Endorsement: Ness for Illinois House District 66

When Republican Allen Skillicorn was an East Dundee village trustee, we were impressed by the fervor with which he pursued fiscal conservancy. We endorsed him in his first run for the 66th House District in 2016.

He replaced an exemplary legislator in Mike Tryon, who knew how to work both sides of the aisle to get things done. Tryon retired from the legislature in 2016, having accomplished a great deal.

Skillicorn is no Mike Tryon.

We supported the candidacy of Carolyn Schofield in this year's Republican primary, largely on the basis that Skillicorn hasn't learned how to build consensus - he simply tries to force people to accept his point of view. For a Republican in Illinois, consensus-building is a prerequisite. Our opinion has not changed.

Skillicorn also was listed as "present" and voted on two dozen bills and resolutions one day last year when he was hundreds of miles away from Springfield in a parade in Harvard. He has apologized for his "mistake" and it was determined no malice was intended, though we've never gotten any sort of explanation for just what happened.

Democrat Suzanne Ness is challenging Skillicorn. She is a McHenry County Board member from Crystal Lake and owns a corporate training firm. As a Democrat on a largely Republican county board, she knows a thing or two about compromise and working across the aisle, introducing an ethics policy. She counts a stronger set of ethics policies in state government, too.

Ness is endorsed.

The 66th House District includes parts of Algonquin, Crystal Lake, East Dundee, West Dundee, Elgin, Gilberts, Huntley, Sleepy Hollow and Lakewood.