Thanks for your part in elective process

I wanted to write to thank all of our supporters, contributors and the people who voted for real change by voting for me.

I would also like to say thanks to all of the election authorities who have endured the long hours and extra planning that came with the special election and the recount effort.

The Democratic Primary Election ended with a 398 vote difference and our campaign was pursuing a recount. However, we have made the difficult decision to end the recount process.

My younger brother and I became active in electoral politics in 2003 when the Iraq War started. I have pledged to remain involved in politics until every U.S. service man and woman is safely home from Iraq. I hope that you will join me and support our troops by making a similar pledge.

Unfortunately, the race for the 14th U.S. House District will now be between two multi-millionaires who are attempting to buy your vote.

Already, one of every four members of the House is a millionaire and one in every three senators falls into the same income bracket.

The emphasis on money in politics has created a political system that evaluates candidates based on financial worth. As a result, we have a Congress filled with millionaires and fund-raisers.

The model government that our forefathers intended, the government outlined in the Constitution of the United States, that begins with the words, "We the People," is in jeopardy.

Perhaps that is why we are in a recession, hard working families are losing their homes and the national debt continues to rise the longer we occupy Iraq.

It is my belief that if we want to change the agenda and have a government that represents people instead of special interest groups, then we are going to have to take big money out of politics.

That is why your involvement in this campaign was so crucial and I again thank you for your activism.

It remains my belief that if lawmakers from Springfield to Washington do not return to an agenda that benefits the American people, then we are putting the American Dream at risk for future generations.

John Laesch

Yorkville