Letter To The Editor: Prenzler Says He Stresses Real Republican Values in Campaign

Prenzler invites voters to back his campaign to overhaul county tax and voting systems for improved accountability.

Kurt Prenzler

Mar 13, 2026 4:24 PM

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Letter to the Editor:

I am running for County Clerk on the March 17, 2026, Republican primary.

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Why? Because I believe we can do a better job, especially when it comes to #1 property taxes and #2 election management.

Kurt Prenzler. First, I’m a real Republican and I can prove it.

I’m Pro-Life, Pro-Second Amendment and Pro-Constitution. For the last 14 months, I have been Executive Director or Eagle Forum Education and Legal, which was founded by Phyllis Schlafly in Alton, and our office is at 322 State Street, Alton. Phyllis Schlafly and her Eagles have been the plumb line of conservatism for decades.

Yes, I’m a real Republican. I’m also a CPA. I can count, and I pay attention to details.

Property taxes

The County Clerk’s office calculates property taxes and is the first to see tax increases and bond issues. As county treasurer (2010 – 2016) and chairman (2016 – 2024), I fought property taxes. The first thing I did as treasurer is reduce the cost of my office by 30 percent. As chairman, I reduced the levy for the “county government” portion of property taxes from $32.6 to 30.8 million and didn’t raise it for 8 years.

Three times (2011, 2017, 2018), I led the fight to defeat a proposed county-wide sales tax – that would have raised the sales tax rate in parts of the county to more than 10 percent.

The current County Clerk got elected by promising to reduce property taxes – something she can’t do. She also said she would support putting PTELL tax caps on the ballot, but changed her mind soon after being elected.

I support putting PTELL tax caps on the ballot – for the voters to decide.

Believe it or not, this county clerk has – through odd calculations – increased your taxes. For example, the Granite City Park district passed a levy of $2,286,320 (tax year 2024, collected 2025), but the County Clerk added $2,257.46 to this amount.

Similar odd calculations - multiplied by more than 200 taxing districts - increased our total tax bill by almost $200,000 last year.

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She had meetings with Bethalto school district officials – to help them maximize their tax levy. When Bethalto citizens wanted to sit in on these meetings, she said no.

Election Management

Of course, I want Congress to pass President Trump’s SAVE Act, to require proof of citizenship and showing a photo ID before voting. But we have work to do right here in Madison County. Our County Clerk has failed to trim – or clean – the voter rolls.

Here are the numbers: our population declined from 269,000 (2010) to about 261,000 today. But the number of registered voters has increased from 176,000 (2013) to 192,466 today. To sum it up: 8,000 less people, but 16,466 more registered voters.

At a Republican meeting 4 months ago, she said, “I know I need to trim the voter rolls by about 8,000, but it’s taken me some time to learn the job.” Yes, she really said that – and about 80 people heard it - including some who are endorsing her!

I have benchmarked these numbers with clerks in other counties, and they have all told me, “Kurt, it's clear. If you’re elected, your first job must be cleaning the voter rolls.”

That means careful checking, removing the names of dead people from the rolls, and checking with the Post Office to remove people who have left the county.

By the way, trimming the voter rolls is not just a good idea. It’s required by Illinois law. It's County Clerk 101.

That’s how I will approach the job: working hard, trimming the voter rolls and obeying the law.

I would appreciate your support on March 17, 2026, election day. Feel free to call or text me at 618-514-2599.

One more thing: Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Kurt Prenzler, CPA, Candidate for Madison County Clerk and Recorder

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