Two candidates are seeking the Republican Party nomination in the 17th Congressional District in Illinois.
They are Julie Bickelhaupt, who is a farmer and small business owner, and Dillan Vancil, who owns a small business.
The winner will face Democratic Congressman Eric Sorensen in the November 2026 election.
Here is a bit of background about the Republican candidates, listed in alphabetical order:
Julie Bickelhaupt
Age as of March 17, 2026: 50
Occupation: Seventh-generation farmer and small business owner
Education: Attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and graduated from Eastern Illinois University
Community involvement: Carroll County Board Chairwoman, longtime agricultural advocate, and active supporter of local farm organizations, Community Center Steering Committee, Organizer for City and County Summer Ball Program for 9 years, Coached many sports teams through the years, and a regular volunteer for school and church.
Dillan Vancil
Age as of March 17, 2026: 33
Occupation: Self-Employed, Founder and CEO of Dame Fine Coffee
Education: West-Central High School
Community Involvement: Eagleview Community Health Board Member, Monmouth Chamber of Commerce Board member, West-Central School Board Member (Former Vice President)
TSPR asked the candidates the following questions. Their answers are listed below in alphabetical order.
Why are you running?
Bickelhaupt: I am running for Congress to fight for working families, farmers, and small businesses who feel like Washington has forgotten them. Our district feeds the nation, builds essential products, and powers our economy, yet families here continue to face rising costs, excessive regulations, and policies that favor big cities over rural communities. We have a Congressman who is more focused on his next tv interview than actually delivering for our district. I want to bring common-sense leadership to Washington that lowers costs, strengthens agriculture and manufacturing, and ensures our communities have a strong future.
Vancil: I’m running because our district deserves a better path forward for the next generation, and real relief for the working families and retirees who feel left behind here in Illinois. The fact is since the current representative has been in office, families in the 17th are paying higher energy bills, higher healthcare costs and farmers and small business owners have been forgotten. That is not representation. I’m not in this for a title, I’m going to Washington to work for you and get things done.
I’ll work to fix our broken healthcare system with more transparency in healthcare costs, so people can see a doctor without fearing the bill. I’ll work to lower taxes and make Illinois more affordable, instead of raising taxes like JB Pritzker has supported in Springfield. And I will always defend our constitutional freedoms. The First Amendment, the Second Amendment, and the rights that make this country strong and free have been under attack. These rights were promised to every American and I will ensure your rights are protected.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing the congressional district? How would you address that issue if elected to office?
Bickelhaupt: The biggest challenge facing our district is the rising cost of living combined with pressures on agriculture and manufacturing. Families are paying more for energy, groceries, healthcare, and housing while local employers struggle under heavy regulation and workforce shortages. In Congress, I will reduce regulatory burdens, promote domestic energy production to lower prices, and ensure trade and tax policies help our regional economy grow.
Vancil: The biggest challenge facing my district is affordability, and our energy crisis goes hand in hand with why everything costs more. When energy prices rise, it creates a domino effect that hits families at the gas pump, on their utility bills, and in the checkout line.
Eric Sorenson and the "Green New Scam" Democrats have driven up costs with their obsession over unreliable renewable energy, and working families are paying the price. We need to unleash American energy by firing up our clean coal plants, expanding natural gas, and investing in safe nuclear so we have reliable, affordable baseload power. We will never bring in more jobs or lower energy bills if we don’t have the energy in the first place; this is simple supply and demand. In Congress, I will work to reverse the policies that are driving up prices, open the door to real American energy production, and bring down the cost of living for families and seniors in this district.
What would you like to do to help small businesses succeed?
Bickelhaupt: I will work to simplify the tax code, reduce federal red tape, and ensure small businesses are not buried under costly mandates designed for large corporations. Small businesses create jobs in our communities, and federal policy should empower them, not hold them back.
Vancil: The first thing we need to do to help small businesses succeed is stop treating them like the federal government’s piggy bank. I do not support raising the payroll tax to ‘fix’ Social Security, because our local job creators should not be punished for Washington’s spending problem. Small businesses are already being squeezed by inflation, higher costs for supplies, energy, and health insurance, and more red tape from every direction.
