Democrat aiming to challenge Kinzinger

The Democrat said she is unhappy with the leadership of U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Manteno, who unseated Rep. Don Manzullo, R-Egan, in the April Republican primary. The newly redrawn 16th District now includes all of Lee County.

“Nine years ago, when I became a paraplegic, I ended up in the social safety net,” Rohl said. “Prior to that, I had a full-time job and a part-time job, I had private health insurance, I had just gotten engaged to be married, and all of a sudden my life changed.

“Had it not been for those programs, my family would have been homeless, and I most likely would have been dead.”

Before her name can be included on the ballot, Rohl must get the nod from a simple majority of Democratic county chairmen in the district’s 14 counties. The simple majority is based on voting populations.

She says she so far has received support from Ogle, Lee, Winnebago, LaSalle, Bureau, Grundy and DeKalb counties.

She also needs petitions bearing the signatures of 650 voters before she can officially launch a congressional campaign. The Democrats, who did not have a candidate run in the primary, have until June 4 to caucus in a candidate.

Kinzinger spokeswoman Brook Hougesen declined to comment on Rohl’s potential candidacy.

Rohl, 41, is a licensed social worker and a certified substance abuse counselor. Born in Mendota, she has lived in LaSalle County her entire life. She works for Passages Hospice. From its office in Rockford, she travels around the area visiting patients.

Rohl said federal programs helped her obtain a master’s degree and employment as a licensed social worker. She used federal Pell Grants, which are given based on income, and scholarships to help pay for her education.

“That kind of woke me up to our local politics of what our government, our representative, was and was not doing,” she said. “He’s voted very party line. Very much the only thing that he cares about is the deficit, and the deficit is important, but not at the expense of everything else.”