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Darren Bailey
Bailey in 2022
Member of the Illinois Senate from the 55th district
In office January 13, 2021 – January 11, 2023
Preceded by	Dale Righter
Succeeded by	Jason Plummer (redistricted)
Member of the Illinois House of Representatives from the 109th district
In office January 9, 2019 – January 13, 2021
Preceded by	David Reis
Succeeded by	Adam Niemerg
Personal details
Born	(1966-03-17) March 17, 1966 (age 58) Louisville, Illinois, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Cindy Stortzum Bailey
Children	4
Education	Lake Land College (AS)

Darren Bailey (born March 17, 1966) is an American politician who was a Republican member of the Illinois Senate for the 55th District and previously a member of the Illinois House of Representatives for the 109th District in Southern Illinois. Widely described by news outlets as a far-right politician, he was the Republican nominee for the 2022 Illinois gubernatorial election, which he lost to incumbent J. B. Pritzker.

Bailey ran in the Republican primary for the 12th congressional district in the 2024 U.S. House elections, narrowly losing to incumbent Mike Bost.

Early life and education

Bailey was born in Louisville, Illinois, on March 17, 1966. He graduated from North Clay High School and earned an Associate of Science degree in agricultural production from Lake Land College.

Political career

Bailey, of Xenia, Illinois, was a member of the North Clay Board of Education. During his time on the school board, Bailey voted to raise property taxes every time one was proposed. In total, Bailey voted to increase property taxes by 81%.

In a rare victory for candidates supported by Dan Proft's Liberty Principles PAC, Bailey defeated David Reis in the 2018 Republican primary. Bailey then defeated Democratic candidate Cynthia Given, the Secretary of the Richland County Democratic Party, by a margin of 76.14% to 23.86%. The 109th District at the time, located in the Illinois Wabash Valley, included all of Edwards, Jasper, Richland, Wabash, Wayne, and White counties and parts of Effingham and Lawrence counties.

On July 8, 2019, Bailey announced his intention to run for the Illinois Senate seat being vacated by Dale Righter. He won the March 17, 2020, Republican primary. Bailey defeated Democratic nominee Cynthia Given in the general election.

In April 2020, Bailey sued Governor J. B. Pritzker, claiming that the governor's stay-at-home order extension to mitigate effects of the COVID-19 pandemic was unfairly affecting residents of Clay County. A judge granted a temporary restraining order against the stay-at-home order, though it only applied to Bailey. Pritzker stated he would appeal the order and characterized Bailey's lawsuit as a "cheap political stunt". On May 20, 2020, the Illinois House voted 81–27 to remove Bailey from its session for refusing to wear a mask. The following day, Bailey attended the House wearing a face mask as required by the rules.

On February 22, 2021, Bailey announced his candidacy for governor in 2022. On December 13, 2021, Bailey announced that his running mate for lieutenant governor would be former WLS-AM 890 talk radio host Stephanie Trussell. Three days before the primary, Bailey appeared at a rally with Donald Trump and received his endorsement.

Bailey won the primary by a large margin, receiving 57.7% of the vote and winning all but two counties.

Before a campaign appearance on July 4, 2022, in the wake of the Highland Park Parade Shooting, Bailey stated on a livestream "The shooter is still at large, so let's pray for justice to prevail, and then let's move on and let's celebrate - celebrate the independence of this nation". He received backlash for his statement and later apologized. For his gubernatorial campaign, Bailey received more than $50M in support from cardboard box businessman Dick Uihlein.

Bailey ended up losing to incumbent J.B. Pritzker by a margin of 12.5 percentage points. Despite his loss, Bailey improved upon Bruce Rauner's 2018 performance by around 4% and flipped four counties that Pritzker had won in 2018. Bailey also outperformed his polling aggregate by 3.7%.

In the state Senate, Bailey served on the following committees: Agriculture (Minority Spokesperson); Education; Energy and Public Utilities; Health; Higher Education; Labor; Subcommittee on Public Health; App- Agriculture, Envir. & Energy; App- Higher Education; App-Human Services; App- Personnel and Procurement; Redistricting- E Central & SE IL.

In 2023, Bailey announced that he would run against incumbent U.S. Representative Mike Bost in the Republican primary for the 12th congressional district in 2024. On March 19, 2024, Bailey lost the primary to Bost.

Political positions

Bailey holds far-right political views. He opposes abortion, and as a state lawmaker, he has voted against abortion rights measures. He praised the Supreme Court's 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. He supports a statewide ban on abortion except in cases where the mother's life is in danger, opposing abortion in cases of rape or incest. In a video posted on Facebook in 2017, Bailey said "the attempted extermination of the Jews of World War II doesn't even compare on a shadow of the life that has been lost with abortion since its legalization".

