June 14, 2023
"KAMIKAZE MIKE" KELLY IS BEATABLE FOR STATE REP IN 2024
There is a difference between going to Springfield and having “gone Springfield.”
State Representative Michael Kelly (D-15) is both. Who knows, he may even lose the March 19, 2024 Democratic primary and be permanently gone if he doesn’t get his ground game up.
Kelly, the first-term 15th District state representative, was appointed to replace John D’Amico in November of 2021, won an unexpectedly tight primary with 53 percent in June 2022. He was opposed by Republican Mark Albers in the November 2022 election and won with 63 percent.
Kelly, who continues to serve as a city firefighter, travels the 400-mile round trip to Springfield when the legislature is in session, which is January through May and the autumn veto session, for a total of six months.
And in 20 quick months, it seems Kelly has absorbed the Springfield mindset, believing, in my opinion, like almost all of his 78 Illinois House Democratic colleagues, that he’s somebody unbeatable, and somebody who need not concern himself with the wishes of his constituents, even though he seems to be well-liked in the district.
After all, he’s got Speaker Chris Welch (D) and Governor JB Pritzker (D) behind him,. He’s got their money behind him as long as he does not upset them. And there’s the rub. What could go wrong?
The 2023 spring session of the legislature adjourned in early May, and it deserves a great big cheer. How about: “Ra-Ra-Ra-Boom-De-A. They fought inflation their own selfish way, they raised their own damn pay, they celebrated that glorious day, and the hikes will forever stay, Ra-Ra-Ra-Boom-De-A.” Alright, give me a break. I’m not a lyricist. But at least it rhymes.
Legislators passed a $50 billion fiscal 2024 budget on a straight party-line vote – 40D-19R in the Senate and 78D-40R in the House. That budget contained a 5.5 percent COLA (cost-of-living adjustment) to legislators’ pay effective July 1, which was based on the federal CPI (consumer price index). Pritzker used his veto to slash it to 5 percent, which is the max COLA allowed per fiscal year, but avoids the tag “pay hike.” Politicians are clever.
The current session convened on Jan. 7. By law they cannot raise their salary or per diem during their term, but can for the next. Unsurprisingly, the legislature for the 2021-22 term met a few days before Jan. 7 and raised salaries for the next term to $89,676, a 16 percent hike. It was $65,836 in 2019. This included the 3 percent COLA in the 2023 fiscal budget passed last June.
That pegs their salary for their part-time job in the mid-90,000s. Those in leadership (like Welch, who replaced Mike Madigan) or chair or are ranking Republican on the numerous standing committees get an extra $10,000 stipend per year. They know how to juice it.
“There’s going to be a lot more candidates (for the legislature)” in 2024 and beyond because of the hiked pay, said D’Amico, who is now political director for Plumbers Local 130. D’Amico spent 17 years in Springfield and 39 with the city Water department, so he has a healthy pension nest egg. He is part of the tradition of “double-dippers,” ex-legislators like Bill Laurino, Roger McAuliffe, Ralph Capparelli, Walter Dudycz, Jim DeLeo, Ted Lechowicz, Bruce Farley, Bob Bugielski, Dick Clewis, Rich Bradley, Bob Raica and D’Amico, who had two public payroll jobs and 2 pensions. Add current legislators Brad Stephens, Rosemont’s mayor, and Kelly.
Kelly voted for ALL THREE pay/COLA hikes, and he has his reasons. “There was no (legislative) salary hike in 17 years,” since 2007, said Kelly. “I lose 25 percent of my (CFD) days when I’m in Springfield.”
Say what? He’s getting paid to be in Springfield, where they are in session 75-80 days per year. At $89,000, he’s making roughly $1,112 per day plus his $111 per diem. As a firefighter, Kelly said he earns “in the mid-70s” and is scheduled to work 86 24-hour shifts per year. So he’s making $872 per day.
By my calculation Kelly is “losing” 22 CFD days, costing him $19,184, but that is off-st by him earning $24,464 as state rep for those days. That amounts to a net profit of $5,280. By my calculation Kelly is grossing about $145,000-per year from his two jobs.
On the May COLA vote, Kelly said “there were a lot of good things in the budget” and that “it was balanced” as required by the IL Constitution. “I couldn’t vote against it” because of the COLA, he said. If he had, Welch would have purged him in 2024, as Madigan did to un-compliant Ken Dunkin in 2016. As for 2022, Kelly could have voted to excise that COLA from the 2023 budget but didn’t.
