Randy Auxier
Randy Auxier (Green Party) ran for election to the Illinois House of Representatives to represent District 115. He lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.
Auxier completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Randy Auxier was born in Leitchfield, Kentucky. He earned a master's degree from the University of Memphis in 1988. He earned a Ph.D. from Emory University in 1992. Auxier's career experience includes working as a professor with Southern Illinois University, Carbondale from 1992 to 2020, as a radio host with WDBX Carbondale, as an author, and as a co-founder and co-director with the American Institute for Philosophical and Cultural Thought.[1][2] Auxier's career experience also includes working as a teacher with Oklahoma City University from 1992 to 2000 and with a public high school in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.[3]
Elections
2020
See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Illinois House of Representatives District 115
Paul Jacobs defeated Randy Auxier and Ian Peak in the general election for Illinois House of Representatives District 115 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Paul Jacobs (R) | 77.7 | 34,331 |
 | Randy Auxier (G)  | 14.1 | 6,216 | |
 | Ian Peak (L) | 8.3 | 3,655 | |
| Total votes: 44,202 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 115
Paul Jacobs defeated John Howard, Clifford Lindemann, Zachary Meyer, and Johnnie Ray Smith II in the Republican primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 115 on March 17, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Paul Jacobs | 33.5 | 3,289 |
 | John Howard | 28.8 | 2,826 | |
 | Clifford Lindemann | 16.0 | 1,573 | |
 | Zachary Meyer | 11.7 | 1,147 | |
 | Johnnie Ray Smith II | 10.1 | 992 | |
| Total votes: 9,827 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Will Stephens (R)
2018
General election
General election for U.S. House Illinois District 12
Incumbent Mike Bost defeated Brendan Kelly and Randy Auxier in the general election for U.S. House Illinois District 12 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Mike Bost (R) | 51.6 | 134,884 |
 | Brendan Kelly (D) | 45.4 | 118,724 | |
| Randy Auxier (G) | 3.0 | 7,935 | |
| Total votes: 261,543 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 12
Brendan Kelly defeated David Bequette in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 12 on March 20, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Brendan Kelly | 81.0 | 40,555 |
 | David Bequette | 19.0 | 9,526 | |
| Total votes: 50,081 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Charles Koen (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 12
Incumbent Mike Bost defeated Preston Nelson in the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 12 on March 20, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Mike Bost | 83.5 | 31,658 |
 | Preston Nelson | 16.5 | 6,258 | |
| Total votes: 37,916 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Green primary election
Green primary for U.S. House Illinois District 12
Randy Auxier advanced from the Green primary for U.S. House Illinois District 12 on March 20, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Randy Auxier | 100.0 | 131 |
| Total votes: 131 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Randy Auxier completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Auxier's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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Auxier is a professor of philosophy and communication studies at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. He is also a radio host for WDBX Carbondale, an author, and co-founder and co-director of the AIPCT (The American Institute for Philosophical and Cultural Thought), and was a candidate for US Congress in 2018. He is a lifelong United Methodist, and an active member of the IEA/NEA and has served as a negotiator for his SIU Faculty Association twice (2006, 2010). He has worked in many local environmental causes over the years, and is a performing musician and songwriter.
- Economic development, sustainable and forward looking; infrastructure, physical and technological.
- Improved affordable healthcare, especially for families.
- Improved education.
I am especially passionate about mass transportation that begets economic growth and leads to sustainable economic development. I am convinced that using the rail lines we already have in our region could make all the difference to our future. Such a sustem could revitalize education in our reason and lead to active investment from beyond our region.
I think our taxes are too high and that our current government is inefficient and does not grasp that taxpayers have a right to good government in exchange for their taxes. I support the fair tax amendment, but more than that, the wealthy have npt been bearing their fair share of the expense of running the state.
Martin Luther King, Jr., because of his courage, principles, and philosophy. I know he was not a perfect person, but I think his great contribution to our country far outweighs his personal flaws. I also hold Gandhi in very high esteem, and for similar reasons. I want to be as brave as these men were. I also want to see the future as they did.
