The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

New Democratic candidate emphasizes bipartisanship

The prospective Democratic candidates for the 13th District will now have some extra competition in trying to win the party’s seat in the primaries. Jay Hoffman of Collinsville, Ill., announced his candidacy Thursday.

Hoffman said he is confident he will have a winning chance in this new 13th District. He said he chose to run in this district because of the many economic challenges it faces and the hardworking mentality of its people.

Shana Harrison, president of the Illini Democrats and junior in LAS, said while the Illini Democrats will not endorse any specific candidate in the primary, she likes the working class background Hoffman bases his campaign goals on.

“Personally, I really love all of his pro labor stances. He’s a good representative of unions,” Harrison said. “He has some great stances on making sure Americans get back to work.”

Hoffman said he admired how much his parents worked when he was a child and how it showed him what sacrifice and a little more work could do for the community.

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When he was growing up, he said Americans could get decent-paying jobs that supported one’s family. He said at that time, both parties worked on a bipartisan manner, but today, politics have changed.

“Politics in Washington have turned nasty,” Hoffman said. “It’s dysfunctional, and it’s poisonous. This must stop.”

He said he is campaigning to stop the disharmony among the parties which puts the American people at risk, Hoffman said.

“My campaign is gonna be about putting America first,” he said. “It’s gonna be about putting America back to work.”

In order to get Americans back to work, Hoffman said, there must be job creation in rebuilding the infrastructure of schools and roads, implementation of fair trade to sell agricultural products and a tax system that taxes wealthy corporations more than the middle class.

Hoffman previously served as a state representative for the 112th District until 2010 and was prosecutor and law enforcement official, according to a press release.

“The truth is when I sat there and saw what was going on with Congress, I couldn’t just sit and do nothing. They’re doing nothing to create jobs,” Hoffman said.

Hoffman will be facing off against David Gill and James Gray in the Democratic primary March 20.

Al Klein, Urbana resident, said he believes the big battle for the Democratic primary will be between Hoffman and Gill.

“We have a two-way race at the moment that will be pretty interesting,” Klein said.

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