MURPHYSBORO - The passionate, energetic State Rep Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro) that got so upset with House Speaker Mike Madigan in 2012 he ranted on the House floor "Let my people go!" will be shifting to a new challenge in 2014 - running for the 12th CD.
Bost, who has been in the Illinois House since 1995, has been tossing around the decision for months, and apparently has decided he's ready for DC, if he can beat Democrat freshman Congressman Bill Enyart, who succeeded retired Jerry Costello in 2012. Bost, who has been focused on state issues, has been in Tom Cross' leadership team for years, and considered vying for the Leader's post until Cross decided to stay in the House after Attorney General Lisa Madigan decided she would run for re-election in 2014.
Cross' decision left Bost to either stay in place or take on a new challenge. Rep. Bost, frustrated over the House Speaker ignoring a proposal to address Illinois' still-broken pension system a year later, became a 2012 internet sensation when his feisty House challenge of Mike Madigan's abuse of power caught on.
Bost's announcement of his plans to head for Congress will be held next Monday, with a news conference at St. Clair County Court House in Belleville, IL at 12:30. The tour will then move to Mt. Vernon, IL, at the Veteran's Memorial at 3:30 PM, and will end with the Murphysboro rally at 6:00 pm at Davis-McCann Civic Center.
Bost's announcement opens the way for a House successor next year, and word from the district is Carbondale Mayor Brad Cole as well as former Jackson County state's attorney GOP candidate Sharee Langenstein may be interested. Neither are expected to announce until after Bost makes his 2014 intentions public.
