IL-17 is a redistricted Congressional District in Illinois; it was redrawn after Illinois went from having 19 Congressional Districts to 18.
Historically: Lane Evans won it in 1982 and represented it until Phil Hare won it in 2006. But in 2010, Phil Hare was upset by a Tea Party Republican named Bobby Schilling.
However the district has been redrawn to be even more Democratic; currently Barack Obama leads by 15 points.
The Bustos-Schilling race has been close; by Election Projection:
CD-17
10/25/12 Stuart Rothenberg Pundit Change: Tilt DEM to Toss-up
10/15/12 Public Opinion (R) Schilling 51% - Bustos 44%
10/18/12 GBA Strategies (D) Bustos 49% - Schilling 45%
10/13/12 RATING CHANGE: Weak Schilling to Weak Bustos
10/09/12 WeAskAmerica Bustos 46% - Schilling 46%
10/10/12 RATING CHANGE: Weak Bustos to Weak Schilling
10/04/12 Anzalone Liszt Research (D) Bustos 45% - Schilling 44%
So, the Republicans are fighting tooth and nail to hold this seat. So watch out for the dirty tricks! More below the fold
We have this ad from the NRCC:
Wow! There are some problems here though. For one, Ms. Bustos isn't a member of that country club and never was. Also, this improvement was for water main repair, and had started BEFORE she took her seat.
More here.
Now there is this:
What you are seeing is a newspaper tabloid style mailer called "The Illinois Democrat" which is an extended ad for Bobby Schilling. You have to dig deep into the ad to find a mention that Mr. Schilling is the Republican candidate.
That isn't a surprise; at the last Schilling-Bustos debate, Mr. Schilling failed to mention Mitt Romney once, but did have a few good words to say about President Obama.
Here is my (7 minute) video commentary.
Oh yes, I voted today.