Metro East Sun

Former Republican U.S. Senate candidate Peggy Hubbard is one of the signatories of a letter calling for the removal of Don Tracy as chairman of the state's Republican Party. 

Hubbard includes herself in the coalition of 30 organizations representing over 80,000 conservative grassroots activists in Illinois who penned the open letter. 

“Yep, and I am one of them. Tracy has to go!” Hubbard, who ran her campaign out of Belleville, said on Facebook. 

The letter expresses a "no confidence" motion against Tracy and highlights the significant gains made by Democrats under his leadership.

“The state of the Illinois Republican Party is not good,” the letter reads, according to Illinois Review, Prairie State Wire reported. “Under chairman Don Tracy's leadership, fundraising is a struggle, party infighting has made its way into the pages of the Chicago Tribune, Politico and Crain's Chicago Business - and more importantly, the conservative grassroots base - the heart, soul and backbone of the Illinois Republican Party, feels ignored - and their volunteer efforts minimized.”

The letter also highlighted how the GOP had lost big races under Tracy's watch.

“Under chairman Tracy's leadership, the Democratic Party of Illinois has made significant gains,” the group stated in the letter. “In November, Republicans lost every statewide office; Democrats increased their supermajority control in the Illinois legislature; Republicans lost 14 of 17 congressional races; and in the Illinois Supreme Court, Republicans lost winnable races giving the Democrats a 5-2 majority in the state's highest court.”

Hubbard previously criticized Tracy for his support of Democrats, citing his donation to President Joe Biden's campaign against former President Donald Trump in 2020. The Illinois Review report highlighted Tracy's Democratic background, including his previous run as a Democrat for the 50th State Senate District. Tracy's campaign donations to Democrats, such as Judge Emily Sutton, were also mentioned. Hubbard joins others in condemning  what they see as the Illinois GOP's inaction and accuses Tracy and the party of political malpractice for abandoning candidates in school board elections.

Greenville attorney and former GOP attorney general candidate in the 2022 cycle Thomas DeVore also criticized the Illinois GOP for what he says is its lack of attention to local races. DeVore said he felt the Illinois GOP is in disarray and expresses disappointment in the party's failure to support local candidates and suggested that the state party's focus on national elections and the desire to gain favor with figures like former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has resulted in neglecting grassroots efforts.