SPRINGFIELD - Former State Rep. Raymond Poe resigned his 20 year plus seat in the Illinois House and moved up to head Illinois Agriculture last week, just in time for Governor Rauner's wife's chief of staff to move into his Capitol office with unanimous support from Sangamon County Republicans.
And with March 15 2016 GOP primary petitions to begin being filed Monday, it may be that the new State Rep for Illinois' 99th House - Sara Wojcicki Jimenez - might just escape a intra-party battle right out of the box.
That's likely a reason for the crisp political timing of all those moves, but that's not how Jimenez' announcement was presented Friday by the House Republican Organization.
Jimenez, "Chief of Staff to First Lady Diana Rauner, was raised in Springfield and offers a unique profile to the Republican Party while demonstrating a compassion and understanding of state government, the legislative process and a key ability to be a strong advocate for Sangamon County residents in state government," the announcement says.
“Sara Wojcicki Jimenez is a rising star in the Republican Party who will be a unique voice for Sangamon County in state government,” said Sangamon County Republican Chairman Rosemarie Long. “Sara has served as an elected official in Springfield and is well known in the community. She has immense state government experience as a former state house reporter, Press Secretary for House Republican Leader Tom Cross and Chief of Staff to the First Lady. Sara will be able to hit the ground running on day one.”
“Sara Wojcicki Jimenez is a good choice to serve as State Representative for Sangamon County,” said former Rep. Raymond Poe. “Many good candidates applied, including close friends and supporters. The committee had a tough decision to make.”
But it's fairly clear who the Governor wanted to succeed Raymond Poe - someone more likely to be in harmony with the Rauner Turnaround Agenda.
The governor personally congratulated Jimenez with the following statement.
“We offer our sincerest congratulations to Sara on her pending appointment to the Illinois House of Representatives. As a key member of the Administration, she has been a tireless worker who helped advance key priorities from agency transformation to restoring the Executive Mansion. We will miss working alongside her every day," he said.
“Sara is a true public servant, with a wonderful spirit and passion for serving the people of Illinois. We know she will represent her district admirably in the General Assembly and look forward to the contributions she’ll make on behalf of her constituents and all Illinoisans.”
There's been buzz about Jimenez' fairly recent conversion from voting Democrat in the primaries up until she started working for former House Minority Leader Tom Cross in late 2009. It wasn't until 2010 that she pulled a Republican ballot.
Jimenez was a state house reporter, communications professional and senior state government official that worked for Cross and the late Judy Baar-Topinka before becoming First Lady Rauner's chief of staff.
She's married to a state employee, and has three year old twins.
