Dupage Policy Journal

Former Illinois state Rep. Jeanne Ives addressed a Concerned Parents of Illinois event in DuPage County on Sept. 11, calling for renewed activism in response to the killing of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk. The gathering drew more than 200 GOP leaders, activists and parents.

Ives, a 2018 Republican gubernatorial candidate, described Kirk’s death as a “political assassination” and framed it as part of a broader struggle over culture, corruption and power in Illinois.

"What's really on my heart is the political assassination of Charlie Kirk yesterday," Ives said during her remarks.

"I personally knew Charlie. I distinctly remember meeting him when he was just starting his organization at [the M.J. Miller & Co.] jewelry store in Barrington. He was literally on the stairs up where the upper office was... It was a very brief meeting at that point. He was super nice, really sweet.”

Kirk was killed Sept. 10 during a campus event at Utah Valley University. Authorities said that he was shot by a suspect who held opposing political views and reportedly lived with a transgender roommate.

An Illinois native and graduate of Wheeling High School, Kirk co-founded Turning Point USA at age 18 in a Lemont garage. He expanded it into a $92 million national organization with chapters on thousands of high school and college campuses. He was a close ally of President Trump, who credited him with helping secure his 2024 re-election victory.

Kirk, 31, is survived by his wife, Erika—who now serves as CEO of Turning Point USA—and their two young children.

Ives reflected on Kirk’s influence among young conservatives and praised his refusal to follow conventional paths.

"I think what people don't understand about Charlie Kirk is that he disrupted everything, like everything the left stood for," Ives said.

"And most importantly, Charlie was like, ‘I'm not going to college; I'm going to go into college.’ And I think they resented that even more, that he would dare kids not to choose college, and the fact that he was so articulate, so self-educated.”

She said Kirk’s assassination was “a planned and organized hit.”

"Charlie got assassinated," she said. "He got shot by a sniper, waiting for him in a very planned and organized hit."

Ives said Kirk’s death had galvanized her to speak even more forcefully.

“He is giving me even more reason to say what needs to be said to everybody here.”

During her speech, Ives criticized what she described as longstanding corruption in Illinois politics, pointing to the recent conviction of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan in the ComEd bribery case. 

Madigan, who led the chamber for 36 years, was sentenced to 7.5 years in federal prison and ordered to pay $2.5 million in restitution. He is scheduled to report to prison by Oct. 13.

“Mike Madigan will show up in jail on October 13th... It was a corrupt bribery deal,” Ives said.

Ives, who served three terms in the House while Madigan was Speaker, also criticized divisions within the Republican Party, referencing her 2018 primary challenge to then-Gov. Bruce Rauner.

“Taxpayer funding on abortion was a bridge too far, and [Rauner] promised he wouldn't do it,” she said. “Then he capitulated to his Democrat wife. But oh, we can't talk about abortion. Couldn't talk in 2022. Don't talk in 2024.”

Rauner later lost the general election to Gov. J.B. Pritzker.

To underscore the stakes of current cultural debates, Ives revisited the story of Jay Keck, a Hinsdale father who wrote a 2019 USA Today editorial alleging that his daughter’s public school began affirming a transgender identity without parental consent.

“(Keck) explained how Hinsdale School District 86 took his freshman 14-year-old daughter, who was on the autism spectrum, and decided that they could change her name and change her gender behind their back,” Ives said.

Keck has alleged that the school ignored his requests to use his daughter’s legal name and female pronouns, and that his concerns were dismissed.

Ives said cases like Keck’s remain ongoing, referencing recent complaints in Community Unit School District 300 in Kane County. She alleged that some school districts continue to support gender transitions without parental knowledge.

“We’ve been dealing with this for a very long time,” Ives said.

She called on attendees to take inspiration from Kirk’s example and engage in civic action.

“We need to take what Charlie built, and we need to have the courage that he did to make the arguments at our school board meetings, village board meetings, everywhere else, and tell people the truth,” she said. “Because otherwise we're not gonna win. So this is what we're doing.”

Ives also addressed the growing opposition to Chinese Communist Party-linked business activity in Illinois, highlighting a lawsuit filed by Concerned Citizens of Manteno against Gotion Inc., a Chinese battery manufacturer.

“These women, this small group, have already raised about $100,000 themselves through football squares, Easter egg bowls, and raffles,” Ives said. “They’re doing everything they can for their legal defense, not just against Gotion, but against the state of Illinois." 

Concerned Citizens of Manteno filed a lawsuit earlier this year challenging a rezoning decision that allowed Gotion to build a lithium-ion battery plant. The suit names the company and the Village of Manteno, citing concerns about hazardous chemicals and lack of transparency during the approval process.

The plant project has received $125 million in state taxpayer subsidies and could qualify for up to $8 billion in additional incentives, according to state documents. The plant’s construction cost is estimated at $2 billion.

“J.B. Pritzker cut Gotion a check for $125 million within four months of signing that agreement, using your tax money to buy hundreds of acres of farmland and expand their plant,” Ives said. “That is disgusting. You’re getting screwed. Everything in this state is a scam, and until you realize that, we’re going nowhere.”

She ended her remarks with a call to long-term civic engagement and a personal note.

“It’s a good versus evil battle,” Ives said. “It was also a really, really good week for me because I had my fifth grandchild born on Monday. I love my grandchildren. They’re my new reason to stay in the fight because I can’t leave this mess for them to clean up. In Illinois, we shouldn’t have to rely on other states or the federal government to fix this. We need to clean it up ourselves.”

Ives urged Illinoisans to reclaim what she said the state once was.

“When I moved here in 1992, this was a great state to do business, to live, and to raise a family,” she said. “We can no longer say that’s the case, but we can turn it around if we have the courage to do it.”