There is another retirement in the Illinois General Assembly. When the 103rd session of the state legislature convenes Jan. 11, it will not include State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington).
“Alongside my wife, Kristin, my kids are eleven, nine, and five,” Barickman said. “We have some really important parenting years ahead of us, and I’m truly excited about the opportunities that lie ahead for me – just as a dad.”
Barickman confirms that means no door-knocking, no rallies, no chicken dinners.
His prescription for a way forward for Illinois Republicans: “I think that extremism in politics is unhealthy. I think that it gets lots of Twitter followers and likes on Facebook, but the public deserves something far more than simply trying to vocalize extreme ideas in a bit of an echo chamber.”
Voters in his district re-elected Barickman a month ago, and now he is not even going to begin the term. Rather, the new senator will be someone of the party’s choosing, not the voters’. Barickman says criticism of that route is far but notes the “elongated” electoral process in which candidates file more than a year in advance. It’s the same thing State Rep. Tim Butler (R-Springfield) said when he announced retirement plans right after being elected.
Barickman’s served a dozen years in Springfield.