Lake County Gazette

Joe Woodward, political director for the Illinois House Republican Organization (HRO), evidently learned a campaign trick or two when he worked for Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential primary campaign. 

HRO is behind mailers to residents in certain House districts tying the Republican primary candidates they suspect won’t toe the line in Springfield to House Democratic Speaker Michael Madigan.

One such targeted candidate, Marko Sukovic, of Lincolnshire, is running in the Republican primary in the 59th District against the machine-favored candidate Karen Feldman. Sukovic says the mailers indicating he’s in Madigan’s back pocket “don’t even pass the laugh test.” Last week he filed suit against HRO and Feldman.

Marko Sukovic | Twitter

“They (the HRO) write her press releases," Sukovic said. "They have contributed nearly all the money she has in her campaign (more than $42,000 according to Board of Elections records). They are behind all this.”

Sukovic added that it would be impossible for Feldman, indebted to the House Republican machine, to remain independent and be a fiscal conservative voice in Springfield.

One mailer, with a Valentine's Day backdrop, reads “Marko Sukovic Loves Mike Madigan’s Money" (the word 'love' is depicted with an arrow through a heart).

Another has a photo of Madigan as a marionette pulling Sukovic’s strings.

Sukovic said that Feldman’s refusal to apologize for the mailers left him no alternative but to take action in court

“The voters of the 59th District have a choice to make -- to continue with the tax, spend, and waste policies of a candidate that has voted in two Democratic primaries; or a fresh alternative willing to take on the status quo," he said.

Sukovic is a 22-year-old graduating senior from the University of Illinois and owner of a public relations firm. He labels himself a fiscal conservative, with an independent streak that fits well with the voters in the 59th District. He is running for the seat soon to be vacated by Carol Sente.

The 59th District includes portions of 21 communities in central Lake County and northern Cook County including sections of Buffalo Grove, Mundelein, Wheeling and Vernon Hills.