Kane County Reporter

Republican state House candidate Dan Ugaste doesn’t need government statistics to tell him what he’s been preaching ever since he launched his campaign for state representative in the 65th District.

“I’ve said all along [that] we need to be focused on reducing spending, reducing taxes and enacting reforms that will bring business and people back to the state,” Ugaste told the Kane County Reporter. “The last thing we need is to be thinking of a progressive tax like some are pushing for. We need to be doing things to bring people back, not push more of them toward the border.”

Ugaste’s argument picks up steam in the wake of the latest U.S. Census Bureau figures, which show that Chicago's population decreased for the third straight year, with 3,825 residents fleeing the city in 2017.

With outmigration showing few signs of slowing anytime soon, some are now wondering how much longer the city might be able to lay claim to its longtime status as the country’s third largest city over Houston, which grew by 8,235 residents over the same period.

Chicago is the only one of the country’s five largest cities that lost residents in 2017.

“Those figures are an indictment of the way things have been going across this state for longer than any of us care to remember,” said Ugaste, a Geneva Republican running against Democrat Richard Johnson to replace retiring Rep. Steve Andersson (R-Geneva) in the 65th District. “If we enact the right reforms, we can still turn things around. If we change the culture, institute reforms and cut expenses, people will come back.”

As for Johnson, Ugaste said he fails to see the problem with progressive taxes.

“All he has talked about is a progressive tax,” he said. “I oppose that adamantly, as I do any new taxes.”