Amy Grant

Republican Amy Grant, R-47th, was first elected to the state House in the 42nd District in 2018. When redistricting took effect in 2022, she switched to the 47th.  

In that race, Grant beat political novice Jackie Williamson by a relatively comfortable 6 percent margin, 24,471 votes to 21,621 votes. However, that win came against an unknown opponent who spent a relative pittance during her campaign, less than $17,000, and received no financial support whatsoever from Democratic leadership.  

Ironically, Grant had smaller victory margins in her two 42nd District races — 4.4 percent and 3.8 percent — than she did against Williamson in her 2022 race in the newly drawn 47th District. While the highly gerrymandered House legislative map did not give the Democrats a victory in the 47th, it has demonstrably put the district in play.  

This time around, Democrats are clearly intent on playing. This go-round, Williamson, who is more of a known quantity, has been working and fundraising for more than a year and is receiving significant financial assistance from Democratic leadership.  

Speaker of the Illinois House Emanuel “Chris” Welch has made no secret of his desire to expand his party’s 78-39 super majority, telling Capitol News that it “was definitely a priority of mine.” 

During his Smoke Filled Room podcast on Aug. 30, Collin Corbett, the founder of Cor Strategies, a political consulting firm, called Grant “the third most vulnerable” House Republican.  

Corbett noted the “extensive polling in specific districts so they can decide where they will and where they won’t put their money in September and in October for the final stretch,” Corbett said.  

Political campaign veteran and journalist Patrick Pfingsten, a guest on the show, concurred, adding that the 47th District “has been trending away” from the Republicans. 

Jackie Williamson

Democratic Party leaders have begun to direct resources to Williamson’s campaign. In mid-August they paid $34,000 for polling, as well as directing Democrats for the Illinois House staffer Joseph Valliquette to work on Williamson’s campaign.  

Two weeks later, Welch paid for $26,500 in digital advertising, as well as nearly $50,000 for a series of political mailings in the district.  

Williamson, who grew up in the northwest suburbs and moved to Wheaton with her husband in 2018, said she decided to run for state representative after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. 

She works in human resources, specializing in Leave of Absence administration, “helping employees navigate the complicated process of filing for FMLA.” If elected to the House, she said she would “work to finalize the details of the Paid Family and Medical Leave bill that has been in the General Assembly for years.”  

Williamson held a fundraiser Sept. 8, and has another scheduled for Sept. 23, co-hosted by 42nd District State Rep. Terra Costa Howard. The campaign is also holding phone banks every Saturday until the election. 

Meanwhile, Grant, who started July with $13,542 on hand, has raised an additional $13,000 in large donations, and benefited from $11,502 from the Illinois Republican Party toward a political mailing.  

Grant is an ardent critic of what she calls “decades of fiscal mismanagement” by Democrats, saying “We need to rein in Democrats’ out-of-control spending and adopt a responsible, transparent budgeting process to get Illinois on the best path forward.” 

Grant has also been tainted by controversy; she was forced to apologize for racist and homophobic slurs she made against her opponent in 2020. 

Besides stronger name recognition and welcome financial muscle behind her, Williamson may well benefit from the major sea change in the Presidential race at the top of the ballot. In the two months since Vice President Kamala Harris took over as the Democratic presidential nomination, she has energized the Democratic base and brought renewed interest in the general election.  

Talking to Politico’s Shia Kapos at the Democratic National Convention, Welch said Harris’ entry into the race and the huge infusion of energy and enthusiasm she brought “changes the election in a big way.” And the 47th House is one place he’s looking to capitalize on that energy. 

“78 is great,” Welch told Kapos, “but we can pick up more.”