Democratic incumbent Naomi Jakobsson was re-elected Tuesday night to represent the people of the 103rd District in the Illinois House of Representatives.

Jakobsson currently serves on the Appropriations Committee for Higher Education in the Illinois General Assembly and has sponsored several pieces of legislation in the past that are directly linked to University of Illinois students, according to the General Assembly website .

“I’ve worked hard as a representative to represent this district and serve the constituents here,” Jakobsson said.

Challenger Rob Meister ran against Jakobsson. Meister focused his campaign on “changing Illinois culture.”

“One of the biggest problems we have is that young people are leaving in droves,” he said. “(They) find it very hard to find a job that will help (them) pay off (their) student loans, so then — not by choice but almost by force — young people have to start looking at other states.”

Jakobsson said that in her next two-year term she will continue to work on four priorities: affordable higher education, accessible health care, tax reform and the environment.

Jakobsson said she wants to ensure students can afford college by sending as much money as possible to the Monetary Assistance Program.

Regarding the environment, Jakobsson said she is currently working on “important bills,” including House Bill 6153. The bill would prevent a chemical waste called polychlorinated biphenyl, or PCB, from being dumped into the Clinton Landill, located above an aquifer that supplies water to Champaign-Urbana.

“The environment has always been one of my priorities and will continue to be,” Jakobsson said. “In fact I’m working on a couple of very important bills right now.”

Austin can be reached at [email protected].