EDWARDSVILLE - Former Congressman John Shimkus today announced he will be chairing the campaign for Roger Smith, Republican candidate for Coroner.
“I have known Roger Smith for close to 30 years,” stated Shimkus. “He is everything we would want in our Coroner – experienced, qualified and compassionate.”
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Smith worked for the Coroner’s office for 32 years before retiring in 2021. He was the Chief Deputy Coroner for the last 11 years of that term. Since retiring, Smith has maintained his national death investigator certification and used his experience to train other coroner personnel for the Illinois Coroner Training Board. He also serves as a consultant to both the Illinois Violent Death Reporting System and the Statewide Unintentional Overdose Reporting System.
“Roger Smith has also promised to suspend collecting his IMRF pension and will decline to participate in the pension system as the elected Coroner. I believe this shows a respect for the taxpayers and also shows what a decent, honorable person Roger Smith is.”
Smith stated “I am positively ecstatic to have Congressman Shimkus take on this leadership role in my campaign. He is a West Point graduate, retired as a Lieutenant Colonel from the United States Army Reserve, served as our Madison County Treasurer, and then he went to Washington and represented the interests of all Madison County residents so very well. Even now, he continues to serve by being an educator and mentoring the next generation. These are the same qualities and values of leadership, constantly striving for improvement, and – most importantly – the commitment to service of our community I will assure are present in the Office of Coroner. I am honored and ever so grateful for his support.”
Smith is a lifelong resident of Madison County and was born and raised in Granite City. He resides in rural Madison County with his wife of 27 years, Circuit Judge Amy Maher. Shimkus is also a lifelong resident of Madison County and served as County Treasurer from 1990 to 1996 and in the U.S. Congress from 1997 to 2021. He resides in Collinsville with his wife Karen, a church musician, who recently retired from Metro-East Lutheran High School as the choral and string instructor.
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