She Runs Illinois 2024! — Linda Robertson, candidate for IL House of Representatives, District 65

She Votes Illinois is pleased to feature Linda Robertson, running for IL House of Representatives, District 65. Follow our series, She Runs Illinois 2024!, leading up to election day as we showcase and uplift the voices of Illinois women running for public office in the upcoming election, November 5, 2024.

Linda Robertson, running for IL House of Representatives, District 65

Tell us about yourself

I am a scientist, a community activist, and a retired small business owner who will bring strong problem-solving skills to representing Illinois House District 6. As an environmental/industrial microbiologist, I worked to find innovative solutions for complex problems. I led research in water and wastewater projects for Weyerhaeuser and Nalco and was awarded 12 patents. I started my own international consulting business in 2007.

As the mother of two adult daughters and grandmother of two delightful grandsons, I understand the challenges of having a family and balancing work and life. I have been involved in local politics for years and have been outspoken about gun safety, women’s reproductive rights, and the existential issues of climate change.

I am a hard worker, who will make decisions based on data and evidence. I am committed to listening to all points of view, logically assessing the facts, and working with leaders on both sides of the aisle to build a better Illinois future.

What are your top three legislative priorities you intend to focus on in office?

• The environment: I will fight for clean air, water & energy. I will advocate for proactive legislation to improve energy efficiency, promote the transition to renewable energy, and create clean energy jobs.
• Safe & healthy communities. Illinois residents need high-quality, affordable childcare and healthcare including mental health care. I will work across the aisle to enact common-sense gun safety and secure dignity for seniors.
• Reproductive Rights: Health care decisions belong between a woman and her doctor. Legislation protecting our rights at the state level is critical.

What motivated you to run for office?

The Dobbs decision terrified me — I realized that reproductive rights were threatened by that decision. We must protect our rights and continue to offer assistance to women who are now being denied their rights.

The mass shootings in Uvalde and Highland Park were heartbreaking and made me angry. Children were being slaughtered. I believe that children’s lives matter more than unfettered gun access. Too many lives are being lost, devastating families, and traumatizing communities. We need logical, sensible gun safety laws.

I ran because the unopposed incumbent representatives for District 65 House did not represent my values or the values of our community. He consistently votes against common sense gun safety laws, against women’s rights, and against climate change action.

What measures can Illinois implement to better protect women from intimate partner violence, considering high-profile cases involving the abuse and stalking of Black women like the attack on pregnant Laterria Smith and murder of her son, Jayden Perkins, by her ex-partner; and Dominique Ward’s struggles with her ex-partner’s cyberstalking?

Survivors of intimate partner violence need support, encouragement, and ways to leave their partner. We need to:

• Allow prosecutors to introduce evidence and call women who could testify to their experiences being stalked, threatened, and physically abused by a domestic batterer who is under investigation.
• Illinois has good cyberstalking laws on the books, but the problem is that they aren’t implemented. Police, prosecutors, and judges need additional training to understand cyberstalking and what it does to victims. This includes holding companies accountable.
• Social workers should be assigned to accompany police in domestic calls to defuse the situation and to provide support for survivors in crisis.
• Work to ensure the Red Flag law is enforced throughout Illinois.
• Require mandatory stronger, better batterer intervention programs.
• Develop effective educational programs at the high school level to help teenagers understand the power & control wheel.
• Continue to promote good law enforcement training that emphasizes de-escalation tactics.
• Fiscally support domestic violence and sexual assault programs.
• While canvassing in Wayne, a policeman told me that each fire and police station should have one position replaced by a social worker and that the social worker be paid as a policeman. It is something worth exploring.

How do you propose Illinois can enhance access to affordable childcare and support services for working mothers, and what legislative measures will you champion to advance this goal?

Businesses need workers. Workers need childcare. I will:

• Work with businesses to incentivize onsite childcare and/or to subsidize some of the costs of quality childcare.
• Support Governor Pritzker’s early childhood education programs to increase access to preschool in Illinois.
• Support the new Illinois program to increase the child tax credit, targeting lower-income families.

How will you prioritize improving maternal healthcare outcomes and addressing disparities in maternal mortality rates among women in Illinois?

The profound racial and ethnic disparities in health, well-being, and life expectancy have too long been the norm in the United States and are unacceptable. Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege. I will:

• Prioritize funding prenatal as well as postnatal care. These programs provide a high return on investment.
• Fight to ensure that nonprofit hospitals provide care, regardless of insurance coverage.
• Support programs to train more diverse medical professionals.
• Fight medical debt so that women will not be unable to afford needed care.
• Make sure insurance companies are held accountable for denial-of-service decisions and that junk insurance plans are not allowed in Illinois.

Closing comments

Springfield has enough lawyers. We need more scientists who are trained in using data and logic to solve complex problems at work in the Illinois House. In Springfield, I will fight for women’s reproductive rights, accessible childcare, affordable health and mental health care, common sense gun safety, and a healthy environment. I will be willing to work across the aisle to break the deadlocks and identify practical solutions. I want to build a safer, healthier world for our children and their children.

If you would like to learn more about Linda Robertson and her platform or volunteer for her campaign, please check out her website at votelinda65.com. Don’t forget to follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Reach out today and help make a difference in the upcoming 2024 election.

(The information contained in this post is provided only as general information and does not imply an endorsement by She Votes Illinois.)