Metro East Sun

Dwight Kay has been willing to leave his comfort zone to let voters know how critical he thinks November’s general election is to the state’s overall health.

“I've never been a doom and gloom kind of guy,” Kay told the Metro East Sun. “But if Democrats hold the House, gain more of a majority in the Senate and J.B. Pritzker is elected governor we won’t be able to recognize Illinois for much longer. I think Gov. (Bruce) Rauner is absolutely right in warning this could be our last chance.”

Rauner’s dire warning comes in the form of a new TV ad where he also salutes his administration for having “done some good” before adding “after decades of corruption, change doesn’t come easy.”

Rep. Katie Stuart

Rauner ends the 30-second spot by warning voters about what he thinks an Illinois led by Pritzker and House Speaker Mike Madigan would look like, which is a nightmare image that also motivates Kay, he said.

“If Pritzker is elected, Democrats will redraw the map in two years to the point virtually every Republican will be out of office,” said Kay, who is running against Rep. Katie Stuart (D-Edwardsville) in Illinois’ 112th District. "On top of that, Democrats have at least four tax increases ready to go. With the state of Illinois, how can we afford that?”

Tax increases aren't even the worst-case scenario, Kay said.

“In my view, the worse thing is that we could lose another 100,000 or so people from this state over the next few years if we have Pritzker and Madigan in control,” he said. “That would mean our tax base becomes smaller and the people still here will be forced to carry even more of the burden. This is on top of more bad government, bad management and at least some of those tax increases passing into law.”

Illinois’ 112th District includes Bethalto, Caseyville, Fairmont City, Glen Carbon, Maryville, Pontoon Beach, Roxana, Shiloh and Swansea.