Goblin House
Goblin House
Area: Full Workup (one official, all sections) (eo_full_workup)
Filed: 2026-05-01T04:11:34.783Z
Source: External LLM via /handoff/congress (attempt #69123)
Resolved official: Eric Sorensen (entity #10912)
Ingest result: 32 facts · 31 sources · 6 voting_records · 1 skipped
Single super-prompt covering every per-official research area in one LLM call: donor mapping, silences, contradictions, telling votes, and constituency baseline. The LLM returns ONE JSON object; the ingest pipeline dispatches each section to its typed table independently, so a malformed or no-data section never blocks the rest.
{ "target_official": { "name": "Eric Sorensen", "bioguide_id": "S001225" }, "donor_mapping": { "facts": [ { "fact_text": "In the 2023–2024 cycle, Sorensen raised $4,999,827. His top industry was Retired ($572,316), followed by Leadership PACs ($374,104), Lawyers/Law Firms ($327,354), and Democratic/Liberal ($241,112).", "date_occurred": null, "confidence": "secondary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/person/summary?cid=N00049558" }, { "fact_text": "PAC contributions accounted for 26.29% of Sorensen's 2023–2024 campaign funds ($1,314,865), while small individual donors represented only 9.59%.", "date_occurred": null, "confidence": "secondary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/person/summary?cid=N00049558" }, { "fact_text": "Sorensen, a former TV meteorologist, is the first openly LGBTQ+ person elected to represent Illinois in Congress. He served as chief meteorologist at WREX in Rockford and later at WQAD in the Quad Cities.", "date_occurred": null, "confidence": "secondary", "source_url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Sorensen_(politician)" }, { "fact_text": "Sorensen's leadership PAC, Storm PAC, raised $136,014 in the 2023–2024 cycle.", "date_occurred": null, "confidence": "secondary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/person/summary?cid=N00049558" }, { "fact_text": "Sorensen missed 4.8% of votes (60 of 1,241) in the 118th Congress, ranking as the 10th most absent House freshman.", "date_occurred": null, "confidence": "secondary", "source_url": "https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/eric_sorensen/456902/report-card/2024" } ], "connections": [ { "donor_entity_name": "American Israel Public Affairs Cmte", "relationship_type": "major_donor", "description": "2023-2024 cycle: $87,014 ($82,014 individuals, $5,000 PAC) – top contributor", "confidence": "secondary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/person/summary?cid=N00049558" } ] }, "silences": { "no_data": true, "reason": "No verified silence was identified with both a clear policy topic where weight was expected and primary-source evidence of active engagement on adjacent matters during the same window." }, "contradictions": { "no_data": true, "reason": "No publicly documented contradictions with independent sourcing from different hostnames meeting the criteria were found." }, "telling_votes": [ { "bill_id": "H.R. 29", "title": "Laken Riley Act (mandatory ICE detention for non-citizens charged with certain crimes)", "vote": "yea", "vote_date": "2025-01-07", "roll_call_url": "https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/20256", "why_it_matters": "Sorensen was one of only 48 House Democrats to join all Republicans in passing this immigration enforcement bill requiring mandatory detention before conviction for theft-related offenses. His district is only 6.35% foreign-born, yet he cited constituent concerns about border security. Civil-rights groups and 159 Democrats opposed the bill's due-process implications. A Democratic primary challenger later criticized this vote, calling it anti-immigrant.", "category": "party_defection" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 1", "title": "One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Trump tax-and-spending reconciliation package)", "vote": "nay", "vote_date": "2025-05-22", "roll_call_url": "https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2025145", "why_it_matters": "Sorensen voted against the OBBBA, which cut approximately $880 billion from Medicaid and $300 billion from SNAP. About one-third of his district's residents rely on Medicaid, including approximately 100,000 children. The bill passed 215-214. Sorensen called it 'massive cuts to SNAP and Medicaid to pay for a huge tax break for billionaires,' aligning with constituent material interests against heavy GOP pressure on swing-district Democrats.", "category": "constituent_aligned" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 5371", "title": "Further Additional Continuing Appropriations Act, 2026 (bill to end 43-day government shutdown)", "vote": "nay", "vote_date": "2025-11-12", "roll_call_url": "https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/5371", "why_it_matters": "Sorensen voted against the deal to reopen the government after the longest shutdown in U.S. history, citing the bill's failure to extend enhanced ACA premium tax credits that help constituents afford health insurance. Illinois' senators helped broker the deal, creating tension between Sorensen's stance and fellow Democrats. He said he was 'proud I voted hell no,' prioritizing healthcare affordability over ending the shutdown.", "category": "cross_pressure" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 8034", "title": "Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024 ($26.4 billion Israel aid)", "vote": "yea", "vote_date": "2024-04-20", "roll_call_url": "https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/8034", "why_it_matters": "Sorensen voted for the Israel aid package, aligning with AIPAC, his top donor at $87,014. The bill passed 366-58 and provided $26.38 