Julie Bickelhaupt, a lifelong Illinoisan, farmer, mother, and community leader, has announced her candidacy for Congress in Illinois’ 17th District, according to a news release.
“Families here are being crushed by rising costs, unsafe streets, and politicians in Washington who put their radical agendas ahead of our interests,” Bickelhaupt said in the release.” I’ll fight to lower costs on everything from energy to health care, defend our jobs, and make sure Illinois families have a fair shot at a better life.”
Eric Sorensen currently is the Illinois 17th District congressman.
Bickelhaupt farms alongside her husband and adult children near Mount Carroll, where the Bickelhaupt family runs a seventh-generation purebred Hereford cattle and grain operation. Raised on a farm in Greenville and a graduate of Eastern Illinois University, she has lived the values of hard work, family, and community her entire life, the release says.
In addition to farming, she manages human relations (HR) for her family’s insurance business.
Bickelhaupt’s campaign will center on three top priorities: Tackling the rising cost of living that burdens working families, protecting agriculture as Illinois’ leading economic driver, and strengthening education by empowering parents, expanding opportunities choice, and ensuring every community has strong public schools, the release says.