At the top of the ticket this year in Illinois is a race for the U-S Senate.
Republican Doug Truax is running against a state Senator, Jim Oberweis in the G-O-P primary. The winner will take on Democrat Dick Durbin in the fall.
Truax is making his first bid for political office. Oberweis lost five previous elections, including two unsuccessful bids for U-S Senate, before being elected to the Illinois General Assembly.
Truax, a 43 year old businessman from Downer's Grove who went tom West Point, said he decided to join the race because he wasn't happy with the direction of the country.
He wants the Affordable Care Act repealed. "There are a couple of things, mainly the pre-existing condition exclusion, we have to figure out something there. But if we could have just stopped and done solely that at the time, I think most people would have been happy," he said.
Truax said there are a lot of ideas he would like to explore, including opening up more competition for coverage.
"If we can get the price down, we can get the number of uninsured down," he added. " But for those who remain uninsured, we can put some clinics in places where the uninsured are. Let young doctors work off student loans. Let older, semi-retired doctors work if they're able to."
Truax said he doesn't favor an increase in the minimum wage. He calls the Obama Administration's push to raise the level "pure distraction" because of concerns over Obamacare and the economy. He says it will lead to job loss. Truax commented that businesses want more certainty. He said scheduling cost of living adjustments in the future would help.
Truax also wants smaller government and less business regulation.
His opponent, Jim Oberweis, is a business who has made money through a dairy business and investment firm. Polls have shown Oberweis with a lead among Republican voters, although many also say they are undecided.
"He does have name recognition. A lot of that is negative," Truax said. While a newcomer to politics, he adds that he has been racking up several key endorsements, including that of former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
"Primary voters are going to have to say Who is the best candidate to take on (Dick) Durbin. And when they look at both of us, they are breaking my way by a large margin."
"We're where we want to be," Truax said.
