SCHAUMBURG – On the run-up to Illinois’ March 17, 2026, gubernatorial primary, all four Republican candidates took time to talk manufacturing with the Technology & Manufacturing Association (TMA) about manufacturing.
Candidates Darren Bailey, Ted Dabrowski, Rick Heidner, and James Mendrick each expressed appreciation for small- and midsize manufacturing and shared their concerns about issues TMA members are facing, including energy costs, rising tax demands, and workforce challenges, among other topics.
Rick Heidner
The first candidate interviewed was businessman and real estate investor Rick Heidner, who said he shared the concerns and frustrations small and midsize manufacturers experience.
Heidner told the TMA audience that he and his brother were raised in humble conditions by a hard-working single mom. He started working at age eight and hasn’t stopped since. He grew a business with video gaming machines at convenience stores, later grew a grocery store chain, and today oversees four major businesses, employing 800 people across 280 buildings in a dozen states.
His reason for running stems from his concern for the innocent, hard-working people in Illinois who are being burdened more and more each day with higher taxes and more regulations.
“Where did they ever say, ‘We’re going to make money for Illinois? Where?” he said, voicing frustration. ‘Where are they ever saying, ‘You can generate all the money in the world, just do more business? They’re so foolish. All they know how to do is charge us more money. ‘Take, take, take.’ Never do you hear ‘Make, make, make.’ And that’s what I want to do.
“I want to take the state and make it into a Florida, a Texas, and everywhere else,” he said. “It’s ridiculous what they’ve done to our beautiful, beautiful state.”
James Mendrick
DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick spoke with TMA on February 18. Sheriff Mendrick has worked in law enforcement for three decades and is currently the sheriff of the state’s second-largest county, where he supervises over 800 people and oversees an $80M budget. He adamantly believes that Illinois needs new leadership that understands how public policy directly affects its citizens.
“We need predictable tax policy, affordable and reliable energy. We need safe communities because if crime is running rampant, it is hard to have businesses. We need a regulatory environment that protects quality and safety without stifling growth,” Sheriff Mendrick told TMA members.
When asked whether he would encourage skills training in Illinois, he enthusiastically agreed.
“The workforce is changing rapidly. Artificial intelligence is replacing many traditional desk and administrative jobs. Our education system must prepare students for careers that will still exist and grow. Skilled trades, advanced manufacturing, maintenance, logistics, technical operations – they all require hands-on expertise. Illinois should expand career and technical education pathways that connect high schools directly with manufacturers,” Mendrick said.
Darren Bailey
The third Republican hopeful, former state Senator Darren Bailey, answered TMA questions on February 19. Bailey is a farmer and the owner of a small trucking and excavating business in Louisville, Illinois, 100 miles east of St. Louis. A former state representative and state senator, Bailey won the 2022 IL GOP gubernatorial primary but lost to incumbent Democrat Gov. J. B. Pritzker by 12 points that fall.
“We’ve heard from many manufacturing facilities, and they’re having a hard time finding people to work in their businesses. As farmers, we employ 15 men and women, so we understand. We manufacture food, and we know the high cost of doing business and the heavy burden of regulations. None of it makes sense,” Bailey said.
“It burdened my heart as I sat in Springfield and listened to JB [Pritzker] in his State of the State Address say that everything’s fine, everything’s great. The budget is going to grow just a little bit, but we just need to hang in there because it’s going to get better,” Bailey said. “Well, we know it’s not.”
When asked about foreign entities receiving financial incentives to locate in Illinois, Bailey expressed concern about the Gotion plant in Manteno and its ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
“If we’re going to be an America-First government, we’re going to be an Illinois-First government. Why aren’t we making and manufacturing these items right here in the US? We just don’t know the details of the deal Governor Pritzker made. Why on earth would we allow a Chinese company to come in here and make batteries for us? If we’re going that route, let’s figure out a way to make them ourselves,” Bailey said.
“Gotion is an actual government-owned entity. Something’s very wrong with that. So, Illinois first, always, and you know, if the people of a community definitely don’t want something in their area, it should be game over,” he said.
Ted Dabrowski
Businessman Ted Dabrowski answered TMA’s questions on his way to a press conference on February 26.
Dabrowski’s father immigrated from Poland, and his mother from Ecuador. His father was a mechanical engineer for M&M Mars, where he oversaw the machines that roasted peanuts.
After attending Wharton Business School, Citibank sent Mr. Dabrowski to Mexico for 6 years, then to Poland for 9 years. He learned firsthand the financial issues of recovering countries while dealing with major industries. He then returned to Chicago, where his concern about what had happened during his years out of America led him to focus on the effects of negative public policy.
“While researching, one of those problems I exposed was the collapse of manufacturing. We’ve gone from 900,000 manufacturing jobs in 2000 to 600,000 today. We lost one-third of our manufacturing jobs,” he said while talking to TMA members.
“If you look at our Illinois state budget, the vice industry is becoming the big thing. The mob economy is what’s growing — gambling, marijuana, all that stuff. No, we need to get back to the core businesses. That’s how you build a real America, and that’s with manufacturing and some of the bigger companies. So, my ambition is to do that in Illinois.”
When asked about his thoughts on encouraging talent to enter the manufacturing industry, Dabrowski said, “As I’ve traveled the state, one of the biggest issues when you talk to people in these businesses – they can’t find talent. We should obsess about creating this talent. Obsessed!”
TMA asked if a manufacturing emphasis would be incorporated in a Dabrowski administration, and he answered, “My thought is – absolutely. I think if we don’t, if we don’t focus on it, it won’t happen.”
The full interviews with each of the four GOP gubernatorial candidates are available below at TMANews.com.
JB Pritzker did not face an opponent in the 2026 Democratic Primary. He will be invited to address TMA members in the lead-up to the November 2026 General Election.