OLYMPIA FIELDS – Republican Eric Wallace voiced his disappointment with area Republican leadership for not supporting his bid to oust State Senator Patrick Joyce in Chicago's south suburbs.
After looking at vote totals of the races in Kankakee I am greatly disappointed. If Republicans would have voted for me like they voted for Jackie Haas I'd be your state senator. Haas won by 9,920 votes! If those same republican voters would have held true to support the party candidate in the state senate race we'd have a Republican state senator. Even if I only received 6,000 of the 9,920 I would have defeated Joyce.Joyce leads me 50,318 to 39,227 a difference of 11,091. However, if you take just 6,000 from Joyce and add them to my column I win 45,227 to 44,318.
This was a missed opportunity. But I'll take some of the blame. I could have spent more time in Kankakee. I guess I thought that Republicans would support Republicans instead of trying to make deals with Michael Madigan democrats. I guess I'm still a little naive.We snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. I hope one day we'll learn to hold the line and fight for our principles regardless of the anticipated outcome.As Frederick Douglass once said, "I am a Republican, a black, dye in the wool Republican, and I never intend to belong to any other party than the party of freedom and progress." Oh what could have been!
Wallace's district includes portions of Cook, Kankakee and Will counties.
Illinois GOP HAS NO “leadership.”
It’s lacking in leadership even at the county level (at least in northeastern Illinois.)
Seems the Illinois Republicans are missing out, like always. Sad display of leadership I guess or drive for winning. No wonder the D’s get their way in this State.
Perpetual loser loses in a landslide and blames Illinois GOP. There’s unlimited problems with Illinois GOP but not supporting a guy that lost at least two other times in recent memory is not one of them.
He lost by 13 percent. How much support would have covered that margin?
What was the problem with his past losses?
Maybe campaigning for votes would have been a good idea.
Yes, Chase.
Campaigning for votes, like our Senate candidate from Lake County…DIDN’T.
From what I saw, he was to be just a place-holder on the ballot.
Chase thank you for your insight and encouragement. It’s clear you’ll never understand the courage and self sacrifice it takes to run in a district no one thinks you can win. Nor do I think you’ll understand the frustration of arriving to the polling place to find that there are no Republicans on the ballot for you to vote for because people are afraid of naysayers like you who throw rocks at those of us who dare stand for what we believe even if the odds are against us. Just ask Lincoln about failure and Michael Jordan both failed countless times before they saw victory. In fact most people who have attempted anything remotely challenging have failed. By the way my complaint was that the Kankakee GOP had not supported me. Republicans voted for a Democrat. If they had supported me I would have won the seat. I expect nothing from the Illinois GOP. But naively I thought Kankakee Republicans would have my back while I sought votes in Cook County. But I guess if left up to you we wouldn’t run anyone and give Democrats a pass. In my book the only perpetual loser is the one who always looks for excuses not to run.
I can see Chase is a member of the Illinois Republican Circular Firing Squad, needs a remedial reading comprehension class, as well as American history.
It is stated right in the story that if the Kankakee GOP delivered the vote for Wallace they delivered for Haas, Wallace would have won. What is so hard about understanding that?
Mr. Wallace is the very person the GOP should be promoting. His willingness to put his name forward again and again should be cheered not mocked.
As Teddy Roosevelt famously said, “it is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
Oh Chase, my own rhetorical question to you, How is the view from the cheap seats? Why don’t you try putting yourself on the front lines, donate a year of your life to fight the good fight, work for the common good of party and community with little or no recognition, then perhaps you will have some measure to criticize others.
I for one will congratulate Mr. Wallace and thank him for his service to party, community, and country. We owe at least that.
Chase, destruction is far easier than construction. If you do not have anything positive to say, say nothing. The silence from you will be deafening.
Will County Republicans supported Eric Wallace with 14.374 votes while his Democrat opponent got 12,589.
The GOP should be promoting a three time loser who admits he didn’t campaign in the very county that cost him the election?
Maybe he should have gone down there and knocked on doors instead of blaming Republican voters for not supporting a guy with no track record.
The man should be mocked. He literally blames voters while admitting he did not go down there to campaign.
The GOP and this state and nation get what it deserves.
Look, you yourself admit you did not campaign in the very place you claim cost you the election. Maybe you should not be pointing fingers and look in the mirror.
You really need to get your facts straight, too. I’m throwing rocks at you not for having the courage to run but for blaming the Republican voters when you admit in this article you didn’t campaign down there. You took them for granted and they snubbed you. Don’t blame them.
As far as circular firing squad … I know your Wallace colored glasses blind you to this but Mr. Wallace is the person who fired on his fellow Republicans first. Or did you fail to read the article. Don’t blame Republicans for getting bent out of shape when the candidate blames Republican voters for his defeat.
I never said I didn’t campaign in Kankakee. I didn’t spend as much time there. The point was that the decision had already been made not to support me. The Kankakee GOP leadership had decided they wanted to support their Democratic friend. I didn’t know that, though I had heard rumors. I shouldn’t have to spend a lot of time in a Republican district. Most people agreed that I should spend more time in Cook county because Kankakee would vote red. So I came down for a few events even went to church in Kankakee and garnered some support from some people who normally voted Democrat. You weren’t around so how would you know what I did or didn’t do? I had already spent a lot of time obtaining signatures to get on the ballot. I was all over Kankakee. You can’t justify what Kankakee GOP did by blaming me. Republican Organizations are supposed to support the Republican candidate period. You look in the mirror.
Exactly
I’m done with you Chase. Clearly you’ve not been part of a campaign. You just like to troll people. It’s simple math. If Kankakee GOP says they support my campaign and distributes my literature with Jackie Haas. I win. They did not and said as much to people who have come forward. They made a decision to support the Democrat. This is not about more campaigning on my part. I can only be one place at a time. The thinking was that Kankakee is a GOP county. If I can work cook county and steal some Democrat votes we can win this. But when the Republicans decided not to support me it made it impossible during COVID lock down to make up for the lack of support. If you can’t understand that something is wrong with you.
By the way I spent time in Kankakee knocking on doors getting signatures and attending GOP meetings. I even went to functions held by other candidates but was never introduced.
It’s hard enough to go to war with the Democrats but impossible to win when you have Republicans fighting against you as well. There are a number of people who will confirm that the decision was already made to support my opponent and not me. But thanks for your thoughtfulness and insight. Maybe next time I’ll consult with you before I make any decisions. How many campaigns have you been apart of? Have you ever walked a precinct for a candidate? Why don’t you run for office? Lastly, how about just saying something constructive instead of assuming you got all the answers to a campaign you were never involved. Or a central committee that you’re not associated with. You could have asked me why I felt the way I did. Or asked what evidence I had but you went on the attack. As far as more time in a county or town? You always second guess your strategy win you lose however it’s impossible to strategize for a contingency—no support from the Republican organization—unless you know that going in. In fact it’s not just no support but support for your opponent. I didn’t have a chance. Without Kankakee supporting the Republican candidate it didn’t matter what votes I got out of Cook County. I won Will county and Grundy County. You have a great day while I take these knives out of my back.
Again, you’re the one that started firing on your fellow Republicans. Please note that. You are not the victim here.
You have this victim card down pat.