Leveraging a win over his Democratic opponent by a full 6 percent in a high-profile race, Republican David Severin captured the District 117 state House seat, defeating state Rep. John Bradley (D-Marion).
Severin took 53 percent of the vote, over Bradley’s 47 percent.
Franklin County native Severin, who owns a custom embroidery business in Benton, also serves as president of Benton Elementary School District No. 47.
David Severin
| Contributed photo
“We’re so excited this evening to represent the 117th District in Southern Illinois,” Severin said shortly after his victory was clear. “We sent a message to Springfield … they want something different.”
The race became intense. Some ads depicted Bradley — long perceived as an ally of House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) — endorsing Madigan to retain his speakership, with some ads showing up on Facebook.
“In his own words, folks. He's loyal to Madigan, not us,” Severin said in one advertisement.
The commercial went on to accuse Bradley of raising taxes and “sending jobs to Chicago” before concluding that Bradley let the people of District 117 down. In turn, Bradley dispatched his attorneys in an attempt to have the content removed from the internet.
However, Bradley conceded diplomatically, despite the intense contest.
"I congratulate Dave Severin on his victory,” Bradley said, after the results were tabulated. “The people of the 117th District have spoken, and I respect their decision. I stand ready to assist Mr. Severin during the transition period. It has been an honor and privilege to represent the people of Southern Illinois, and I thank them for the trust they placed in me to be their voice at the Capitol."
Gov. Bruce Rauner stands to gain leverage against Madigan in that with the addition of Severin and three other Republicans in the state House, the Democrats no longer have a veto-proof supermajority. In addition, WSIL-TV called Severin’s win “a shot across Madigan’s bow,” as Bradley was close to Madigan.
Bradley, an attorney, was appointed to represent the 117th District in 2003 and has served as chairman of the House Revenue and Finance Committee since 2006 and as assistant majority leader since 2013.
Severin and his team gathered in Marion as election returns came in. News sources on the scene recorded vigorous cheers as Severin, his family and supporters beamed and waved placards in celebration.
“We’re excited,” Severin said, holding his young son. “We’ve pulled this (together) after a year of working in the 117th District. We were able to pull this thing off because of the people who believed in us. They wanted something different, and … we’re going to bring it to them. We’ve defeated … the things that they were doing and the direction that they were going; people in the 117th are ready to see something go in a different direction.”
Severin is a Benton resident and small-business owner who opposes tax increases, believing that high tax rates have hastened Illinois’ financial problems. He strongly supports term limits and workers’ compensation reform, believing that cutbacks in business regulations and taxes will help restore a healthy workforce, curtail the trend of businesses exiting Illinois for more hospitable business climates and contribute to a new, rebalanced budget.
“The character of — and how we’ve run — this campaign is how we felt we needed to do that. We stayed on the high road. We didn’t get in the gullies, and we didn’t get in the gutters. We decided that we were going to make this about the needs of the 117th,” Severin said.
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