The Illinois REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC) Trustees want you to vote for state Sen. Gary Forby for the 59th Senate District and Paul Schimpf for the 58th Senate District in the Nov. 8 general election.
Forby and Schimpf have been identified by their local associations and by RPAC as REALTOR® champions. In other words, they are for business, private property rights, low taxes and economic growth. Their bids to get elected are termed Opportunity Races.
Forby was a farmer and an excavating contractor in southern Illinois before his election to the Benton Township Board and the Franklin County Board. He served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 2001-2003, then was appointed as senator of the 59th Senate District in 2003 to take over the position held by Larry Woolard. He’s prevailed in reelection campaigns in 2008 and 2012.
Forby serves on the following committees:
- Energy and Public Utilities;
- Labor (chair);
- Licensed Activities and Pensions;
- Committee of the Whole; and
- Insurance.
Schimpf
Schimpf retired from a career in the United State Marine Corps in 2013 after 20 years. While in the Marines he attended the Southern Illinois School of Law in Carbondale and graduated in 2000.
He served as a judge advocate or military attorney, officer in charge of the legal assistance clinic and head prosecutor for the Recruit Depot and the Marine Corps Western Recruiting Region. In 2005, Schimpf served as deputy counsel at the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar and deployed to Iraq. There he served as the lead American attorney advisor to Iraqi prosecutors in the trial of Saddam Hussein. Iraqi prosecutors induced a confession from Hussein regarding the massacre of hundreds of Iraqi civilians.
Following advanced legal training and several other assignments, Schimpf retired from the Marines, returned to his hometown of Waterloo and joined the law firm of Stumpf & Gutknecht, P.C. in Columbia.
In 2014, he lost the race for Illinois Attorney General. In the current race for senator, he has the endorsement of the retiring incumbent, Sen. David Luechtefeld.
If either Forby or Schimpf are on your ballot, make sure you’re registered and vote for one of these candidates on Nov. 8.
(Disclosure: Contributions are not deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes. The Illinois REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC) collects contributions from members of the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) for political activities. A portion of each contribution will be used for state political activities; at least 30 percent will be used for federal campaign purposes. The federal portion will be charged against an individual’s federal contribution limits under 2 USC 441a. Contributions are VOLUNTARY and refusal to contribute does not affect membership rights. A member may contribute more or less than the suggested amount. A copy of our report filed with the State Board of Elections is (or will be) available on the Board’s official website www.elections.il.gov or for purchase from the State Board of Elections, Springfield, Illinois.)
