After decisively fending off two challengers in the Democratic primary, Sen. Emil Jones III will face Crestwood Trustee Brian Skala in the general election to represent the 14th District in the state Senate.
Jones faced the first contested primary of his 17-year senate career in March, when both attorney Ahmed Karrar and business owner Kenny Williams ran to unseat him. Jones won the primary with 60.6% of the vote. Karrar received 22.7% of the vote and Williams received 16.7%.
Jones has represented the 14th Senate District, which stretches over a wide swath of the south suburbs, from the South Side neighborhood of Roseland in the east to Orland Park and Homer Glen in the west, since 2009. His father, former Senate President Emil Jones, Jr., held the seat until 2008.
The district contains all or parts of Alsip, Blue Island, Calumet Park, Chicago, Crestwood, Dixmoor, Dolton, Harvey, Homer Glen, Merrionette Park, Midlothian, Oak Forest, Orland Hills, Orland Park, Palos Heights, Posen, Riverdale, Robbins and Tinley Park.
Jones was charged with bribery in 2022, with charges alleging he agreed to help a red-light camera company block unfavorable legislation in exchange for $5,000 and a job for his legislative intern. Shortly after, Gov. JB Pritzker called for him to resign.
The case went to trial in 2025, but the jury deadlocked and a mistrial was declared. The case was set to be retried, but Jones entered into a deferred prosecution deal in December to leave him with no conviction so long as he paid a $6,800 fine, stayed out of legal trouble and admitted to certain illegal conduct, including making false statements to the FBI.
Jones did not respond to repeated requests for an interview.
This will be the first contested general election since initially winning the seat for Jones, who ran unopposed in 2012, 2016, 2018 and 2022.
“We haven’t been truly represented by a senator in the 14th District in almost two decades,” said Skala, a Republican. “I’ve been in politics here since 2020 and I have never even met Sen. Jones, never seen him at any event.”
When talking to voters, Skala said he asks them if he feels like they’re better off now than they were two decades ago.
“Are you happier today? Are you more prosperous today? Are you having an easier life in the towns that you live in?” Skala said. “And I’m getting a resounding ‘Absolutely not.'”
Infrastructure
Skala said his first priority would be to allocate state money to improve the district’s infrastructure.
“Towns like Harvey, Dolton, these areas are constantly in the news about being flooded out every time it rains,” Skala said. “Everybody knows it’s a problem.”
The south suburbs saw widespread flooding from multiple hard-hitting storms over the summer, damaging homes and property. A state request for federal disaster aid to help address the storms’ impact was recently rejected by President Donald Trump’s administration.
“There’s money in the system,” Skala said. “They’re not allocating it to what needs to be done, so that would be my biggest thing, is working on our infrastructure right away.”
In a news release on Jones’ website, he celebrated securing $63 million in Illinois Department of Transportation projects to build and repair infrastructure across the district, primarily state highways.
Skala said data center are coming “whether we like them or not,” but said the state needs to ensure they do not place a financial and resource burden on communities.
“If there’s a way for shared revenue, and where it would make sense and it wasn’t an ecological disaster,” Skala said. “They’re going to come one way or another, it’s just how the state’s going to decide to dictate that.”
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Budget and taxes
Skala said he would vote against any new or increased taxes. However, he was pessimistic about the willingness of state lawmakers to take meaningful action on high property taxes.
“No matter what position or stance I take, I would have to have help from the rest of the senators,” Skala said. “I think that’s where the problem lies.”
Skala also said he wants to slash the state budget, though when asked he didn’t point to any particular item he would cut. The state budget for fiscal year 2027 totals $56 billion.
“I think there’s probably one million places to start,” Skala said.
Jones said in a statement in response to Gov. JB Pritzker’s budget proposal that, in light of federal funding cuts, funding education and healthcare were priorities.
“I’m glad to see continued investments in our state’s evidence-based funding model,” Jones said. “However, with current attacks on funding for safety-net hospitals, certifying residents’ access to quality health care is a priority now more than ever.”
Public safety
Skala said that public safety was a major concern and said he wants to reform the state’s SAFE-T Act, the 2021 law that eliminated cash bail and raised standards prosecutors must meet for pretrial detention.
“I think there’s a lot of things that we would have to change on that SAFE-T Act in order to keep the convicted and reoccurring felons from being out on the streets,” Skala said. “That would be a very good start.”
Republicans, including gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey, have called for the repeal of the act, even as violent crime in Illinois has declined. The law requires judges to consider factors such as flight risk and whether the defendant poses a danger to others when determining whether to grant pretrial release.
Jones worked to combat cyberstalking and cyberbullying and to improve public safety, including by passing legislation aimed at reducing gang recruitment, he said on his website.