I have lived in McLean County my entire life, and I consider it home. Our elected state representative is Keith P. Sommer, and our senator is Dan Rutherford. Bother are Republicans in a list that contains many Democrats - McLean County is very conservative. To learn more about them, I looked up their positions on some key issues. Keith Sommer has served as our representative since 1999. He is involved in committees concerned with healthcare, adoption reform, veterans' affairs, international trade and commerce, and transportation regulation. He does not believe in requiring licenses for gun ownership, does not support gay marriage, and believes in abstinence-only sex education and capital punishment.

Dan Rutherford served in the House from 1993 to 2003, then moved to the Senate. He is on the committees for financial institutions and Environment & Energy. In 2006, he ran for Secretary of State against Jesse White and lost. He supports state funding to raise teachers' salaries, the inclusion of sexual orientation in Illinois' anti-discrimination laws, the death penalty, and the legalization of concealed guns. He does not support the banning of racial profiling by police, abstinence-only sex education, or the recognition of civil unions between same-sex couples.