Our Daily Show Interview! State Rep. Elik! 2024 In Review, Lame Duck Session, and More!
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ALTON - Ahead of the lame-duck session that starts on Jan. 4, 2025, State Representative Amy Elik has a message for her constituents in the 111th District.
Elik has a bill she is pushing forward before the new state representatives and senators are inaugurated on Jan. 8, 2025. She is also keeping an eye on the Illinois budget and property taxes that affect Illinois residents. Elik promised her constituents that she will continue advocating for them as the new year approaches.
“I am serving my district the best way I can, and I just got reelected, so I think the majority of the voters think that I was doing that well,” she said. “I wish I could say I know exactly what’s going to happen on Jan. 4th through the 7th, but I definitely don’t know and I think it’s still coming together. Sadly, bad things can come along really quickly in Springfield. So we are alert, we are ready to go, we will spend all night if we have to, and we will make sure if it’s something that’s bad for this area, we’re going to be really loud about that.”
During the lame-duck session, Elik hopes to see House Bill 4241 pass the Illinois Senate. This bipartisan bill amends the Sex Offenses Article of the Criminal Code and makes it illegal for a school employee to have sexual relations with a student, regardless of the student’s age.
If the bill is not passed by the Senate before Jan. 8, it will die and must go through the House again. Elik urged Senate leaders to pass the bill before the lame-duck session ends.
“It is up to the leadership in the Senate, and that’s maybe where you look at, how is the leadership within an individual caucus important?” she said. “I think the Senate Democrat leadership in Illinois, they’re the ones who have to decide they want to push this forward.”
In 2025, Elik hopes to focus more attention on property taxes. She is particularly concerned about senior citizens who are longtime occupants of their homes, and she hopes to expand a Cook County program that addresses these residents in Southern Illinois.
“We are always struggling, of course, in Illinois with the high taxes, property taxes and other taxes,” she explained. “There has been a lack of progress on that in Springfield, and there’s a lot of reasons for that. It takes bold leadership, frankly, on the Democrat side of the aisle to make some changes so people are not suffering and losing homes because of high property taxes, so that’s something I’m going to continue to work on.”
As a former accountant, Elik is always interested in the state’s budget and financial projections. The Governor’s Office of Management and Budget recently issued a five-year projection, with a projected $3.2 billion deficit for the Financial Year 2026 budget.
Elik believes this deficit is partly due to an overabundance of state programs. She also noted that Illinois has spent “billions” of dollars on “illegal migrants,” especially in Chicago. She believes there needs to be more honesty about the human rights conditions faced by immigrants and the money that Illinois has spent.
“I often wish that I could get in a room with no cell phones and no hurt feelings and truly have honest conversations with my Democrat colleagues on these issues,” she said. “I think they would see, I’m more compassionate than they believe me to be. I know that they’re probably compassionate, but do they understand what my constituents are telling me? I want them to hear that part, too. And I don’t think that they will get in that room with me and not make something all political. I think if we really had honest conversations, it would be very helpful.”
Elik expressed her eagerness to continue working in the 111th District and her pride in Madison County. She said she is excited to welcome her friend Chriss Slusser to the county chairman position, and she believes “there’s a place” for every Republican looking to make a difference in Madison County.
She thanked her staff for their work to make 2024 successful, and she thanked her constituents for their continued trust in her. She added that she has high hopes for 2025 and will pay attention to Washington, D.C., to bring new ideas to Illinois.
“While Kamala Harris still won Illinois, you cannot ignore the fact that she didn’t win it unanimously. There are many people throughout this state who disagree with Democrat policies, and to be gaslighted and to be told, ‘Don't worry, we’re going to keep you safe from Donald Trump’ — that’s just ridiculous,” Elik added. “There are good ideas that are going to come out of the next presidency, and let’s see how we can relay that to Illinois.”
For more information about Amy Elik, visit her official website at RepElik.com.
