By Townhall Chicago News Staff
Illinois could lose $128 million in federal funding over a dispute involving driver’s license records held by the Secretary of State’s office, Republican secretary of state candidate Diane Harris said Monday.
Harris, who faces incumbent Democrat Alexi Giannoulias in Tuesday’s general election, said the state is now in litigation over the issue.
“We’re currently in a lawsuit because we’re about to lose $128 million because we did not come up with the names of the individuals who are considered ineligible to have a license,” Harris said. “That information was requested back in February, and it still has not been provided.”
Harris did not name the federal agency that requested the records. She said the delay has left the state exposed to the funding loss for months.
Harris won the Republican primary for secretary of state by six percentage points earlier this year.
Co-host Jeannie Ives raised Giannoulias’s campaign for Chicago mayor, which he announced for the Feb. 23 election, saying the simultaneous campaigns should factor into how voters judge the incumbent.
“On that alone, he should be voted out of office as Secretary of State,” Ives said.
Ives also said Katie Abraham was killed by a driver who had obtained a license from the Secretary of State’s office using a false identity.
Harris said she has not received coverage from Chicago’s largest television stations during her campaign.
“I have not been interviewed by any of the major stations — NBC, CBS, ABC, none of them,” Harris said.
Harris said her platform includes expanding self-service kiosks and mobile units to restore walk-in access to driver services in rural areas, along with stronger cybersecurity protections for driver and voter data.
“I’m bound by the Constitution of Illinois,” Harris said. “As a constitutional officer, that’s my Bible.”
Illinois voters will decide the secretary of state race Tuesday.
