Lisa Smith Roth wins GOP primary; set to battle Democrat Sue Scherer for 96th district

Lisa Smith Roth has won the primary Republican nomination for the Illinois House 96th district seat beating her sole opponent Prescott Paulin. 

With 95% of the estimated vote counted, Smith had 66% of the vote to Paulin's 34%.

She attributes her victory to hard work on her ground campaign. 

"We went out to all of the events, met a lot of people, shook hands, and went door to door," Smith said. "We just had a really good ground campaign."

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Smith said she hopes to bring integrity and honesty back to the state during her term if she wins the general election. 

"I’m looking forward to the Republicans taking back the House of Representatives and getting legislation done that will bring down taxes and help the average person in the state with the economy," she said. "We want to bring back businesses and good jobs for the people of the state of Illinois so our state can be prosperous again. "

The 96th district covers downtown and eastern Springfield, Bolivia, Mount Auburn and central Decatur.

Smith will face incumbent Rep. Sue Scherer, D-Decatur, in the general election on Nov. 8.

Smith is a pediatric nurse practitioner with 14 years of practice at Crossing Healthcare in Decatur. She also practices at HOPE Institute for disabled and autistic children in Springfield.

She has said she is against abortion and supports law enforcement.

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