UPDATED: Rep. Amy Grant Won't Seek Re-Election
Rep. Amy Grant (R-Wheaton)
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Multiple sources say Rep. Amy Grant (R-Wheaton) one of the House GOP’s most perennially endangered incumbents won't seek re-election in 2026.
Grant did not return a phone call from The Illinoize, but we're told she has informed many of her colleagues of her plans.
She was elected in 2018 to the Wheaton-based district and has overcome hard charging Democrat challenges in the past three election cycles. After being vastly outspent in 2024, she won re-election by 292 votes.
No word yet on who Republicans hope to see the seat.
Democrats appear high on their candidate, Wheaton Village Trustee Erica Bray-Parker.
UPDATED (8/8 11:35 A.M.):
A statement from Grant:
If an elected official preparing to leave office says, "I've accomplished everything I came here to do", they've either fooling themselves or trying to fool others. There is always more work to do in public policy.
I am announcing my plans to leave at the completion of this, my 4th term. I do so with both a measure of satisfaction and many mixed emotions. Far from accomplishing everything I've hoped for and worked toward, there is much left undone, and our state has a lot of room for improvement. I've worked hard. I've worked with others on both sides of the aisle to advance the best interests of the people of the 47th District in particular, and the people of Illinois in general. The privilege and responsibility have been a source of joy and pride for my family and me.
Being in the minority in Springfield is tough. Serving in a super minority is even tougher, often seeming impossible during many long, draining session days. The silver lining being that you are forced to work harder, be more thoughtful and make more friends with colleagues on the other side. It also means staying motivated, no matter what. I've done that. We made some progress, often an inch at a time, but progress nonetheless. Uphill wasn't impossible, but made for very tough sledding.
After making so many decisions and choices for the residents of this district, who I'm grateful for electing me 6 times- first to the DuPage County Board twice, and then 4 more times to the Illinois General Assembly, this decision is even more consequential for me. I've always supported term limits, and thought often about what that time limit should be.
My husband and I, while very active, have achieved retirement age. Both of our adult children are recent newlyweds with plans to begin families of their own. That provides us a joyful chapter to look forward to. Personally, I'm at peace and even enthusiastic about what the next chapter holds for the entire Grant family. Conversely, I've loved being a public servant and having the opportunity to truly help people, changing many lives for the better. Having an efficient and effective district office was a key strength and my most important priority. We were able to impact the lives of the people in the 47th District in a positive way every single day. The problems were many, and the solutions we were able to provide were equal to the task. The District and I have been very blessed to have such dedicated and highly effective staff in the district office and the Capitol. They represent the best of what the state government can do to help people in their daily lives.
I won't miss the less gracious side of campaigns and government wrangling that often eluded any resemblance to the truth or decency. Literally millions of dollars were spent to misrepresent who I am and what I stand for by opponents in bad taste and bad faith. From petty to heinous, they spewed some terrible untruths. While our resources to combat this level of smear campaigning were modest at best- more than 10 to 1 was being spent against us- we won our races and immediately got back to the business of serving the people. That was the best part of the job. My greatest thanks go to the people of this district, who, while bombarded with mistruths and mean-spirited messages, chose to believe in the Amy Grant they've known for years as their neighbor. Their confidence in me gave me the strength and confidence to work even harder for them. I considered the relationship between my constituents and me to be a covenant. I did my very best for them every single day of my service.
At the end of my term in this General Assembly, I will step aside with a grateful heart for the privilege of serving this special community. I will continue to be active in public policy going forward. I'll discover appropriate places to continue to contribute to public policy. The privilege of serving is granted to very few. It has truly been my greatest honor to do so. Your trust and support have meant everything to me.
