The Illinois Republican Party remained mostly silent during the April 4th election cycle, with the exception of two social media posts encouraging people to vote – but behind the scenes, the IL GOP general counsel and top advisor to chairman Don Tracy was working as a paid legal advisor to an anti-grassroots slate of candidates, and approving mailers with the IL GOP postage discount – despite Tracy’s comments that the state party wasn’t going to get involved in the election, in another dig aimed directly at the conservative base of the party.

Tracy and the IL GOP despise the grassroots – and they’ve spent the last year proving it.

During the 2022 primary, senior IL GOP officials backed the anti-grassroots gubernatorial candidate Richard Irvin, who in previous elections, pulled Democratic Primary ballots in 2014, 2016 and 2020.

During the General Election, the IL GOP deliberately ignored the grassroots-preferred candidates for governor and attorney general, and even left them off of social media posts, with the exception of congratulating them on their primary victories.

At the Republican State Central Committee meeting in December, the IL GOP sent a very clear message to the over 200-plus grassroots activists in attendance that, “only rich, donor voices matter.”

And earlier this month, Tracy secretly created an Endorsement Policy Committee, which Tracy will chair – paving the way for the chairman and the state party to officially endorse their preferred candidates in primary elections, in an apparent dig at the grassroots-base of the party.

In January, Tracy floated this idea during an interview with Bishop on Air, and blamed the top of the ticket for the midterm election losses this past November – saying that the IL GOP needs to re-evaluate their primary election neutrality policy moving forward.

In other words, Tracy wants to prevent conservative grassroots candidates from winning primary elections in the future – and he’s going to ensure that by creating this committee and adopting policies that make it harder for conservatives to win races in Illinois.

But Illinois Review has recently learned that IL GOP general counsel John Fogarty, who is still paid by the state party – and continues to serve as a top aide to Tracy, was advising a slate of anti-grassroots candidates in Will County during the April 4th election cycle called Integrity for Homer Glen.

And some of the candidates on Integrity for Homer Glen were identified as Democrats, including Homer Glen Village Clerk candidate Candice Bielski, who according to records, is listed as a “soft Democrat.”

Fogarty is also one of the officials in charge of the IL GOP postage discount usage, and so it’s no surprise that Integrity for Homer Glen sent out 13 mailers targeting Homer Forward – the slate representing the conservative grassroots base of the party.

Last winter, when officials associated with Homer Forward inquired about usage of the IL GOP postage discount, IL GOP officials denied their request, stating that the postage discount was temporarily “suspended.”

But that was a lie – the IL GOP postage discount was already in use, and it was being used against their slate.

Usage of the postage discount is for official IL GOP use only. But hiring Fogarty, as Neitzke-Troike and Integrity for Homer Glen did, almost guarantees your ability to use it – even if, improperly.

In the correct example, Permit No. 64, which is associated with the IL GOP, and used in the General Election, lists the return address as,

Paid for by the Illinois Republican Party
PO Box 78
Springfield, IL 62705

But Fogarty and Integrity for Homer Glen – his client, in one example, use the IL GOP Permit No. 64, but they list the return address as,

Paid for by Citizens to Elect Christina Neitzke-Troike
13256 W Hiawatha Dr
Homer Glen, IL 60491

In another example, Fogarty uses the IL GOP Permit No. 64 – in an attack mailer leveled against conservative grassroots candidate Rose Reynders, and a member of the Homer Forward slate, but this time, they list a return address for an organization that doesn’t exist, and whose address is an empty lot.

Committee for Leadership & Fiscal Responsibility
380 E Joe Orr Rd
Chicago Heights, IL 60411

Three examples with the same postage permit number, but three different return addresses. And only one is correct, and that’s the mailer paid for by the Illinois Republican Party – proving yet again, more examples of improper usage of the IL GOP postage discount.

This also proves that the IL GOP is meddling in city and township races – putting their thumb on the scale to tip it in favor of their preferred candidates and slates – slates who oppose the grassroots base of the Republican party.

And who paid for the postage of these mailers? The Illinois State Board of Elections website indicates that on March 27, 2023, Ozinga for Illinois made a $25,000 transfer to the IL GOP account.

Ozinga is the chair of the Will County GOP and a state central committeeman who voted on Saturday that he had confidence in Tracy’s leadership – and it’s no secret that he was aligned with the Integrity for Homer Glen slate.

It’s also no secret that Don Tracy and the IL GOP despise the grassroots, and sadly, this is just one of many examples. And until Tracy is removed as chairman, this type of improper behavior will only continue.

And Illinois Republicans – especially the grassroots, will continue to lose, too. And that’s unacceptable.

As the deciding votes that saved embattled Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy’s job on Saturday, IL GOP Grassroots Committee co-chairs Larry Smith and Rhonda Belford have come under fire from the grassroots – with many calling for their resignations as chairs, as Smith and Belford spent the weekend lashing out on social media and making phone calls to defend Tracy and their decision to keep him as party chairman.

“Don Tracy supports grassroots conservatives more than anyone,” was a message that Smith repeated, as he spoke with Illinois conservatives over the weekend who expressed their outrage that the co-chairs of the grassroots committee – Smith and Belford – would support a party chairman who views the conservative grassroots base of the party as “steerage,” or third-class citizens. Click to Read More.

The following resignation letter was given exclusively to Illinois Review by Rob Cruz, a member of the IL GOP Grassroots Committee. The committee is co-chaired by Larry Smith and Rhonda Belford.

IL GOP officials are in receipt of this letter. Click to Read More.