Republican Elizabeth Bauer, 57, is precisely the kind of thoughtful, independent-minded candidate Illinois needs in Springfield. An actuary with expertise in pensions and a master’s degree in applied economics, Bauer brings an unusually sophisticated understanding of the state’s fiscal problems to her campaign in this northwest suburban district.
Her proposals go well beyond familiar calls to cut spending. On pensions, Bauer advocates a carefully tailored constitutional amendment and retirement reforms drawing on models in Arizona and Wisconsin. She has written extensively about pension reform, including for the Tribune, and understands both the urgency of the problem and the difficulty of winning public trust for a solution.
Bauer also offers specific ideas to rein in property taxes, improve accountability for school spending and reform the legislative process. We particularly appreciate her willingness to challenge conventional thinking without resorting to reflexive partisanship.
Her opponent is Democratic state Rep. Nicolle Grasse, 59, a hospice chaplain and former Arlington Heights trustee. Grasse has sensible ideas for strengthening legislative ethics oversight, but her support for higher taxes and unwillingness to consider constitutional pension reform leave us unconvinced that she can help Illinois confront its fiscal problems.
Elizabeth Bauer is endorsed.
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Read all of the Tribune Editorial Board’s endorsements for the 2026 Illinois general election here.
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