Candidates › State House

Michelle Smith R

Republican candidate for State Representative District 97

June 28, 2022 primary: won with 5,489 votes (100%) · November 8, 2022 general: lost with 16,932 votes (100%)

🔓 Contribution limits are off in their race (board determination).

Worth a look

Context Context

73% of their itemized money came from party and caucus committees

$325,767.83 of $446,448.68 came from political party committees, which in the General Assembly mostly means the committees the four legislative leaders control. Party money has no limit in a general election; it's how the leaders fund the races they target.

What to check

Which committees: see the donors on their page.

Rule: Mostly party and caucus money

Context, not a rule. How findings work

Campaign money

$446,449raised, 85 itemized contributions, plus $6,489 in small ones

$51,960from the candidate (incl. loans)

$134,409spent

$26,952cash on hand on December 31, 2022; $41,000 in debts

Where their money comes from (besides their own)

75%13%

IndividualsBusinessesTrade, professional and issue groupsLabor unionsParties and legislative caucusesOther candidates and officeholders

Plus $11,960 of their own money and from their other committees. Compare with all state candidates →

How it was spent: $134,409

Contributions to other committees$51,125

Office, printing and supplies$36,168

Other (as described)$33,800

Donations and sponsorships$5,705

Digital and online$4,550

Fundraising and events$831

Legal, accounting and fees$640

Postage and delivery$600

Print ads and billboards$590

Radio$400

Largest payees: Robot Ink Marketing $57,467 Office, printing and supplies · House Republican Majority $50,000 Contributions to other committees · Innago LLC Web $5,200 Digital and online · Impress Printing $2,654 Office, printing and supplies · Awesome Campaigns Inc $2,015 Office, printing and supplies · American Legion Marne Post 13 $1,766 Donations and sponsorships · ULINE $1,421 Office, printing and supplies · Vistaprint $1,336 Office, printing and supplies

Grouped by the purpose each payment lists (“direct mail”, “consulting”), so the groups are approximate; a consultant's payments to others (ads, mail) show under the consultant.

Top contributors	Type	Total
Illinois Republican Party Chicago	Business or group	$184,082.26
House Republican Majority Burr Ridge	Business or group	$141,685.57
Ozinga for Illinois Mokena	Committee	$50,000
Realtor Political Action Committee Springfield	Committee	$20,000
Brian Smith Painting, Inc Plainfield	Business or group	$10,000
Citizens for Durkin Burr Ridge	Committee	$3,500
Ozinga for Illinois Mokena	Business or group	$2,800
Contractors for Free Enterprise Springfield	Committee	$2,500
IL Road Builders PAC Itasca	Committee	$2,500
Friends of Mark Batinick Plainfield	Committee	$2,000
Michelle Smith Candidate · N/A · Plainfield	Person	$1,960
Margie Bonuchi Director · Plainfield School District · Plainfield	Person	$1,720
NFIB Illinois PAC Washington	Committee	$1,500
Gregory Nichols Engineer · PIA · Plainfield	Person	$1,500
Sandy Lambert Retired · Retired · Plainfield	Person	$1,314.25

Committee: Citizens to Elect Michelle Smith (every report they filed is on the State Board of Elections' site). Data current as of October 12, 2026.

Outside spending for and against them

$88,510spent supporting them

$0spent opposing them

Spender		Amount
INCS Action Independent Committee general · 2022-10-17 – 2022-11-14	for	$78,466
People Who Play By The Rules PAC general · 2022-10-25	for	$10,044

Independent expenditures reported by other committees since January 1, 2021. The candidate doesn't control them.

Their home

$500,000 – $600,000estimated market value, 2026 assessment

$340,200median home value in Will County (Illinois: $280,700)

The Will County assessor's estimate of the market value of the home at the address Michelle Smith filed with the State Board of Elections, shown as a range; the address isn't published here. Assessments trail the market and can be appealed, so treat it as a rough figure. How this works. Medians: Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024.

Companies on the state register

Corporations and LLCs the Secretary of State lists Michelle Smith as an officer, manager or member of; money from them to the campaign counts as their own.

Company	Their role	Status	Gave to the campaign
BRIAN SMITH PAINTING, INC. Corporation, since 1997 · file 59482262	secretary	Good standing · last annual report 2026	$10,000

From the Secretary of State's business records of October 13, 2026, matched by name and ZIP code against the address the State Board of Elections has for the candidate (or by name when the company itself gave to their campaign). Someone listed only at another address isn't found; search the Secretary of State's business entity search by file number for the full record.

Their donors also gave to

Their largest donors who also funded other 2022 state candidates.

Donor	To them	Candidates funded
Illinois Republican Party Party or caucus committee · Chicago	$184,082	49
House Republican Majority Party or caucus committee · Burr Ridge	$141,686	33
Ozinga for Illinois Candidate or officeholder committee · Mokena	$52,800	39
Realtor Political Action Committee Group or PAC · Springfield	$20,000	134
Brian Smith Painting, Inc Business · Plainfield	$10,000	2
Citizens for Durkin Candidate or officeholder committee · Burr Ridge	$3,500	69
Contractors for Free Enterprise Business · Springfield	$2,500	53
Illinois Road Builders PAC Group or PAC · Itasca	$2,500	21
Friends of Mark Batinick Candidate or officeholder committee · Plainfield	$2,000	5
NFIB Illinois PAC Group or PAC · Washington	$1,500	17
Safe Suburbs USA PAC Group or PAC · Naperville	$1,000	7
Manufacturers PAC Group or PAC · Springfield	$1,000	89
Caterpillar Inc. (CATPAC) Group or PAC · Deerfield	$1,000	5
INCS Action PAC Group or PAC · Chicago	$1,000	42
Downstate GOP Group or PAC · Fithian	$1,000	26