McLean County Democrats are enthusiastic about the 2020 election but still not sure who they want on the ballot in the presidential race, according to a party official who organized a straw poll at the county fair.
Karla Chandler-Huffman said more than 550 visitors took part in the straw poll.
“I was really satisfied by the enthusiasm that the people showed when they came over," she explained. "They just said, ‘Gosh, there are so many candidates.'"
Chandler-Huffman added there was one unifying theme.
“What people commented on the most was that they would vote for anyone who could beat Donald Trump,” she said. “After that, then they would go into why they liked specific candidates."
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, former Vice President Joe Biden, and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders had the most support at just under 20%, with U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg just behind them.
Chandler-Huffman said since it was an informal poll, it was open to anyone or any age. She said it’s too early in the campaign cycle to read too much into the numbers.
“We still have almost 250 days left before this is going to be decided,” she said. “I think that it’s just going to be a long road ahead.”
GOP Says ‘No’ To Progressive Tax
McLean County Republicans ran a straw poll during the fair on the state's progressive income tax. Close to 95% of about 204 respondents voted against the tax.
The vote was 191-13 against changing the Illinois Constitution to allow the legislature to change the tax code to set differing tax rates based on income.
“The proposed amendment to change our income tax rate to a progressive rate is a flawed proposal on many levels,” says Connie Beard, chairman of the McLean County Republicans. “We had many discussions with fairgoers about this issue and found many are not yet aware of the full language of the proposal or its impact.”
Beard said the county GOP plans to make its mission over the next year educating voters on what the party feels are the dangers of the tax amendment.
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