Whitfield Harrington Jr. is running for U.S. Senate in Illinois as an American Center Party candidate in the Tuesday, Nov. 3 general election. Don Tracy, a Republican, and Juliana Stratton, a Democrat, are also on the ballot.

He has never held public office.

Asked why he is running, Harrington said in our candidate questionnaire: "Washington is broken and both parties helped break it. Illinois families are paying more for everything and getting less. I am running as an independent to govern from the center, not the extremes, and to help build the American Center Party."

Candidate information

Party affiliation: "I am running as an independent candidate for the United States Senate in Illinois while helping to form the American Center Party, a new party dedicated to practical, center-focused leadership. I am not a Democrat and not a Republican."

Family: "I was born and raised in Belzoni, Mississippi, in the heart of the Mississippi Delta, the 20th of 21 children. … My father was a pastor and a carpenter who also cut hair, farmed, and drove a school bus to feed 21 children. He chaired the Humphreys County NAACP for seven years, taking the post after the first chairman was assassinated and the second was shot."

Education: "I earned my degree in political science from Delta State University in Mississippi."

Experience and public service

Occupation: "I serve as a pastor in Chicago, a ministry that reaches people across states, countries, and continents. Before that I worked in the financial industry, inside banks and insurance companies. I later ran my own insurance practice."

Previous office: "I have never held elected or appointed public office. … My only experience in an elected role came in 1997, when the American Legion's Boys State program elected me Governor of Mississippi Boys State."

On the issues

Top priority: "The single most important issue is the cost of living. Families in Illinois are paying more for groceries, gas, rent, and health care, and Washington keeps arguing about who to blame instead of what to do. I would introduce a Family Affordability Act as my first bill. It would require banks to make small-dollar mortgages available for homes under $100,000 … ban excessive speculation in energy markets … end tariffs on food, and make the first year of community college free."

Federal spending and debt: "I would redirect ten to twenty percent of the defense budget, on a two-year cycle, into rebuilding our own infrastructure … I would create a Cabinet-level anti-fraud department to recover the estimated $233 billion to $521 billion lost to fraud every year, which pays for itself. … I would not raise taxes on working families."

Health care: "I support Direct Primary Care, where you pay your doctor a low monthly fee, sometimes as little as $100 for an individual or $300 for a family, for unlimited visits with no insurance middleman and no surprise bills. I have had Direct Primary Care myself, at $75 a month, and it works."

Immigration: "Secure the border with whatever each sector needs, meaning manpower, technology, and physical barriers where they work. Deport criminals. End family separations … Make legal immigration easier than illegal entry, because today the opposite is true."

National security: "No American troops should deploy without a clear mission, a clear cost, and a clear exit plan voted on by Congress. … Our allies in Europe and the region should carry the stronger voice and the heavier share of their own defense."

Critical differences from other candidates: "I am the only candidate in this race who is not owned by either party. … My platform, Renovate the American Dream, tells you exactly what I will do on energy, food, housing, health care, jobs, and government reform, so you can hold me to it."

Harrington's full platform is published on his campaign website.

Candidate responses were collected through the Glenbard Wire's candidate questionnaire. All answers are presented in the candidate's own words.