Darren Bailey strongly opposes the SAFE-T Act, a bill signed into law by Governor J. B. Pritzker that, among other things, ended mandatory cash bail in Illinois. Bailey has referred to the act as "radical, pro-criminal legislation".

In 2019, Bailey and seven other Republicans sponsored a resolution calling for the City of Chicago to become its own state, claiming that "the majority of residents in downstate Illinois disagree with City of Chicago residents on key issues such as gun ownership, abortion, immigration, and other policy issues." This was not the first time such a resolution was introduced, but it had little chance of passing, and some of the sponsors stated they did not actually intend to separate Chicago. With the announcement of Bailey's bid for governor, Bailey backtracked, calling it "an old resolution" and "a warning shot" targeted towards Chicago.

Following the 2020 presidential election, Bailey refused to acknowledge that Joe Biden fairly defeated Donald Trump, stating that he "did not know" if Trump's disproven claims of voter fraud were legitimate.

Electoral history

Personal life

Bailey is married to Cindy Stortzum, and they have four children and multiple grandchildren. He owns a family farm. Bailey and his wife run a private Christian school.

In 2022, a man was arrested for making violent threats against Bailey, claiming he was going to "skin alive".

References

1. "Who is Darren Bailey wife Cindy Stortzum?". Bareillyinfo. June 30, 2022. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
2. ^ "Representative Darren Bailey (R) 109th District". 101st Illinois General Assembly. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
3. ^ "Illinois governor's race shapes up to be a battle of the billionaires". Financial Times. June 21, 2022. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
4. ^ Epstein, Reid J. (June 26, 2022). "MAGA Voters Send a $50 Million G.O.P. Plan Off the Rails in Illinois". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
5. ^ "It's happening in Illinois: a far-right Republican leads race to be GOP candidate for governor". Chicago Sun-Times. June 10, 2022. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
6. ^ Epstein, Reid J. (June 29, 2022). "Darren Bailey, a far-right state senator, will be the Republican nominee for Illinois governor". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
7. ^ Kapos, Shia. "Illinois GOP takes big right turn with primary victories". POLITICO. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
8. ^ Ax, Joseph (July 26, 2022). "In risky midterm strategy, Democrats boost far-right candidate in Michigan race". Reuters. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
9. "Illinois Election: Gov. JB Pritzker declares victory in re-election bid against Darren Bailey". CBS News.
10. ^ Kapos, Shia (July 4, 2023). "Illinois Republican Darren Bailey challenges Rep. Mike Bost". POLITICO. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
11. "About". RepBailey.com. Archived from the original on April 24, 2020. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
12. ^ Stewart, Keith (March 20, 2018). "Bailey defeats Reis in 109th District GOP primary". Effingham Daily News. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
13. Hug, T.J. (March 16, 2018). "Bailey challenges Reis for 109th district seat". Navigator Journal. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
14. Maxwell, Mark (February 1, 2022). "Bailey defends voting to raise property taxes 81% on local school board". WCIA News. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
15. Maxwell, Mark. "Bailey defends voting to raise property taxes 81% on local school board". www.wcia.com. WCIA. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
16. Miller, Rich (March 21, 2018). "The Proft Scorecard". Capitol Fax. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
17. Korecki, Natasha (August 17, 2018). "'I know he's frustrated': GOP megadonor on staggering losing streak". Politico. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
18. Miller, Rich (October 31, 2018). "Two candidates who deserve notice… and respect". Capitol Fax. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
19. "2018 General Election Results". Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
20. "Representative District 109" (PDF). Illinois State Board of Elections. May 18, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 12, 2017. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
21. ^ "Darren Bailey Announces Run for State Representative in the 109th District". Olney Daily Mail. Archived from the original on November 19, 2018. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
22. Miller, Rich (July 8, 2019). "Minister who delivered controversial House prayer to run for House". Capitol Fax. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
23. Perry, Scott (March 18, 2020). "Area wrap: Bailey earns 55th district nod, and other area results from Tuesday's primary election". Herald & Review. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
24. Cordes, Kaitlin (March 17, 2020). "Bailey wins 55th District Republican nod". Effingham Daily News. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
25. Griffith, Cathy (November 3, 2020). "Bailey wins 55th Senate seat". Effingham Daily News. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
26. Corley, Cheryl (April 28, 2020). "Illinois Lawmaker Files Lawsuit; Wants Stay-At-Home Rules Lifted". NPR. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
27. Pearson, Rick; Munks, Jamie; Petrella, Dan (April 28, 2020). "Southern Illinois judge temporarily blocks Gov. J.B. Pritzker's stay-at-home order from applying to Republican state lawmaker who sued". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
28. Tareen, Sophia; O'Connor, John (April 27, 2020). "Judge rules Pritzker's stay-at-home order an overreach". Associated Press. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
