Maggie Trevor trounces Ryan Huffman in House District 54

Maggie Trevor trounced Ryan Huffman in the Democratic primary Tuesday and will move on to the general election for the 54th House District.

Unofficial results show Trevor with 10,227 votes to Huffman's 2,432, with 96% of precincts reporting.

Trevor's victory over Huffman in the primary means she'll get a November rematch with Republican state Rep. Tom Morrison of Palatine, who won the seat in the 2010 election. Morrison topped the Rolling Meadows resident by 37 votes in November 2018.

District 54 includes parts of Arlington Heights, Barrington, Hoffman Estates, Inverness, Palatine, Rolling Meadows and South Barrington.

Trevor said she struggled to gain community recognition and for her campaign to be taken seriously the first time she challenged Morrison. This time, Trevor said, she'll be known from the start.

"I think I have to assume it'll be a tough fight," Trevor said after her victory Tuesday night.

Trevor, 57, a health care industry professional, and Huffman staked similar positions on issues, such as their belief that voters should support Gov. J.B. Pritzker's graduated tax proposal in November. They also shared concerns about climate change and back the Clean Energy Jobs Act proposed for the state.

It was the first try for a state-level seat for the 33-year-old Huffman, a data analyst from Palatine. He unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination in the 2018 primary for the 6th Congressional District seat.

Trevor said her 20 years as a market researcher in the health care industry has required her to meet with top corporate executives, often telling them their sales strategy was not working. She said that job experience has prepared her for the General Assembly.

Huffman said he believed his middle-class background, which includes almost six figures of student loan debt, would connect him to voters because he related to the financial challenges many face.

During the campaign, both candidates addressed whether Michael Madigan should keep his longtime post as House speaker.

Trevor declined to say what her vote on Madigan would be without knowing a potential alternative to him as House leader. She also questioned how much influence she'd have as a junior legislator.

Huffman said he would not vote for Madigan because it's time for a fresh start.