I recommend my own writings, which are extensive. A place to begin is the "Extreme Virtue" section of my blob.
http://radicallyempirical.com/author/randall-auxier/
I am a professional philosopher, so it's like asking an automotive engineer how a car works. Most of what I have to say is (and must be) pretty thoroughly explained and connected to the history of political ideas to be understood, fairly. That said, the terms I use to describe myself are "localist communitarian progressive conservative." I believe meaningful change is usually slow, usually local, and that what happens to the "least of us" happens to all of us. We can do far better by way of both efficiency and honesty in governance by emphasizing the right sorts of relations that already exist among us. The wrong sort of relations are brought out by self-interest, greed, dishonesty, fear, lying, and by refusing to know our real neighbors. The right sorts of relations are brought out by the opposite of each of those. I solve every problem I encounter every day non-violently, and I believe all problems can be solved that way. We are not brave enough to do that, but we could be. I believe that in general, men never make good decisions without consulting and listening to women, and a smart man generally follows what good and honest women advise. On the other hand, it seems to me that women can usually make good decisions without consulting men. That makes me a feminist, as far as I am concerned. But it looks like common sense to me. I value honesty above every other virtue, and hard work is a close second. In short, I would prefer an honest lazy person to a dishonest one who works hard. I value the earth as the source of all things good. Yet, I am also a Christian and take that commitment seriously. The relationship between God and the earth is creator to creation. I see no contradiction in recognizing that all blessing come by means of the earth. I like the United States and my home state, in spite of the problems. I never expected life to be easy.
Honesty, a quick learner, a good communicator, maturity, a good listener, an open mind.
Honesty, open communication, transparency, hard work, and avoiding any and all self-interest. I think office-holders serve for a time and must leave matters better than they found them. One needs to serve all of the people one represents, not just those who voted for or agree with the office holder.
I'd like to get a commuter train for my region.
I remember John F. Kennedy's funeral. We went to a neighbor's house to watch it on a color television set. I was just over two years old. Martin Luther King, Jr., was killed just a few miles from where I lived (in Memphis) when I was six and a half, and the moon landing when I was almost nine all made huge impressions. Court-ordered school busing began halfway through my sixth grade year and changed my life, very much for the better.
I worked scooping cones at Baskin Robbins ice cream parlor in Memphis. I did that for about a year I guess. I was 14. In subsequent years I did the standard things kids do: fast food (Steak and Shake, Pancho's Taco), retail (The Treasury -which is JC Penney), and work study and student employment at my undergraduate and graduate institutions (Memphis State University and Emory University). I also worked for two florists in Memphis and played music in clubs, at picnics and festivals, and at Moose Lodges, etc., beginning when I was 14 and reaching to the present.
I think Ralph Waldo Emerson's Nature. No matter how many times I read it, I learn something new and have new thoughts.
I have always wanted to be Huckleberry Finn.
REO Speedwagon Keep on Loving You.
Trying to get used to the fact that not everyone is going to like me.
Obviously senators cover a larger population base and are thus encouraged to thing in broader and more long-term ways (ideally -it doesn't always work). Representatives are more directly answerable to a smaller number of people and must face those people every two years. This encourages energy in the House, more flexible and rapid response to problems, and a more personal relationship with constituents. Everyone in a House district should have easy access to the State Representative and should be able to feel that this is someone they all know. Such is not realistic for a State Senator.
Actually it may be beneficial for them to have a mix of inexperience and experienced people at any given time. Inexperienced people are more likely to have new ideas, and since they have not yet been told that "it can't be done," they are the ones who will likely have the energy to take on big issues. Experienced legislators understand the nuts and bolts of legislation, what it takes to get the votes to pass something, and what lines of cooperation are most likely to work on any given topic. It would be a disaster to have all of one type or the other, but it isn't likely to happen. My district will get someone new this time around no matter what. There is no incumbent running, and no one running has prior experience in office.
