow Greens are trying to change the

 way political races are run. Their view is that large campaign donations by individuals and corporations shift the dedication of the politicians away from the bulk of the populace. As it is now, 15% of donors are responsible for 80% of the donations in elections around the country. Breuer says he is running for the people, not for corporations, and thus only accepts individual donations of up to $200.

His biggest issues beyond cleaning up campaign financing are healthcare for all Illinois residents, saving failing schools, and rearranging taxes to take the load off the poorest in the state.

“I propose to give relief to families making $60,000 and under a year by eliminating property and income taxes,” Breuer says. To make up for it, he would tax those making over $250,000 their fair share of 6%. Illinois, he asserted, is the fourth most "regressive tax" state--that is, the more you make, the fewer taxes you pay proportionally. These changes would leave a surplus--money he already has a plan for.

With the tax surplus, Breuer proposes healthcare for all Illinois residents. He believes the new system would save residents a lot of physical grief, and ultimately save a lot of money. At this point, insurance companies spend large amounts of money on competitive advertising and administration costs, the need for which would be eliminated under a single payer health care plan. The uninsured of the State also are the poorest, many of whom are in single-mother families.

His other plan is to use the surplus tax money to save failing schools, most of which are in the poorest neighborhoods. Breuer would ensure they receive their fair share of education dollars. At this point, he noted, the wealthiest schools are receiving greater financial help from the State than the poorest, failing schools. Breuer wants to change the teacher to student ratio from 1:40 to 1:10, which he believes is “imminently passable.”

Incumbent Antonio Munoz, a Democrat, is running for his third term as Senator. He worked diligently on a resolution out of the Senate to improve treatment of veterans in Illinois, where veterans are being hired at less than half the rate of the rest of the country through veteran placement services. He looks to give Illinois veterans the same benefits as elsewhere in the country.

Munoz has passed legislation through the Senate to provide in-state tuition benefits to resident children of immigrants, regardless of their immigration status. The students must have completed at least three years school here and have an Illinois high school diploma.

Legislation sponsored by Munoz regarding the financial literacy of high school students has been passed on to the Governor’s office. The bill proposes that financial matters be taught in schools to create more financial acuity and comfort in young adults. Lessons include applying for loans, balancing checkbooks, and filling out tax forms.

Munoz is Chairperson of the Transportation Committee, and Vice-Chair of the Environment and Energy Committee. He also serves on the committees Appropriations III, Licensed Activities, and Revenue; Subcommittees on Airports, Tollways, Revenue Special Issues, and Licensed Professionals (where he is the Sub-Chairperson); and the Senate Task Force on Illinois Alcoholic Beverage Laws.

Munoz is co-founder and treasurer of the Latino Caucus in the Senate.

Rose Pappas is the Republican candidate. Chicago has always been her hometown. Pappas said. “I have always been very interested in issues of justice, fairness, freedom, and excellence in government," she said. Being a Republican comes naturally, she said, as she believes that “enforcing laws that create good public morals does not deprive people of their civil rights.”

One of her big concerns is people's frustration about government. She is aware that corruption at all levels of government produces helplessness and discouragement in the populace, and she wants to encourage people to participate in problem-solving.

Problems such as energy and pollution, she said, would do well to be placed in the hands of “the ingenuity of the American system of competition.” She suggests “giving the problem back to the people to solve, instead of saddling their backs with endless governmental regulations.” She believes in a “free and independent country,” with the right to drill in Alaska and to open more power plants.

Another big issue for Pappas is "the recent loss of the right to own your own property. Current court rulings have declared that private ownership doesn’t exist." She views this as "trashing the Constitution" and proposes repairing it by making it “tamper-proof. I favor a constitutional amendment specifically defining historical property rights,” which could not be altered by the courts.

Pappas believes in the "power of the people," and urges them to share their opinions and participate in problem-solving. “I will listen to what the people have to say, listen to their ideas, and try to inspire participation in the democratic process by everyone,” she concluded