Victorious Ann Gillespie To Supporters: 'You Are The Blue Wave'

ILLINOIS SENATE, 27th DISTRICT — Democrat Ann Gillespie defeated Republican incumbent Tom Rooney on Tuesday to capture the Illinois Senate seat for the 27th District. Rooney called Gillespie to concede the race before the contest had been called, according to her campaign.

"We won! Thank you. Thank you. Thank you," Gillespie wrote on her campaign's Facebook page, posting a video of the announcement that Rooney had conceded, which was heralded with cheers.

The projected winner was overwhelmed by her victory, and there were hugs and plenty more cheering as she addressed supporters following her victory.

"I'm blown away by this," Gillespie said, thanking the many volunteers who worked on her campaign.

"You are the blue wave," she added.

Ann Gillespie vs. Tom Rooney: Election Results

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Gillespie was joined in her celebration by Mark Walker, another Democratic projected winner riding the crest of the northwest suburbs blue wave. He beat Eddie Corrigan to win the Illinois House of Representatives seat for the 53rd District.

Another big win for the Democrats was Sean Casten's victory Peter Roskam for the 6th District U.S. Congressional seat. Casten becomes the first Democrat elected in that district in more than 45 years.

Rooney had been the rare Illinois incumbent who hadn't served a full term before facing re-election. He ascended to the ranks of the Illinois General Assembly by unusual circumstances: He was appointed.

In September 2016, the then-Rolling Meadows mayor was chosen to succeed Sen. Matt Murphy, who resigned a month earlier for the private sector and Mac Strategies Group, a media relations company. Rooney ran unopposed in March's GOP primary

Gillespie, a lawyer from Arlington Heights who was the vice president of CVS Health’s Caremark division, became his challenger in Tuesday's after defeating Joe Sonnefeldt in the Democratic primary. But the two began jousting and campaigning against one another even before Gillespie became Rooney's official opponent.

In October 2017, Gillespie sent out mailings criticizing Rooney for voting against a ban on firearm bump stocks. Rooney, however, said he opposed the ban because of a last-minute amendment that would have given home-rule municipalities the ability to enact gun bans.

"It was game playing," he told the Daily Herald, adding that he would support a ban that didn't contain contaminating legislation. "It was shenanigans applied at the last minute for political reasons. And it's why that bill didn't pass."

Both candidates believe it's important to address rising property taxes among their constituents. Of course, how to accomplish that is where they differ.

When tackling property taxes, Gillespie takes a wide view of the problem. She favors taking a look not only at the state's entire tax structure.

ELECTIONS: Find Out Who Will Be Illinois' Next Governor And Results From Other State Races

"This will require evaluating the state’s tax system at all levels," Gillespie told the Chicago Sun-Times. "Steps to achieve this includes establishing a graduated income tax and finding methods to reduce the burden on middle and lower income taxpayers; having the state pay its fair share for education funding to reduce reliance on property taxes; extending the sales tax to discretionary services; and identifying other revenue sources."

Rooney supports tackling the sources that can force property taxes to rise.

"Controlling unfunded mandates and funding education more equitably at the state level could relieve local tax pressures and provide taxpayers a break," he told the Herald.

More Info About the Candidates

• Ann Gillespie
• Tom Rooney

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Ann Gillespie (Photo via the campaigns)