Tax reform and that made worse the financial crisis die to COVID 19. We also have a health crisis and it has made us aware of the inadequacies of our current healthcare system. Education is being profoundly affected by these issues above and it seems to me like a good opportunity to re-think our education and healthcare institutions around an improved financial structure. Technological infrastructure is clearly a key to all of the needed reforms.
Cooperation is crucial. We learned under the last governor that having a standoff does not serve anyone. It is important for the governor, and the whole executive branch, to respect to legislature, and vice-versa. Honesty has been in short supply, as has frankness, for quite some time.
Obviously it is crucial to cooperate with other legislators. I think that will be easy for me, since I do not have to answer to a rigid party hierarchy. I expect that both of the large parties would welcome my support where we agree, and might see me as a potential ambassador and go between when there are problems. I think I could work with the representatives and senators in our region to get serious legislation considered that serves the whole region.
I agree with the commission protocol. It would be nice to see something less political, even non=partisan. I would like to see the districts make sense, in terms of combining people who genuinely live as neighbors and share those natural interests.
I need to be involved in committees dealing with education, transportation, natural resources, energy, and transportation.
As a Green Party member, if I am elected, I will probably BE my party's leadership in the legislature. There might be as many as two to four others elected in this cycle. We will certainly find leadership among ourselves.
I admired John McCain's independence. I voted for Lamar Alexander numerous times when I was a resident of Tennessee. His reasonableness always impresses me. I believe Tammy Duckworth has done very well so far. I like Bernie Sanders' pluck. I liked Cynthia McKinney's courage when I lived in Georgia, and I still do. But I don't think I would be try to model myself after any of these very decent people. I know who I am and how to be me, and I think that would work. I am honest, candid, and I work hard. I'm smart enough to learn anything I need to learn, and I certainly know how to think for myself. I can follow my own pattern and be successful.
Not really. I want to build my party, as an alternative to the others, and will do with my future energies whatever contributes to that goal. If it looks like I need to run again, for something else, I probably will.
"Impactful" is not a word I would ever use. I'm not sure it is a word. How about "important"? I have been a teacher for over three decades. Sorry. Get a better word.
But as a teacher, I think most of my stories (and I don't like to tell stories, I prefer to discuss ideas and issues), have to do with what I have seen students grow into and go on to accomplish. Many of my former students are successful and have become leaders in their communities. I hear from them often and am proud of what they have done. I regard myself as lucky to have had such people to teach in their formative years, and as friends in their active adult years. I am not going to brag on them individually, and, on the other side, I am not going to pretend to know people I really only met a few times who perhaps told me the kind of story we see in political commercials. I don't think that helps you know me or the people who told me their stories. It's easy to be impressed or affected by a story; it is harder to be a part of one that is unfolding. I believe listening to people is important, and a part of listening is not repeating their circumstances for my own gain or posturing. Yet, I have learned a lot from listening to people around this region when I ran for office before. My eyes were really opened by that experience.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2018
Ballotpedia survey responses
- See also: Ballotpedia's candidate surveys
Randy Auxier participated in Ballotpedia's candidate survey on February 28, 2018. The survey questions appear in bold, and Randy Auxier's responses follow below.[4]
What would be your top three priorities, if elected?
| “ | 1) green energy |
” |
What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about? Why?
| “ | I am especially interested in economic development that is sustainable given the inevitable decline in fossil fuelsCite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many[6]
|
” |
Ballotpedia also asked the candidate a series of optional questions. Randy Auxier answered the following:
Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?