29. "Pritzker Blasts Bailey Lawsuit as 'Cheap Political Stunt,' Vows Swift Appeal". NBC Chicago. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
30. Klar, Rebecca (May 20, 2020). "Illinois House removed GOP rep from legislative session after he refused to wear a mask: 'A callous disregard for life'". The Hill. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
31. Stimson, Brie (May 21, 2020). "Illinois House votes to remove Republican rep from session for refusing to wear mask". Fox News. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
32. "House lawmaker returns to session with mask". The State Journal-Register. May 21, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
33. ^ Pearson, Rick (February 22, 2021). "Conservative Republican state Sen. Darren Bailey announces governor run, pledges to fight 'political elites'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
34. Sullender, Andrew (February 22, 2021). "Downstate Republican Bailey kicks off bid for governor, vowing to speak for the ignored: 'We've been used. We've been mocked.'". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
35. "Illinois Sen. Darren Bailey Announces Run for Governor". WMAQ-TV. February 22, 2021. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
36. Hinton, Rachel (December 13, 2021). "GOP gov candidate Bailey names former talk radio host as running mate". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
37. "Trump endorses Darren Bailey for Illinois governor". WBEZ Chicago. June 26, 2022. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
38. McKinney, Dave (June 28, 2022). "Conservative Illinois state Sen. Darren Bailey wins GOP primary for governor". NPR. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
39. "Trump-backed Illinois candidate says 'let's move on' just hours after parade shooting". The Independent. July 6, 2022. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
40. Elliott, Justin; O'Matz, Megan; Burke, Doris. "That Cardboard Box in Your Home Is Fueling Election Denial". ProPublica. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
41. "Darren Bailey's campaign gets $2M boost from conservative megadonor Richard Uihlein". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
42. "GOP megadonor tops $50M in donations to Darren Bailey, conservative super-PAC". ABC7 Chicago. October 12, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
43. "Illinois General Assembly - Senator Biography". www.ilga.gov. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
44. Ma, Jessica (June 28, 2022). "Illinois Gubernatorial Primaries Candidates views on Abortion". The Daily Northwestern. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
45. ^ Kozlov, Dana (June 27, 2022). "After Roe v. Wade was overturned, where do the candidates for Illinois governor stand on abortion?". CBS News. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
46. "Republican candidates for governor say 'historic' overturn of Roe v. Wade signals 'battle for life ... moves right here to Illinois'". Chicago Sun-Times. June 24, 2022. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
47. "Election 2022: Abortion Is Central in 1st Post-Roe Primaries". The Associated Press. Retrieved July 20, 2022 – via WTTW News.
48. "Holocaust 'doesn't even compare' to abortion deaths, says GOP nominee for Illinois governor". Forward. August 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
49. Lopez, Tyler (September 6, 2022). "Bailey vows to repeal Safe-T Act". www.howabc.com. ABC. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
50. Gonzalez, Bree (September 7, 2022). "Bailey: 'The SAFE-T Act is continually being fought against as a radical, pro-criminal legislation'". www.prairiestatewire.com. Prairie State Wire. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
51. ^ Sullender, Andrew (May 25, 2021). "Republican Bailey's message to Chicago evolves from get lost to make Chicago great". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
52. Lloyd, Whitney. "Resolution proposes separating Chicago from Illinois to create 51st state". ABC News. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
53. Pearson, Rick (August 19, 2021). "Illinois Republicans at state fair take optimistic route heading into next year's 'do-or-die election'". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on August 24, 2021. Retrieved September 26, 2021 – via The Pantagraph.
54. "Election Results 2018 GENERAL PRIMARY". Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
55. "Election Results 2018 GENERAL ELECTION". Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
56. "Election Results 2020 GENERAL PRIMARY". Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
57. "Election Results 2020 GENERAL ELECTION". Illinois State Board of Elections. December 4, 2020. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
58. "Illinois 2020 Election Results". Chicago Sun-Times. November 20, 2020. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
59. McKinney, Dave (June 28, 2022). "Conservative Illinois state Sen. Darren Bailey wins GOP primary for governor". NPR.
60. "2022 General Election Results". Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2022.
61. Rose, Andy (November 3, 2022). "Chicago man accused of leaving voicemail with death threats at office of Republican candidate for governor | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved July 4, 2023.

External links

• Official profile from the Illinois General Assembly
  • 101st, 102nd
• Constituent website
• Campaign website
• Appearances on C-SPAN

• 1966 births
• Farmers from Illinois
• Republican Party Illinois state senators
• Living people
• Republican Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives
• People from Clay County, Illinois
• School board members in Illinois
• 21st-century American far-right politicians
• Candidates in the 2022 United States elections
• Candidates in the 2024 United States House of Representatives elections
• 21st-century members of the Illinois General Assembly