Candidates

John M. Shimkus

(Rep)

Contact Information

Candidate Background

Candidacy

Graduate education: Southern Illinois University

Undergraduate education: U.S. Military Academy at West Point

John Shimkus was born in Collinsville, Ill., where he still resides. After graduation from West Point, Shimkus trained as a U.S. Army Ranger and paratrooper. He served as an infantry officer in West Germany and the United States. He is a major in the U.S. Army Reserves.

After leaving the Army, Shimkus returned to Collinsville in 1987 and taught government and history at Metro-East Lutheran High School. Shimkus earned a teaching certificate at Christ College in Irvine, Calif., in 1989.

He was elected a Collinsville Township Trustee in 1989, and in 1990 was elected Madison County Treasurer, the first Republican to be elected to county office in 10 years. He was re-elected in 1994.

He was first elected to the U.S. House in 1996, winning the seat formerly held by Dick Durbin, who won a seat in the U.S. Senate.

Shimkus and his wife, Karen Muth, have three children.

Profile

In 2009, John Shimkus began his seventh term in Congress — a term he once promised never to serve.

When he first ran for office in 1996, Shimkus was a supporter of term limits and promised to serve only six terms. But when the time came for him to step aside, Shimkus decided to run again. He said his original pledge had been a mistake.

Shimkus began his seventh term by voting against spending bills meant to jumpstart the economy and against a Democratic budget that he said "spends too much, taxes too much, and borrows too much." He also spoke out on behalf of steelworkers in his district who were angry that a pipeline through the area was to be made with foreign steel.

Shimkus was caught up in the controversy over congressional pages in 2006. He was head of the board that oversees the congressional page program on Capitol Hill when a scandal unfolded involving then-Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla., who sent sexually suggestive e-mails to young men involved in the page program.

The House Ethics Committee said it found no evidence members of Congress had violated rules other than Foley, who resigned in September 2006. But the committee noted that Shimkus had told another GOP page board member that he withheld information about Foley's messages out of fear that "it would be blown out of proportion."

Shimkus went on to win re-election with 61 percent of the vote, defeating a little-known Democrat who had tried to use the page scandal against the congressman.

Shimkus, a conservative Christian, has worked to oppose abortion and to limit minors' access to inappropriate material on the Internet. His opposition to what critics call "partial-birth abortions" has helped solidify support and given him increased clout to fight for other issues, such as soy-based fuels produced in his sprawling southern Illinois district.

The West Point graduate also has expressed regret he is not with his fellow soldiers in Iraq. Instead, he has visited the troops and supports them during the divisive debate about the war.

He was able to qualify the soybean-based diesel fuel blend B-20 for the alternative fuels program. He also voted with the House majority to approve a plan to store the nation's nuclear waste at one place, Nevada's Yucca Mountain. He opposed including parts of the Illinois River in the American Heritage Rivers program, leading the program to reject the entire river.

Committee Assignments: Energy and Commerce

2008 American Conservative Union Rating: 91 points out of 100

2008 Americans for Democratic Action Rating: 20 points out of 100

Campaigns

John Shimkus was first elected to the U.S. House in 1996, defeating Democrat Jay Hoffman by 1,253 votes. Shimkus was re-elected in 1998, defeating Democrat Rick Verticchio with 61 percent of the vote.

In 2000, Shimkus won re-election with 63 percent of the vote, beating Democratic challenger Jeffrey Cooper. He faced fellow Rep. David Phelps in 2002, the product of a new congressional map that reduced Illinois' number of seats from 20 to 19. Shimkus won with 55 percent of the vote.

He won re-election in 2004 with 69 percent of the vote, and then again in 2006 with 61 percent.

Shimkus won re-election in 2008 with 64 percent of the vote, defeating Democrat Paul Daniel.

Shimkus first ran for Congress against incumbent Democratic Rep. Dick Durbin in 1992, but received only 44 percent of the vote. He was elected a Collinsville Township Trustee in 1989, and in 1990 was elected Madison County Treasurer, the first Republican elected to county office in 10 years. He was re-elected in 1994.

(Last updated by Christopher Wills on May 4, 2009.)