H&R Springfield Bureau

SPRINGFIELD - With less than four months to go before voters head to the polls, races for seats in the Illinois General Assembly are beginning to shape up.

On Monday, candidates for state offices reported fundraising figures for the first half of the year

In the 108th House District, Democrat Jason Warfel of Ingraham is challenging incumbent state Rep. David Reis, R-Willow Hill.

Warfel, who formerly worked for House Speaker Michael Madigan and Gov. Rod Blagojevich, reported raising $12,921 in the first six months of 2008.

His biggest contributor was the Plumbers and Pipefiiters Union Local 149, which gave his campaign $5,000. Warfel also loaned his campaign $6,500.

Warfel spent $10,300, leaving $3,727 in the bank.

Reis, a member of the House since 2005, reported having $22,407 in the bank. He raised about $20,000 and spent $16,400.

Reis' biggest contributor was the Illinois State Medical Society, which gave him $1,000. He also received a number of small contributions from businesses in his district.

In the 54th Senate District, Democrat Henry Kijonka of Grayville is challenging incumbent state Sen. John Jones, R-Mount Vernon.

Kijonka, the mayor of Grayville, has raised $18,350, which includes $15,000 he's loaned himself. Kijonka spent more than $7,000 in the first half of the year, mostly on newspaper advertisements and signs. Kijonka reported having $8,566 in the bank July 1.

Jones, a member of the General Assembly since 1995, raised $41,092 in the six month period ending June 30.

Jones received a number of contributions from oil and gas companies that operate wells in his Southeastern Illinois district. His biggest contributor was the Illinois State Medical Society, which gave him $2,500 in April.

Jones had $180,678 on hand at the close of the reporting period after spending $35,337.

State Rep. Gary Hannig, D-Litchfield, raised about $24,800 from mostly unions and political action committees to have $123,700 going into the November election.

Hannig is running against Republican Jim Curry of Carlinville, who hadn't filed a report late Monday.

Hannig, who has represented the 98th House District since 1979, has been near the center of the state's budget controversy, as he serves as the budget point man for House Speaker Madigan. A budget Hannig signed off on has since been cut by Blagojevich, leading to lost funding throughout state government.

State Sen. Larry Bomke, R-Springfield, has about $414,000 on hand to take on a challenge from Democrat John Devine of Athens in November.

Bomke picked up nearly $62,000 in the first half of the year, while Devine raised about $2,000. Devine had about $820 in his account at the end of June.

Included in Bomke's fundraising was a $3,000 gift from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the union that represents many state workers. Bomke now represents many of the union's members because the 50th Senate District includes Springfield.

Cash in state-level races is tracked differently from federal candidates, so Republican state Rep. Aaron Schock of Peoria isn't using his state account to run for Congress in Illinois' 18th district.

But Monday's reports showed Schock gave much of what's left in his state campaign account, about $100,000, to a Republican fund that tries to elect party members to the Illinois House.