Phillips loses election but gains experience
By Heather Bowers
IV Leader, Dec 7, 2006
As the saying goes, “You win some and you lose some.”
IVCC geology professor Mike Phillips knew exactly what this
meant when he ran impressively, however, unsuccessfully for the District 106
state representative seat during the November election. Running on the
Democratic ticket against the seat owner Republican Keith Sommer,
Phillips received 10,978 votes to Sommers’ 24,308, winning
only La Salle County out of four others. If Phillips were elected, he would have
made the state’s budget problems a top priority.
After the votes were tabulated and Phillips found out that he
did not win, he still felt grateful for the experience. “I had a very positive
experience. I learned a lot about how the process of running for office actually
works. I met thousands of people, few of whom were negative.”
People seemed to be the force behind Phillips’ campaign. They
walked in parades, collected donations, created signs and knocked on doors.
Volunteers helped raise $24,000, sent out 20,000 postcards and made 80,000
automated telephone calls.
Phillips himself put a lot of energy and effort into the
campaign. “I personally knocked on almost 6,000 doors, walked in 16 parades and
attended more meetings, dinners and breakfasts than I can count.” He also met
with several state officials and precinct officers and was interviewed for TV,
newspapers and radio.
Although Phillips lost the election, he has learned much from
the experience and plans to utilize that knowledge through his day job, teaching
here at IVCC. “I plan to share my experience with my students and with students
in other courses here at the college.”