15th Congressional District Interview: John Shimkus
John Shimkus is seeking re-election in the 15th U.S. Congressional District. (Jim Meadows/Illinois Public Media)
Republican John Shimkus of Collinsville is seeking re-election for an eleventh term to Congress. His district spans 33 counties in downstate Illinois, ranging from the St. Louis metro area to the west, to the Indiana border. And from as far north as Rantoul, all the way to the Illinois-Kentucky state line.
On Tuesday we heard from Shimkus’s challenger, state senator Kyle McCarter of Lebanon. One of the issues McCarter has raised in this race is Shimkus’s vote for the budget omnibus bill in December that avoided a government shutdown. McCarter claims that vote authorized federal funding for Planned Parenthood, and says he would have voted against it. Illinois Public Media's Brian Moline talked with Congressman Shimkus about the campaign, and that December budget vote.
You can find out more about this race and all the races in the March 15 primary through our partnership with Voter's Edge at voters.edge.will.illinois.edu.