Candidates for 103rd district of the Illinois House of Representatives, Carol Ammons (D) and Kristin Williamson (R), went head to head Wednesday night in a debate held at the Champaign City Council Chambers.

The two held similar policy opinions toward women’s rights, collective bargaining and voter ID laws, which showed the strong possibility of a bipartisan approach toward governance and legislature in the Champaign-Urbana communities.

A focal point of both candidates’ policy plans was their initiatives for restructuring Illinois’ public education funding. 

Williamson said her three-point plan for education includes: equitable funding throughout the state, making the budget a priority and generating revenue for schooling. 

“Students in Champaign should receive the same value of education as the students in the suburbs,” Williamson said in regards to the importance of equity for Illinois public education.

Ammons held similar beliefs regarding education and views against drug testing for community members who receive state monetary support.

“I would not support any such law that would require people who are seeking support for their family to have to take any kind of test, in the same way that they require for you to take poll tests, literacy tests, or any kind of test to be able to vote,” Ammons said.

Both candidates shared bipartisan values with pro-choice stances on abortion, stances in favor of women’s rights in health care and stances in support of stricter environmental regulation in instances such as the dumping of PCBs in Clinton Landfill, which resides over the Mahomet Aquifer. 

The candidates also showed a similar vision for the future of the Champaign-Urbana community, although their opinions differed on how a progressive income tax would affect the cities. Ammons supported the implementation of a progressive income tax while Williamson did not.

The candidates also discussed their qualifications for the seat. Ammons talked about her legislative experience in the community, such as her role as a member of the Urbana City Council, and Williamson said her qualification would be her experience in business.

The upcoming Illinois midterm elections will take place on Nov. 4. 

Tea can be reached at [email protected].

Editor’s note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the city of Urbana has a progressive income tax. The Daily Illini regrets the error.