Peoria Standard

Former Dixon Mayor Li Arellano Jr. emerged victorious in the Republican primary for the 37th Illinois Senate District, securing the nomination to succeed Republican Sen. Win Stoller (Germantown Hills).

Arellano, expressing his eagerness to enact financial and ethical reforms at the state level, highlighted his commitment to addressing crucial issues facing the district.

“I'm just excited to get to work for the district and to try to work on some reforms down at the state level. I think we're in desperate need of both financial and ethical reforms. And I'm passionate about both of those,” Arellano told NW IL News.  

With no Democratic opponent currently in the running for November's general election, Arellano is set to focus on meeting constituents and local leaders.

“We'll watch and see if they try to pull something together. But they didn't have anyone petition and they didn't have anyone running the primary. So as of right now, there is no opposition in November,“ Arellano said.  

“I'm already going to get to work in the district, meeting folks and setting up meetings with, you know, some of the mayors and other folks, that I haven't had a chance yet to me, in the primary. But now it's looking good."

“I think that the big issues are finance reforms and ethical reforms. And then, seeing what we can do about, getting that fixed up.”

Arellano Jr.'s win was declared with 82% of precincts reporting, having obtained approximately 52% of the total vote. His closest competitors, Tim Yager of Geneseo and Chris Bishop of Dixon, trailed behind with 31% and 17% of the votes, respectively.

Arellano, known for his previous two-term tenure as Mayor of Dixon, ran on a platform centered on restoring integrity to the city following the $54 million fraud and embezzlement scandal involving former treasurer Rita Crundwell.

Besides his political endeavors, Arellano is a small business owner, managing two Jimmy John’s franchises, a frozen yogurt shop called the Frosted Spoon, and a commercial property leasing company.

The 37th State Senate District includes Lee, Bureau, Henry, DeKalb, Ogle, Rock Island, Whiteside, Stark, Peoria, Woodford and Marshall counties.