South Cook News

Eric Wallace wonders what could have been in the wake of his tight loss to Democrat incumbent state Sen. Patrick Joyce in the 40th District.

"There’s a part of me that thinks things could have been different if it weren’t for COVID-19 and not being able to get out and campaign the way I would have liked to,” Wallace told the South Cook News. “We were also running with very little money and in a district that has been controlled by Democrats for the last decade.”

Despite it all, Wallace made Joyce sweat much of the night, especially in Kankakee County where he fell by a count of 52,273 votes (51.2%) to 39,725 (48.8%).

Wallace, who previously ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2nd Congressional District but was defeated by Democratic Incumbent Robin Kelly, argues there’s no way things can continue to unfold as they have been in Springfield.

“We have to have responsible government, which means ridding ourselves of all the corruption Springfield is known for,” he said. “People don’t understand how deeply rooted it’s become in our government and how it affects practically everything that happens. Look at the ComEd situation and Speaker (Mike) Madigan. He was making deals so ComEd could raise our rates. You have to wonder how much more of that happens. We need lawmakers that care about the people and are actually going to Springfield to work on their behalf.”

Other than vowing to continue working for the people of the district, Wallace said he isn’t sure what comes next.

“I’m not sure if I’ll run again,” he said. “What the district looks like will have a lot to do with it. So, I don’t want to make any rash decisions.”