Joliet Republican to run for state senate seat

The vice chair of the Joliet Township Republican Organization announced she is running for the GOP nomination for the Illinois Senate seat in the 43rd District.

Diane Harris, 65, said she is running for the seat to bring a “conservative voice” to state government. She’s previously run for other local, state and federal positions and sits on the Joliet Public Library Board of Trustees.

“I know that the government is supposed to be of the people by the people and for the people,” Harris said in a statement. “But that has not been for quite some time. Our forefathers created laws based on a government for the people.”

If elected, Harris said, she would advocate for cutting taxes, fewer gun restrictions and enhanced voter integrity measures.

Harris is the second Republican to announced her candidacy for the seat. Joliet Junior College Board trustee Michelle Lee, of Shorewood, is also vying for the GOP nomination.

Sen. John Connor, D-Lockport, who has represented the district since January, announced earlier this year that he will forgo reelection in 2022 and run to fill a Will County circuit judge vacancy.

The existing district voted by a nearly 30 percentage point margin for Connor, a Democrat, over Republican Ben Bierly.

Will County Board member Rachel Ventura, D-Joliet, has announced she will run for the Democratic nomination to represent the district.

The redrawn 43rd Senate District will extend from Bolingbrook south to Elwood and includes parts of Channahon, Crest Hill, Joliet, Lockport, Rockdale, Romeoville and Shorewood.

The 2022 primary election will be held on June 28.