Does any of this matter? Will voters remember? Or even care? Welch and Kelly are counting on it. It’s part of the battle-tested Madigan playbook: (1) Raise copious amounts of money from special interests. (2) Spend $300,000 or more to protect “reliable” incumbents in primaries. And (3) expect voters to be their usual ignorant selves.
The 2024 risk is all on Kelly, and he needs Welch to be all-in. The 15th District comprises 72 precincts, 30 in the suburbs (mostly Niles) and 42 in Chicago (mostly the 39th Ward). Kelly defeated progressive candidate Michael Rabbitt 6,202-5,775, or 52 percent, last June 28. Kelly, who lives in Mayfair, won the city 4,350-4,050, and carried 25 of the 39th Ward’s 42 precincts; he won the suburbs 1,932-1,665. The old D’Amico playbook was to relentlessly knock-on doors. Kelly needs to do more of that.
Rabbitt said he will make a decision about a rematch “before Labor Day.” As for Kelly’s votes, “I’m well aware of them,” Rabbitt said. In a straight Kelly-Rabbitt race, Kelly has problems. But if he faces multiple opponents he can win.
ANDRADE WATCH: “There is no vacancy” in the 20th state senate district said state Rep Jaime Andrade (D-40) even though incumbent Cristina Pacione-Zayas (D-20) assumed duties as Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson’s first deputy chief-of-staff on May 15, a full-time job which pays $194,676, according to the city.
She recently told Nadig Newspapers that she was not drawing a city salary when she was in Springfield and that she was a “super volunteer” for the city but had unfinished legislative matters.
Her senate office is open, her Web site is active and she’s presumably drawing her state salary. She recently held a virtual “farewell” town hall and said she is “preparing to resign” but that her office will continue to be open for constituents.
“It’s entirely legal” to have a state and city (or county) job, said state Senator Rob Martwick (D-10). The only caveat is that they can’t draw their 2nd job salary while the legislature is in session, even if a no-show. In fact legislators get their full salary, pension credits and benefits even if they don’t show, but not their $111 per diem for daily expenses. Andrade, who represents half the 20th District, is now “not sure” whether he wants the senate appointment
What IS sure are two things: (1) If Pacione-Zayas resigns July 1 or later, she gets her pension credit for all of 2023. And (2) if she transitions from off- to on-city-payroll, which she can do at any time, she will be earning a gross of close to more than $250,000-a year in that “same old place, sweet home Chicago.”
Let’s check back on July 1. Like I said, officials know how to juice the taxpayers.
DEMOCRATIC COUNTY PRE-SLATING: Is there any suspense about what’s going to happen June 15-16? The county Democrats will stage a dog-and-pony show, produced, choreographed and directed by party chair Toni Preckwinkle. The 80 city and suburban committeepersons get to feel important for 2 days. The outcome has already been scripted.
At last count 37 supplicants will appear, maybe more, including two for state’s attorney (Clayton Harris, Donna More), 3 for Clerk of Circuit Court (Iris Martinez, Eira Corral Sepulveda, Mariyana Spyropoulos), two for Illinois Supreme Court from the 1st District (Joy Cunningham, Jesse Reyes), 6 for the 4 Metropolitan Water Reclamation District commissioner spots, 19 lawyers for12 countywide Circuit Court vacancies and 3 judges for one Appellate Court vacancy. The supplicants get to blather about what great Democrats they are, promise they will NOT run if NOT slated and, for judicial aspirants, tell how much money they have (and will) donate to the party.
Then the chair (Preckwinkle) appoints various “reliable” committeepersons to various subcommittees (judicial, county, MWRD) to “recommend” slatees to the formal party slate-making on Aug. 13-14. That, too, is a dog-and-pony show. Identity politics will prevail, and Preckwinkle and cohorts will summarily “balance” the slate (especially for judge) based on race, gender, sexual orientation and geography.
It will be Harris/Martinez/Steele-Garcia-Pogorzelski (for MWRD), but non-supplicants like Aurie Pucinski, Eileen O’Neil Burke, Joe Ferguson and Dan Kirk may run in the primary anyway. More in future columns.
Read more Analysis & Opinion from Russ Stewart at Russstewart.com
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