FILE – Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker listens to a question after announcing a shelter in place order to combat the spread of the Covid-19 virus, during a news conference Friday, March 20, 2020, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — An Illinois Republican state representative has announced plans to seek the recall of the Illinois governor because of woes in the state’s unemployment office.
An influx of jobless claims prompted by the closing of nonessential businesses because of the spread of the coronavirus has overwhelmed the Illinois Department of Employment Security.
Rep. Allen Skillicorn of East Dundee says Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker has had ample time to the agency’s website, asserting “the incompetence cannot continue.” Skillicorn on Tuesday denied the effort to recall Pritzker was a partisan one.
Pritzker on Tuesday blames Skillicorn and fellow Republicans for a two-year state budget impasse under GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner, saying it left the department without the necessary funding.