CHARLESTON—Josh Weger announced his candidacy for state senate today. He is running for the seat currently held by GOP Senator Dale Righter.“Families across the state are struggling and we need to create jobs now,” said Weger. “People are looking to their elected officials to rise above partisan rhetoric and come up with real solutions,” add Weger.
Weger, a 31 year old Democrat from Lawrenceville, Illinois, is an expert in economic development and job creation. He works everyday to bring jobs back to Illinois as the Southeast Region Manager for the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. In addition he also serves as a board member of the Southeastern Illinois Economic Development Authority which focuses on economic development in our area.
“I am running for senate to bring my expertise in job creation to the state legislature,” said Mr. Weger. “The legislature needs to do more to create jobs and I have the skills to get the economy going again."
Due to the absence of a Democratic candidate on the ballot in the February primary, the Democratic county chairmen are able to select a candidate for the General Election. They convened last night and Mr. Weger was chosen as the candidate because of his experience creating jobs and his record of public service.
About Josh Weger—Josh has lived in Southeastern Illinois entire life and comes from a long line of blue collar workers. Josh attended Lincoln Trail College and then transferred to the University of Illinois at Springfield where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics. Josh went to work at the Illinois Auditor General’s Office where he worked to root out waste and corruption in state government. He was able to pursue his passion for economic development at the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity, where he has been a key player in bringing FutureGen to Mattoon. While working at DCEO, Josh completed his master’s in Political Science. He currently resides in Lawrenceville.
