Andy Manar

Andy Manar
Member of the Illinois Senate
from the 48th district
Assumed office
January 2013 (2013-Jan)
Preceded by New District
Chairman of the Macoupin County Board
In office
December 2004 (2004-Dec) – December 2012 (2012-Dec)
Personal details
Born (1975-11-15) November 15, 1975
Bunker Hill, Illinois
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Trista
Children Three children
Residence Bunker Hill, Illinois
Alma mater Southern Illinois University
Profession Teacher

Andy Manar (born November 15, 1975) is a Democratic member of the Illinois Senate. He represents the 48th district, including part or all of Christian, Macon, Macoupin, Madison, Montgomery, and Sangamon Counties.[1] Andy Manar is known for his fiscal stewardship and for being the chief advocate for SB 1947, which made dramatic reforms to Illinois’ education funding formula.[2] He was chairman of the Macoupin County Board from 2003 to 2012, and he is currently the only downstate Senator to chair an appropriations committee.

Early life and education

Born and raised in Macoupin County, Andy Manar grew up in Bunker Hill. He went to Bunker Hill Community High School where he learned first hand the importance of strong downstate schools.

Manar credits his strong roots in public service to the late Senator Vince Demuzio who became his mentor at age 18. Manar learned about phenomenal public service through an unpaid internship working for the Senator's district office helping constituents.[3]

Manar attended Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville where he was a Golden Apple Scholar studying History to become a certified teacher.[4] [5] Manar still maintains his teaching certification. In 1997, Manar was elected to the Bunker Hill City Council. In 2001, he was elected Mayor. During his tenure he oversaw the construction of an 18-acre city park, the city’s largest sidewalk replacement project, and housing for low income and senior citizens.[6]

Macoupin County Board

In 2003, Manar joined the Macoupin County Board as its youngest member. Manar was elected Chairman unanimously by his fellow board members in December 2004.[7] During his time as Chairman, Macoupin County lost hundreds of jobs and a significant amount of tax revenue. To address the quickly-changing fiscal landscape, Andy began enacting policies to save taxpayer money and run the government on fewer resources. Manar lead the board in an unanimous vote in 2011 to cut the board’s pay and to reduce the number of seats by one-third.[3]

Illinois Senate

In September 2011, Manar announced his intention to run for State Senate in the newly-drawn 48th district.[8] In the general election, Manar faced Republican candidate and the late Mayor of Decatur, Mike McElroy. During the campaign, Manar was endorsed by the Illinois AFL-CIO, Citizen Action Illinois, Illinois Education Association, Illinois Fraternal Order of Police, the National Association of Social Workers and the State Journal-Register.[6][9] Andy Manar won the election with approximately 55% of the vote to Mike McElroy’s 45%.[10]

In his first term, Senator Manar was an active legislator, advocating for bills making it easier for college students to vote ,[11] helping charities by allowing the Public Building Commission to rent to not for profit groups, [12] curbing newborn infections of pertussis,[13] rewarding state contracts to businesses that employ Illinois residents,[14] working to reduce the discrepancy in funding for downstate school districts in Illinois[15] and allowing the Central Illinois Economic Development Authority to create Enterprise Zones to create and keep jobs in Central Illinois.[16]

In 2014, Senator Manar won his first race for re-election, defeating Macon County Board member Linda Little of Decatur.[17] Despite depressed turnout, Manar increased his margin of victory compared to his first State Senate race in 2012.[18]

School Funding Reform

The fall of 2017 brought a monumental policy victory for Downstate Illinois public school students. A four-year effort including Manar's chairmanship of a bipartisan, joint Education Funding Advisory Committee, several bill iterations, and years of town hall meetings across the state, yielded the first overhaul of Illinois' education funding formula since the 1990s.[2]

Amy Ballinger-Cole of Advance Illinois said of the overhaul, “He basically picked a fight that no one else wanted to touch. The face that he got it done in this political environment is nothing short of a miracle.” [2]