billion in security assistance including Iron Dome funding. While largely bipartisan, 58 members opposed it, and Sorensen's vote aligned with his top donor while also reflecting mainstream Democratic support for Israel.", "category": "donor_aligned" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 7567", "title": "Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 (2026 Farm Bill)", "vote": "nay", "vote_date": "2026-04-30", "roll_call_url": "https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7567", "why_it_matters": "Sorensen voted against the Farm Bill despite representing a heavily agricultural district where corn and soybean farmers depend on federal farm programs. He opposed the bill for failing to include year-round E15 ethanol sales—a key constituent demand for Illinois corn growers—and for cutting food assistance. The bill passed 224-200 mostly along party lines, but Sorensen's nay broke with rural Democrats who supported it.", "category": "cross_pressure" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 1958", "title": "Deporting Fraudsters Act of 2026", "vote": "nay", "vote_date": "2026-03-18", "roll_call_url": "https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1958", "why_it_matters": "Sorensen voted against this deportation bill, stating it lacked due process protections. This vote contrasted with his earlier support for the Laken Riley Act and his subsequent opposition to additional ICE funding (January 2026), revealing the cross-pressures on immigration: he supported detention for certain crimes but opposed expanding deportation authority and ICE funding without oversight.", "category": "cross_pressure" } ], "constituency_baseline": { "baseline": { "district_summary": "Illinois's 17th Congressional District spans the northwestern portion of the state, including the Illinois side of the Quad Cities (Moline, Rock Island), parts of Peoria, Rockford, and Bloomington-Normal. With a population of approximately 746,000, the district is 68% White (Non-Hispanic), 12.7% Black, and 11.8% Hispanic. The median household income of $59,364 trails the national average, while the poverty rate is 17.7%. Only about 27% of adults hold a bachelor's degree. The economy is anchored by manufacturing (John Deere world headquarters in Moline), health care (OSF HealthCare, UnityPoint Health), agriculture (corn and soybeans), and education (Illinois State University). The district has a Cook PVI of D+3, making it one of the most competitive in Illinois. Kamala Harris carried it with 54.4% in 2024.", "top_employers": [ { "name": "John Deere (Deere & Company)", "employees": 83000, "source_url": "https://askai.glarity.app/search/What-are-the-top-manufacturing-companies-in-Illinois-by-number-of-employees" }, { "name": "OSF HealthCare", "employees": 12000, "source_url": "https://www.ezhomesearch.com/2025/08/where-illinois-works-the-cities-and-jobs-driving-growth.html" }, { "name": "UnityPoint Health", "employees": 5000, "source_url": "https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Unitypoint-Health" }, { "name": "Illinois State University", "employees": 3500, "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "name": "Caterpillar Inc. (Peoria-area facilities)", "employees": 3000, "source_url": "https://zephyrnet.com/10-major-illinois-industries-to-consider-if-youre-working-in-or-moving-to-the-prairie-state/" } ], "dominant_industries": [ { "naics": "62", "share": 15.8, "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "naics": "31-33", "share": 14.6, "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "naics": "44-45", "share": 12.2, "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "naics": "61", "share": 8.0, "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" } ], "recent_ballot_measures": [ { "name": "Illinois Graduated Income Tax Amendment (Allow for Graduated Income Tax)", "year": 2020, "result": "failed", "margin": "55% No – 45% Yes", "source_url": "https://www.law360.com/articles/1325734/ill-voters-reject-graduated-income-tax-amendment" }, { "name": "Illinois Amendment 1: Workers' Rights Amendment (Right to Collective Bargaining)", "year": 2022, "result": "passed", "margin": "58.5% Yes – 41.5% No", "source_url": "https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/11/09/amendment-1-illinois-workers-rights/2022/11/09/" }, { "name": "2024 Illinois Advisory Questions: Election Worker Interference, Millionaire Tax, IVF Insurance", "year": 2024, "result": "passed", "margin": "Advisory only — all three favored by majority", "source_url": "https://www.wglt.org/local-news/2024-10-10/voters-consider-ballot-questions-on-reproductive-health-tax-reform-election-interference" } ], "demographic_anchors": [ { "label": "median household income", "value": "$59,364", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "label": "poverty rate", "value": "17.7%", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "label": "bachelor's degree or higher", "value": "27.0%", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "label": "White alone (non-Hispanic)", "value": "68.0%", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "label": "Black or African American alone (non-Hispanic)", "value": "12.7%", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "label": "Hispanic or Latino (any race)", "value": "11.8%", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "label": "homeownership rate", "value": "64.6%", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-17-il" }, { "label": "Medicaid coverage (share of district population)", "value": "~33% (one-third of residents)", "source_url": "https://qctimes.com/news/local/government-politics/leaders-detail-effects-of-proposed-medicaid-cuts/article_4c123852-2f12-452f-8f07-d5e9ccf83eca.html" } ] } } }