South Cook News

State House District 30 GOP candidate Patricia Bonk has conceded in the race. 

Bonk lost to incumbent State Rep. William Davis (D-Hazel Crest) who was first elected in 2003. 

“To all my friends, family, supporters: We worked very hard during this campaign," Bonk said in a Facebook post. "My goal was to effect change in Springfield and be the voice in Springfield for residents in the 30th District. Unfortunately, things did not go our way. I had the good fortune to meet/talk to many people and made some friends along the way. Just know, I will continue to serve our community in any way I can. Thank you all for your support.”

At last count, Bonk has notched only 20.2% of the vote with 5,262 votes to Davis’s 79.8% of the vote with 20,810 votes, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.

Bonk's main reason for running is crime in Chicago, South Cook News reported. She is very concerned about the 25-year high in homicides Chicago recorded in 2021. She wanted to fully fund and train law enforcement so they have the necessary resources to deal with this problem. She also supports pension, healthcare, and DCFS reform and is alarmed by the exodus of people leaving Illinois due to the heavy tax burden. Bonk noted that her 43 years as a registered nurse would have equipped her well for the State Legislature.

Democrats note having held their supermajorities in both houses of the General Assembly in the first general election without former House Speaker Michael Madigan. Republicans went into the election with high hopes; however only 78 of the 118 House seats were contested, and in the Senate only 25 of 59 seats were up for grabs. Republicans made modest gains in the State Senate, but it was still a disappointing race for them as the Democrats still have a supermajority in Springfield, the Chicago Tribune reported.