Recent Activity

Senator Manar’s Spring 2018 legislative victories include the passage of a bill to provide every school in Illinois with high-speed broadband internet, [19] a package of measures to combat the shortage of qualified substitute teachers in Illinois, [20] and a law which would raise the minimum wage of Illinois teachers from $9,000 per year to $32,000 per year. [21] Outside of the General Assembly chambers, Senator Manar has been active in advocating on behalf of the communities of his district. Andy has publicly advocated to hold the Bruce Rauner administration responsible, including commissioning and publicizing a report revealing the financial mismanagement of state warehouse leasing. [22]

Senator Manar brought together Lewis and Clark Community College and the University of Illinois to establish a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree program in Godfrey. The program  addresses a critical shortage of nurses for area hospitals and healthcare providers while giving students an affordable path to a college degree. Area students will be able to earn a bachelor's degree from the U of I while attending classes locally at LCCC in Godfrey.

Committee Assignments

In the 99th General Assembly, Senator Manar was a member of the following committees; Agriculture, Higher Education, Education, Labor, Appropriations I & II,  and the Special Committee on Oversight of Medicaid Managed Care. In the 98th General Assembly, Senator Manar served as the sub-chairperson on the Subcommittee on Economic Development as well as on the Agriculture and Conservation, Executive Appointments, Higher Education, State Government & Veterans Affairs and Appropriations I & II committees.[23]

Election results

Illinois State Senate 48th District General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Andy Manar 47,231 55.29
Republican Mike McElroy 38,183 44.71
Democratic gain from Republican
Illinois State Senate 48th District General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Democratic Andy Manar 34,402 55.62
Republican Linda Little 27,449 44.71 -0.33%
Turnout 61,851 -27.58
Democratic hold Swing +0.33

References

  1. ↑ "PA 97-0006 Legislative District 48" (PDF). 2011-05-18. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  2. 1 2 3 "Illinois Issues: The Man With The Education Reform Mission". Illinois Public Media. 2017-09-12. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  3. 1 2 "43rd Annual Commencement to Honor More Than 850 Graduates". Lewis and Clark Community College. 2014-05-07. Retrieved 2015-10-04.
  4. ↑ http://senatorandymanar.com/bio
  5. ↑ "Sen. Manar Tells Education Scholars They are the Hope for Classrooms". www.siue.edu. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  6. 1 2 Staff writers (2012-11-07). "Manar Claims Seat in General Assembly". The BenGil Post. Retrieved 2015-10-06.
  7. ↑ "The Reorganization Meeting of the Macoupin County Board Minutes of Monday December 6, 2004" (PDF). Macoupin County Clerk. Retrieved 2013-01-23.
  8. ↑ Lowe, Kenneth (2011-09-09). "Cullerton aide Andy Manar announces bid for 48th District seat". Herald & Review. Retrieved 2015-10-06.
  9. ↑ "Official Campaign Website Endorsement Section".
  10. ↑ Lusvardi, Chris (2012-11-06). "Democrat Manar defeats McElroy in 48th District state senate race". Herald & Review. Retrieved 2015-10-06.
  11. ↑ "Bill Status of SB1548". Illinois General Assembly.
  12. ↑ "Bill Status of SB1896". Illinois General Assembly.
  13. ↑ "Bill Status of SB1623". Illinois General Assembly.
  14. ↑ "Bill Status of SB1897". Illinois General Assembly.
  15. ↑ "Bill Status of SB1880". Illinois General Assembly.
  16. ↑ "Bill Status of SB1521". Illinois General Assembly.
  17. ↑ "Election Results". www.elections.il.gov. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  18. ↑ "Election Results". www.elections.il.gov. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  19. ↑ Press, Associated. "Bill would give rural Illinois schools high-speed internet". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  20. ↑ "Illinois House Passes New Legislation To Help End Teacher Shortage". 2018-04-27. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  21. ↑ Finke, Doug. "Will Illinois raise the minimum salary for teachers?". The State Journal. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  22. ↑ Stapleton, Todd. "Audit Slams Rauner Administration Over Warehouse Lease". Vandalia Radio. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  23. ↑ "Senator Andy Manar (D), 48th District Committee Assignments". Illinois General Assembly.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.