Kinzinger Seeks Re-election in New Congressional 16th District

Press Release

Rep. Adam Kinzinger has represented Illinois' 11th District since 2011, but redistricting changes have him running for re-election in an entirely new district for many of the same voters. The former 11th District included most of Bureau County, while the new 16th District will include all of the county.

Kinzinger, 33, will face Rep. Don Manzullo, who has represented the district since 1993, in the March 20 primary.

Kinzinger said this primary election is definitely a challenge.

"Neither Manzullo or I want to be in this position," he said. "But I'm looking forward to the opportunity to meet a lot of new friends."

Kinzinger said his priorities are the same as when he first ran two years ago.

"No 1, obviously, is the economy," he said. "We've got a really bad economy; unemployment's out of control; and what we have to do is create an environment. We have to step away, in my mind, from this idea that the government is going to be the answer to coming in and creating jobs."

Kinzinger said the pattern that's been followed for decades of just spending more money doesn't work.

"Jobs are going to be created in the private sector," he said.

Kinzinger said he will talk to small business owners, factory owners and managers, as well as other people and ask them what they need to create more jobs. He said he is currently implementing this in his district through the One More Job initiative.

The other big priority for Kinzinger is spending.

"Spending is out of control," he said. "Government is too big; it's too bloated; it's too bureaucratic; and we need to pare down the size of the federal government to have it do what it's supposed to do."

Kinzinger said to do that, Congress has to reduce spending.

"And when you grow that economy on top of reducing spending, more people are going to be paying taxes because more people are going to be working. And that's how you get toward that balanced budget that's so necessary," he said.

Kinzinger is also concerned with energy security and is working in his committee, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, to make sure the United States is a nation that's energy independent and energy secure.

Kinzinger said the fact the nation is $15 trillion in debt, has high unemployment, and is still relying on the Middle East for energy is the fault of both past Democrats and Republicans.

"We have to accept the fact that Republicans lost the voters' faith in the past, and I have not been part of that system," he said. "I've been in Congress for a whole total of one year now, and since we've gotten there, and we've been able -- and I've led the efforts within the freshman class -- to change the conversation in Washington from how much more are we going to spend. And now the conversation is how much are we going to cut, and what's the proper role of federal government?"

Kinzinger said he has been both effective and aggressive since elected.

"I want to go back," he said. "I want to go back to continue the work that the people of this district sent me to do."

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