Hey Kossacks,
I just got back from an enjoyable vacation, including some time at the 2007 YDA conference in Dallas, TX. I'm proud to say that I'm now the Secretary of YDA's Jewish Caucus, which means (in part) that I'll be charge of expanding our membership outreach over the next two years. So, you can expect me to occasionally talk about why voting Democratic is best for the Jewish people, and for Israel supporters in general.
Now, on to business. I just read online at the well-respected Illinois blog "Capitol Fax" that Congressman Ray LaHood (R- IL18) will be leaving Congress at the end of 2008. As I'm typing this, LaHood has announced the news on a Peoria radio station: http://abclocal.go.com/...
Capitol Fax article
LaHood was first elected in the GOP tsunami year of 1994, succeeding House Minority Leader Robert Michel (who made the mistake of retiring after years of being the minority leader in a year that catapulted his successor, Newt Gingrich, to the Speakership), and has held the seat rather easily since, getting 67% of the vote in 2006.
LaHood was recently passed over for the Presidency of Bradley University in his native state, although for a time he insisted he was still being considered. This ramped up the speculation that he wanted out of Congress, which his brand-new announcment confirms. http://thehill.com/...
IL-18 leans Republican (it has a PVI of +5 GOP), but it could still go Democratic under the right circumstances. The Democrats have two strong potential candidates who could run, and the GOP has potential candidates lined up as well. They are:
The Democrats:
State Senator John Sullivan:
Sullivan's website
Peoria County State's Attorney Kevin Lyons:
Lyons' website
Previous articles on the subject at Mydd (by Jonothan Singer) have shown that Sullivan is well-regarded by Democrats in the area as a tough, tenacious campaigner on GOP turf.
The Republicans:
State Representative Aaron Schock:
Schock's website
Schock is currently 26, and was first elected to the legislature at age 23. If elected in 2008, he could likely become the youngest member of Congress.
State Representatives David Leitch and Bill Mitchell are also possible candidates, as they represent significant chunks of the district along with Sullivan and Schock.
IL-18 should certainly be worth watching in the months to come. Open seats are usually more competitive than incumbent/challenger races, so Peoria should be an excellent opportunity for the Democrats to win a House seat in 2008.