Senator Debbie Halvorson, Illinois Senate Majority Leader, has no opposition in the Democratic primary to win the open seat for Illinois’ 11th Congressional District. This seat is open due to the late announcement by Republican Congressman Jerry Weller that he would not run again for the seat he won in 1994. The Chicago Reader and Chicago Tribune had run damaging articles about his land dealings in Guatemala and Nicaragua and his marriage Zury Rios Sosa, the daughter of former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt. See: http://www.chicagoreader.com/...
Because of his late announcement, both parties had very little time to find candidates. The DCCC was able to get their first choice by recruiting Senator Debbie Halvorson from Crete, IL. She immediately cleared the field on the Democratic side. Once Senator Halvorson announced she would run, the Republicans lost their top candidate State Senator Christine Radagno, who announced she would not run. The Republicans seemed to have decided on New Lenox Mayor Tim Baldermann, but it appears he has two primary challengers. One challenger is from Baldermann’s own town. The Green Party is also running a candidate.
This is a seat that Senator Debbie Halvorson should win. The district voted for Clinton twice, Gore and Nader combined for more votes than Bush in 2000, and Bush barely beat Kerry in 2004. This district covers the far southern suburbs of Chicago and contains all or most of 8 counties. Included are Will and Grundy Counties which are the two fastest growing counties in Illinois. Grundy and Will Counties have seen a steady rise in the number of Democrats beating Republicans over the last several election cycles in local and countywide races. This District also contains the largest number of union households of all 19 Illinois Districts.
In the 2006 election, former CIA Analyst John Pavich got 45% of the vote by spending $600,000 while Congressman Jerry Weller spent $1.6 million trashing Pavich.
Senator Debbie Halvorson’s greatest asset is her ability to make government understandable and accessible to the average constituent. People really love her. She is your average mom who wanted to make a difference in her community and set out to do it in the 90’s. Her enthusiasm is infectious and it made Democrats and Republicans vote for her in overwhelming numbers. In the late 90’s, she felt she could do a better job in the Illinois Senate and took on a Republican incumbent and beat him...no small feat! She has worked her way up in the Illinois Senate and is currently the Majority Leader. When Debbie decided to run for U.S. Congress, her volunteers worked day and night and collected over 4000 signatures to get her on the ballot. They did it in only 19 days. I look forward to seeing my friend Debbie truly represent the working families of the 11th District.
This is a seat that Debbie Halvorson can win with our help. What is also great about the 11th District is that a Democrat can win and vote as a real Democrat!
Learn more about Debbie at: http://www.debbiehalvorson.com/
Donate to Debbie’s campaign at: https://secure.actblue.com/...