Working for Illinois Caucus

As a state Representative, Halpin said he currently speaks for about 100,000 people in the Quad-Cities at the statehouse. If elected to the Senate, he can expand that representation to more than 200,000 residents. 

“I think there are folks in Galesburg, Macomb, Monmouth and some of the rural areas in between that would like to have different representation for Democratic values; people fighting for the working poor and the working class, fighting for small businesses and against big corporations,” he said. “I think they would benefit from having a representative in Springfield who represents those values.”

Halpin grew up in Voorheesville, N.Y., with his parents and two siblings. He graduated from Roger Williams University in Rhode Island with a bachelor of arts degree in political science and moved to Illinois after being hired by Congressman Lane Evans as a staff assistant and scheduler. He went on to graduate with his law degree from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. 

Halpin lives in Rock Island with his wife, MaryAnn and their two children, ages 10 and 7. He is an attorney with the Rock Island law firm of McCarthy, Callas, & Feeney, P.C., where he practices municipal, real estate, labor and employment law. 

If elected, Halpin said one of his priorities will be to pass a budget consistently. Before his 2016 election, Halpin said the state went almost three years without a working budget during Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner’s administration.