| “ | Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Bernie Sanders[6] | ” |
| “ | I suggest my own writings, especially my blog on: http://radicallyempirical.com/author/randall-auxier/[6] | ” |
| “ | a deep seated sense of justice and fairness, egalitarianism, conservationism, economic democracy[6] | ” |
| “ | I am uncompromising about justice and fairness, I am creative in problem solving, I am not self-interested, no one owns me, I am brave, and I am a good listener[6] | ” |
| “ | transparency, fair-mindedness, courage, a grasp of the relation between local/regional benefits and service to a wider humanity[6] | ” |
| “ | People could never say, with any truth, that I was ever self-serving or a hypocrite of any kind in my public service, and that honesty was my most unalterable commitment[6] | ” |
| “ | The assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., in my hometown, when I was in first grade.[6] | ” |
| “ | Baskin Robbins Ice Cream Parlor, when I was 14 (this was among the only places one could work prior to age 16). I was there for a year.[6] | ” |
| “ | C'mon. We all know how an awkward date goes. Mine was a double date with Robin Clemons at 15 and I liked her but she didn't like me . . . I think. It was a haunted house, as I recall. I should try to find her now. . . . most of my (very few) dates went better.[6] | ” |
| “ | Groundhog Day. It's the best way to blow off steam in a long winter.[6] | ” |
| “ | Seriously? Alfred North Whitehead, Process and Reality, if you must know. See my writings on it . . .[6] | ” |
| “ | Lyra in Phillip Pullman's trilogy "His Dark Materials."[6] | ” |
| “ | Books. All 30,000 of them. Because I have a book problem. I also like the art on all sides of them.[6] | ” |
| “ | Cheap Trick's "Surrender," if you must know. I was trying to work out whether the third verse makes sense. My verdict: "no."[6] | ” |
| “ | Trying to be more sensitive to how other people experience me.[6] | ” |
| “ | This is an empirical question. I'll let you know if I ever get there.[6] | ” |
| “ | Not necessarily.[6] | ” |
| “ | To become aware of the true responsibilities that accompany great wealth and privilege. To become unafraid.[6] | ” |
| “ | I belong in education and transportation, the first because I know it, and the second because I have a vision for it.[6] | ” |
| “ | N/A[6] | ” |
| “ | Sure.[6] | ” |
| “ | I favor them. I would say 8 years max in the House. Three terms max in the Senate.[6] | ” |
| “ | This is difficult. I like the idea that states control their own processes, but I think it makes sense to have minimum standards of geographical coherence for what gets called a "district."[6] | ” |
| “ | Not really interested at this point. I do not care for the duopoly, as we Greens call it. The two-party system is broken. It really was always inferior to the multi-party alternatives.[6] | ” |
| “ | I have always admired Thaddeus Stevens. I also have a strange respect for Timothy Pickering.[6] | ” |
| “ | I have been impressed by the struggles and successes of Rich Whitney.[6] | ” |
Campaign website
Auxier’s campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
I want you to know what I think, but I also want to make it clear that I listen. Nothing here is set in stone or is beyond influencing. My basic values are settled at this point in my life, and they are well expressed in the ten key values of the Green party. But no one knows everything and no one can afford to act as if he/she has nothing further to learn. These statements represent my current best understanding of the issues I am addressing, but I fully expect to revise the specifics and even some general ideas as I learn more, from you and by dint of further study. I do not believe my opponents are as dedicated to detailed learning and I do not believe they want you to know the details of their thinking as I do. You decide. I am not personally the author of every piece published here, although I am the primary author of most. But we see this campaign as a group effort of a lot of people and incorporating each other's ideas is an important part of that. Thus, all of my pieces have been thoroughly edited by the group, and primary authorship of various pieces belongs to others including Sabrina Hardenbergh, Joshua Hellmann, and Kyle Rowbotham. The editing group also includes Rich Whitney, Lee Hartmann, and Vito Mastrangelo. I support the platform of the Green Party of the United States. Like all party members, I may disagree with specific statements in the platform, but it is a good guide for where I stand on the issues.
|
” |
| —Randy Auxier's 2018 campaign website[7] | ||
See also
2020 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Email submission to Ballotpedia, March 30, 2018
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on August 23, 2020
- ↑ Ballotpedia staff, "Email communication with the Randy Auxier campaign," September 5, 2020
- ↑ Note: The candidate's answers have been reproduced here verbatim without edits or corrections by Ballotpedia.
- ↑ Ballotpedia's candidate survey, "Randy Auxier's responses," February 28, 2018
- ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 6.17 6.18 6.19 6.20 6.21 6.22 6.23 6.24 6.25 6.26 6.27 6.28 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Randy Auxier's 2018 campaign website, "Positions," accessed October 15, 2018
