Senator Chris Balkema won the Republican nomination for the 53rd District of the Illinois State Senate during the primary election this past March. With no one running against Senator Balkema in the fall general election, he is spending time reaching out to the 108 mayors in the district, that spans across 13 counties, to listen and understand local needs.

Senator Balkema was elected to the Grundy County Board in 2010 and has been Chairman since 2016. Under his leadership, the county lowered the property tax levy 4 years in a row. They implemented a 5-year plan to pay off all bonds and become completely debt free. The county has developed focused and assertive leaders that execute the established goals while growing talent from within the organization.

Senator Balkema has worked at Caterpillar for the past 31 years holding leadership positions within the Human Resources, Operations, Logistics and Purchasing areas of the company.

In addition to being active in his local church, Senator Balkema serves on the Grundy County Economic Development Council and held advisory positions on the Taylor University Business Advisory Council.

Senator Balkema received his Bachelor of Science in Business Systems from Taylor University in 1993. He received his Masters of Business Administration from Bradley University in 2002.

Senator Balkema and his wife have been happily married for twenty-six years and have two sons in college. They reside in Channahon.