Tuscola Democrat Gives Representative Rose 2010 Challenge

A political newcomer will be giving incumbent state representative Chapin Rose his first challenger since first taking office. Democrat Dennis Malak of Tuscola announced his intentions Tuesday to run in Illinois' 110th district. The Chicago native says he'd challenge fellow lawmakers to seek out waste in government spending. While favoring an income tax hike, Malak says it would be a temporary maneuver:

"If it's going to be passed, it needs to be passed in a way that it does end in two years, and it does require supermajority to be renewed,'' says Malak. "Not only that, but it will require that for the next two years any additional tax increase will need a two-thirds majority so that there's no back door around it. We need to really force representatives to find the waste within the system so that we can get back on track, not just keep taxing the people."

Malak is also favors a longer school year, saying that would help students stay focused on difficult subjects and they forget a lot of information during the summer layoffs. He's a graduate student at Eastern Illinois University, where he also works at the Doudna Fine Arts Center. The 28-year old received a bachelor's degree in political science there in 2004. Malak says he'd leave his job at EIU if elected, devoting his time as a full-time legislator. Republican Chapin Rose of Mahomet, who's held the House seat since 2002, has not formally announced his re-election plans for next year, but has said he intends to run.