Prairie State Wire

GOP gubernatorial candidate State Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia) is questioning Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s continuation of executive emergency powers due to COVID-19 nearly two and a half years after the virus first was recorded in Illinois.

Bailey argued that there's no longer a need for a state of emergency in Illinois.

“Illinois is one of only a handful of states with an emergency order still in place,” Bailey said in a statement. “The virus is not going away any time soon, but the governor’s executive emergency order needs to go away."

He has always been critical of COVID-19 mandates. Within the nearly three years since the pandemic began, businesses and employees have been left confused and hurt by the shifting restrictions. Bailey thinks Pritzker should return the people's freedom to live the way they want to live. 

"There is little the prolonged state of emergency in Illinois is doing right now," Bailey said. "So why not rescind the state of emergency? It is obvious that these emergency orders are nothing more than a power grab. The governor has emergency powers for emergency situations and there is no emergency right now. We must, as a society learn to live with COVID-19 and get back to normal, most, all of us are living normal lives. It is time for the governor to end the state of emergency in Illinois and let people live their lives.”

Bailey in the midst of the pandemic "led the charge against sweeping executive orders that shuttered Illinois businesses, collapsed the economy and deprived hardworking Illinoisans of their livelihoods. A complete return to normalcy is a top priority for Darren,” according to his website. He pledged to work to fully reopen the economy and schools, attract new businesses to the state and fuel job creation in Illinois.

The governor has again extended emergency orders for COVID-19 for another 150 days, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported.

Pritzker’s most recent emergency order mandates that "the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) continues to require staff at federally-certified health care providers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and strongly recommends staff at federally-certified long-term care and skilled nursing facilities be up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccinations," COVID-19 Executive Order No. 109 reads.

Pritzker has ruled over COVID-19 by way of executive order since March 2020 and has released over 100 orders since the COVID-19 situation began, Illinois Policy reported.