Elgin city council candidates discuss immigration at forum
By Harry Hitzeman | Daily Herald Staff
Published: 3/3/2009 12:07 AM

Illegal immigration took center stage at an Elgin City Council candidate forum Monday night, but like the last Association for Legal Americans debate, discussion remained civil.

Ten people are running for three, 4-year city council terms this spring.

Incumbents Robert Gilliam, Juan Figueroa and John Walters hope to win re-election; challengers Richard Dunne, Brenda Harris Khan, Shane Nowak, John Prigge, Linda Quezada, Lenora Scruggs and Bruce Trego hope to unseat them.

Trego was the only candidate who answered a flat out "no" to a question asking whether candidates would support a measure requiring all companies that have contracts with the city to allow the city staff to do a monthly audits to see if their workers have been OK'd as legal citizens through the E-verify program.

"This isn't Germany 1939 - it's America 2009. It's extremely divisive for our community," he said.

Walters questioned who on the city staff would do this job. Other candidates seemed to support it, but with differing degrees of gusto.

"It's proactive. It's an indication to everyone that Elgin is serious," said Prigge, who has been endorsed by AFLA.

Gilliam did not attend the forum because he was ill.

Monday's questions, many of them yes or now, were more pointed than a forum held last month.

One question posed was: "When a council member is sworn into office, he takes an oath to uphold the laws. Illegals are breaking the law by being here. Do you believe that anyone who supports or defends illegal immigration should sit on the city council?"

Incumbents Figueroa and Walters said yes, along with challenger Trego.

Everyone else said no.

Figueroa was the only candidate who responded yes to the question of whether he or she has accepted campaign contributions from unions that represent city workers.

Also on April 7, voters will decide who will fill the remaining two-years on a council seat vacated when Mike Powers resigned last year. The candidates are: Emi Morales, Mike Robins, Brenda Rodgers and Mike Warren.

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