Rodney Davis on reelection, infrastructure and civility
After months of speculation about the political future of Congressman Rodney Davis, the fifth-term Republican finally made clear his intentions late last month: He's running for reelection. It’s understandable why he’d been waiting—Davis’ fate was not entirely in his own hands. Although he serves in the U.S. Congress, it’s the Democrats who control state government in Springfield who drew him into a new district that runs across central Illinois like a sash. It’s the 15th Congressional District, and it borders Iowa and Missouri to the west and stretches to Indiana in the east. He joined The 21st to talk about his decision to run for reelection, the infrastructure bills, and more.
GUEST:
U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis
R-Taylorville (13th Congressional District • Running in newly drawn 15th district)
In the above graphic, Rep. Davis' 13th District is highlighted in light blue in the current Congressional district map on the left. On the right is the new Congressional district map, with the district Davis has announced he'll run in, the 15th, noted in purple.* It includes the towns of Quincy, Jacksonville, Mattoon, and Davis’ hometown of Taylorville. It goes near — but largely sidesteps — bigger cities like Champaign-Urbana, Decatur, Springfield, and Edwardsville.
“Hoping to remain in Congress,” @ElectRodney told reporters in August. “But it’s not my choice. It’s the choice of the corrupt Democrats in Springfield.”
— Hannah Meisel (@hannahmeisel) November 30, 2021
That was well before Dems passed a new congressional map last month, leaving him a safe GOP district. https://t.co/FWrybjrbLo
Prepared for web by Owen Henderson
* Correction, Dec. 9, 2021: An earlier version of this post misidentified the district in which U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis announced he would seek re-election to Congress.
Help shape our coverage on The 21st by joining our texting group and answering weekly questions. To join, text “TALK” to 217-803-0730 or sign up with your phone number below: