Former legislator Harris mulls run in 66th

David Harris has been out of the Illinois House for more than 15 years, but he's now considering a run for the Republican nomination for the 66th District seat.

Currently held by state Rep. Mark Walker, an Arlington Heights Democrat elected in 2008, the seat will next be elected in November 2010.

Harris was a state representative from 1983 to 1993, representing roughly the same territory the 66th is now.

In 1992 he lost in the Republican primary to former Mount Prospect mayor Carolyn Krause, who went on to win the general election and served in the House until her retirement in 2008.

Harris, an Arlington Heights resident, also is a retired Illinois adjutant general of the National Guard.

"I told the respective township organizations that petitions could be circulated and if they could collect enough signatures I would seriously consider being a candidate," Harris said Thursday.

Generally a candidate likes to have at least double the 500 signatures required to get on the ballot, he said, and he will announce his decision before Oct. 26, the first date for filing petitions.

Harris served 22 years in the Illinois National Guard, including four years as adjutant general, from 1999 to 2003.

The 66th District basically goes from the DuPage County line north to Northwest Highway and Kensington Road, Route 53 on the west and Wolf Road on the east.

Large areas of Arlington Heights, Elk Grove Village and Mount Prospect are in the district, as are parts of Des Plaines, Rolling Meadows and Schaumburg.

"If you ask most of the folks throughout the district and state if they think the state is being run properly, you get an answer that pretty much sounds like 'no'," he said.

"It's disappointing that this great state has become a laughingstock around the world," he added.

Even if the Democrats continue to control the legislature, voting still is a way for people to express their opinion on how things are being run, said Harris.

"It's a great privilege to give public service," he said.

Harris grew up in Mount Prospect and has lived with his wife, Michelle, in Arlington Heights for about 30 years. They have two grown sons.