Metro East Sun

Amy Elik, Republican candidate for state representative in the 111th District, wants to be part of the new face of government in Springfield.

“I decided to run for state representative because I share the same frustrations as the families in my district that are tired of our Metro East communities being subject to the bad policies of Chicago Democrats,” Elik told the Metro East Sun of the reasons behind her challenge of incumbent Rep. Monica Bristow (D-Alton). “There is no sense of urgency by our representatives in Springfield to change the current trajectory of piling on more debt and increasing taxes on families. We don’t have enough strong voices defending our pro-life values and standing up for law-abiding gun owners exercising their Second Amendment rights. Enough is enough. Sometimes it takes ordinary people to step up and bring change for our communities that have given us so much. That is what I am doing.”

Currently a member of the Foster Township Board of Trustees and a certified public accountant, Elik is confident that her background in finance will aid her in quickly getting to the root of some of the state’s fiscal issues.

Foster Township trustees and candidate for the Illinois House Amy Elik

"We are proud to have cut the township’s tax levy by 20 percent,” said Elik, who was first appointed to the board in 2013 and reelected four years later. “As a CPA for 24 years, I can tell you that the math in Springfield does not add up. We are spending more money than our residents can afford. I have spent my career helping families and small businesses and I know the effects that Illinois’ high taxes have on families, whether they are trying to figure out how they are going to send their kids to college or when a small business owner thinks they are getting ahead, and instead they get hit with another tax hike. We need legislators who are ready to do the hard work and make Illinois a better place for families to live.”

Elik argues that Bristow has not resembled the legislator she presented herself as when she took office two years ago.

“The only promise she kept was her desire to increase her salary – something she accomplished in the last days of the legislative session,” Elik said in a recent statement announcing her campaign. “As state representative, I will advance the needs and priorities of this district, not those of Chicago and Speaker [Mike] Madigan.”

In her growing interactions with voters, Elik says it is easy to get a sense of the issues troubling them most.

“They are tired of their property taxes going up and their home values going down,” Elik said. “They are tired of Illinois politicians in the news every day for corruption and cutting backdoor deals for their politically connected pals. They feel there is no one in Springfield they can trust. Voters are tired of their voices being silenced in Springfield by a representative that joins hands with Madigan and the rest of the Chicago Democrats.”

A native of Illinois, Elik said she has grown accustomed to working with the people of her district as part of such organizations as St. Mary’s Parish & School in Alton, where she was a school board member, and SCORE Association, for whom she taught financial-projections classes and advised small business startups.