Adam Solano: 2022 candidate for Illinois Senate District 31
Bio
Party: Republican
Office sought: State Senate District 31
City: Third Lake
Age: 52
Occupation: Financial adviser, Lakeside Financial Group
Previous offices held: None
Q&A
Q: What needs to be done structurally to make the legislature more effective? What is your position on term limits in general and for legislative leaders specifically?
A: Corruption has been an obvious scourge to Illinois government and politics so I favor term limits, especially for legislative leaders. I think the best leaders are ones with real world experience and a term limit system will ensure the best people from our communities cycle through public service and return to the private marketplace.
I am also a proponent of Fair Maps.
Q: Federal assistance has enabled the state to make important advances toward improving its budget. What will you do to ensure these advances continue when the federal aid is gone?
A: Federal funds were used to invest into our public teacher pensions which will eventually save billions. We need to make sure those savings are not squandered when they are realized. The broader issue is that we can't rely on one time gimmicks or windfalls from the Federal Government to solve our short term financial woes while we neglect attracting long term streams of funding because of our fiscal policy and hostile tax environment that chases away people and business versus attracting them.
Q: To what extent are you happy or unhappy with the evidence-based model for education funding now in place in Illinois? How would you define "adequate" state funding for Illinois schools and what will you do to promote that?
A: It's good that the state is investing more into K-12 to prepare our students for their adult work life while allowing people to donate to private education schools, it can be problematic to an area like mine where property values and personal budgets are being crushed by sky high property taxes.
Q: Do you believe elections in Illinois are free and fair? What changes, if any, are needed regarding election security and voter access?
A: I generally think long periods for voting can open the door to nefarious actors, but I have not run into one verifiable disenfranchised voter. I have also been a poll watcher several times in different precincts and it is interesting to witness two things:
First, the number of voters that volunteer their State ID for their ballot. Second, the level of teamwork and cooperation in the room to make sure the job is done right. All present - judges, voters, poll watchers - understand the democratic sacrament in which we are partaking. Absentee and vote by mail options have increased voter turn out, which is great, but one would think it would be significantly higher than a couple of percentage points. We want and need more people voting and participating in the election.
Q: How well has Illinois responded to Supreme Court indications that it considers abortion, gay marriage and other social issues to be state, not federal, responsibilities? What if anything needs to be done in these areas and what would you do to make your vision come to pass?
A. Supreme Court obviously ruled on the abortion issue and Illinois has one of the most expansive abortion access systems in the country. Abortion is the law of the state, and I accept the fact that voters have elected representatives to codify it. That is our system of Democracy. However, IL Democrat law makers have repeatedly sided with activists and abortionists and ignore the majority view on partial birth abortion, tax payer funding of abortion, parental rights and informed consent. As it stands now, your 16-year-old daughter or granddaughter can drive herself to a clinic to obtain an abortion without any consent or involvement from her parents. That is not in her best interest. Additionally, the abortion clinic is not required to review the risks of the procedure since 'informed consent' laws in Illinois do not exist.