Easing the burden starts with keeping small business taxes low and predictable, making the small business tax deduction permanent, blocking new payroll taxes on jobs, cutting back burdensome reporting and regulations, and lowering health care and energy costs so owners can raise wages, hire, and grow. Most of these policies are simply common sense. The businesses on Main Street should not be treated the same as the corporations on Wall Street. We need common sense legislation, and that starts with having a small business owner at the table such as myself when decisions are made in Washington. And let me be clear: this will not just help small businesses succeed, it will boost our local economies by creating more jobs, improving our downtowns, and infusing more money into our communities.
What can the federal government do to reduce costs for farmers?
Bickelhaupt: As a seventh-generation family farmer, this is an issue I am personally familiar with. Over the past few years, the costs for inputs into farming have grown significantly, cutting into our budgets and making it harder and harder to get by. Washington must reduce unnecessary regulations, expand reliable export markets, ensure fair trade, and support infrastructure investments that improve transportation and logistics. Lower input costs, predictable markets, and reliable infrastructure are essential to keeping family farms competitive.
Vancil: The federal government can reduce costs for farmers in two major ways. First, we need to break up the monopolies in the fertilizer and chemical industry and open these markets to real competition so farmers get fair prices instead of being squeezed by a handful of giant companies. Second, we must stop playing games with short-term extensions and finally pass a real farm bill that gives America’s farmers the stability, risk protection, and tools they need to plan, invest, and keep feeding this country.
What do you think of the tariffs the Trump administration imposed on China and other major trading partners?
Bickelhaupt: China has engaged in unfair trade practices for decades, and stronger enforcement was necessary to protect American manufacturing and agriculture. At the same time, trade policy should be structured so farmers have reliable export access and are not forced to depend on emergency relief payments. Strong enforcement combined with expanded markets is the right long-term strategy.
Vancil: China has taken advantage of the American economy for far too long by weaponizing manufacturing and hollowing out our industrial base. Targeted tariffs have been an important bargaining tool to bring them to the table and start rebalancing that relationship.
As a businessman, I’m proud that tariffs have helped drive more than 18 trillion dollars of new investment into America in just the last 11 months. Has the approach been perfect? Absolutely not. Are Americans benefiting from stronger leverage, more onshoring, and better deals? Overwhelmingly yes.
A good example is the TrumpRX initiative, which uses a Most‑Favored‑Nation model to push prescription drug prices toward the lowest levels in the developed world. By threatening tariffs and using MFN pricing as leverage, the administration has secured deals with major drug companies that lower costs for American patients and Medicaid programs on many of the most expensive medicines. This is a 99–1 issue: Republicans and Democrats have talked about cutting drug prices for years, but using tough trade tools to negotiate lower prices is finally delivering real progress for American families.
What could the federal government do to make higher education more affordable?
Bickelhaupt: Congress should promote workforce training, apprenticeships, and community-college partnerships that lead directly to careers, while improving transparency in college pricing and holding institutions accountable for tuition inflation. Students should graduate with opportunities, not overwhelming debt.
Vancil: Our higher education system is broken. Too many young Americans are going to college and ending up with an insurmountable pile of debt by the time they turn 21 without a job waiting for them on the other side. One way we can compete with this is to supercharge alternatives to the four‑year track by expanding support for skills programs, apprenticeships, and online or competency‑based options, so colleges have to compete on value instead of assuming everyone needs the same expensive degree.
What are your views on federal immigration enforcement tactics, and what changes, if any, do you think should Congress consider?
Bickelhaupt: The federal government must secure the border, enforce existing immigration laws, and ensure immigration policy prioritizes public safety and economic stability. Congress should strengthen border security resources, close enforcement loopholes, and deport violent illegal immigrant criminals, and crack down on drug dealers and human smugglers.
Vancil: I share the view of the majority of Americans who agree that strong federal immigration enforcement is necessary. Our federal tactics should be firm, lawful, and focused on public safety. Has the process been perfect? Absolutely not. Ask any law enforcement officer and they will tell you these are difficult, often life‑or‑death situations that have to be decided in seconds.
I have confidence in leaders like Tom Homan, who has nearly 40 years of immigration and law‑enforcement experience and has served under both Republican and Democrat presidents, to carry out these policies the right way. With that kind of experience at the helm, I do not believe we need to handcuff our officers with new restrictions from Congress. Instead, we should allow them to enforce the law as written.
The Laken Riley Act is a good example of the right approach. It directs federal authorities to remove illegal aliens who have been convicted of crimes, and that is exactly what our immigration enforcement system should be doing: prioritizing the removal of criminals who pose a threat to our communities. In my view, Congress does not need to weaken or second‑guess that mission; it needs to stand behind it.
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