Up For Grabs: Democrats Want to Build the Majority in Their Congresional Delegation

Illinois will be a battleground in 2008 as Democrats fight to keep their newfound majority in the U.S. House, and Republicans fight to win it back.

Democrats hope the increasingly blue nature of Illinois, coupled with another pro-Democrat nationwide wave, will put their candidates in another four of this state's 19 congressional seats. The Republicans want to keep those seats, of course, while winning back a northwest suburban seat they lost in 2004. The stakes are especially high for the Illinois GOP: Three of its incumbent congressmen — J. Dennis Hastert of Plano, Ray LaHood of Peoria and Jerry Weller of Morris — are retiring, leaving those seats open. 

But congressional candidates set to compete in the November 4 general election must first survive the February 5 primary election. And on that near-term front, several are braced for major battles.

Hot primaries are shaping up in the northwest suburban 8th District held by Democratic Rep. Melissa Bean of Barrington, the north suburban 10th District held by Republican Rep. Mark Kirk of Highland Park, the far west suburban 14th District held by retiring Hastert and the central Illinois 18th District held by retiring LaHood.

There are notable congressional primaries elsewhere in Illinois, too. Democrats are competing for the chance to face Republican Rep. Peter Roskam of Wheaton in the west suburban 6th District. Republicans are vying to succeed retiring Weller in the 11th District, which stretches from the far southwest suburbs south to Bloomington. And Rep. Daniel Lipinski of Western Springs faces opposition from multiple fellow Democrats in the 3rd District, which runs through Chicago's Southwest Side and southwest suburbs.

Come November, the outcomes in these primary races will help determine whether Democrats keep, gain or lose ground in Congress. The Democrats have a 233-202 edge in the House, thanks to their 2006 sweep. Republicans would like to play offense, but they have precious few dollars to spread around to targeted races. The National Republican Congressional Committee had just $1.6 million on hand, with a $3.85 million debt, on September 30, the last campaign finance disclosure date. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee had $28.3 million on hand, with a $3 million debt.

Democrats hold 10 of this state's 19 congressional seats. Republicans hold the other nine.

The 14th District held by Hastert may be the most contentious nominating contest among Republicans, or at least the most outwardly hostile. Hopefuls include perennial candidate Jim Oberweis, the ice cream magnate from Sugar Grove, and state Sen. Chris Lauzen of Aurora. Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns also is running. Michael Dilger from Evanston — some 10 municipalities beyond the district's eastern edge — filed petitions to run, too.

The two leading candidates diverge in style as much as in substance. Lauzen is a soft-spoken accountant enamored of fiscal nuance. Oberweis is a savvy businessman and brash showman quick with rhetorical lightning rods. Lauzen stresses the quality of constituent service he provided for 15 years as a state legislator, saying he returned every constituent letter, phone call and e-mail he received during that time. Oberweis says Lauzen ought to be disqualified from serving in Congress by virtue of his service in Springfield, where public corruption pervades.

"Unfortunately, one of my opponents has been a part of the Ryan/Blagojevich Springfield culture for 15 years," Oberweis says, referring to the current and past governors. "I think that's a terrible negative."

Lauzen notes he was constantly at odds with establishment Democrats and Republicans in Illinois. He says he once returned a $10,000 donation from former Gov. George Ryan, who had scolded him for not voting with the administration despite the contribution Ryan made to Lauzen's campaign fund. 

"I'm the guy who has demonstrated his independence from his own party," Lauzen says.

Lauzen went to the state Senate in 1993 as part of a group of conservatives dubbed the "Fab Five." The others were Peter Fitzgerald, Patrick O'Malley, Steve Rauschenberger and Dave 

Syverson. Though the others have moved on, Syverson, of Rockford, also remains in the state Senate. Lauzen ran for state comptroller in 1998, losing to Democrat Dan Hynes, who still holds the post.

Oberweis also slams Lauzen for hiring Kane County GOP Chairman Denny Wiggins as a paid campaign adviser, saying Lauzen "bought" an endorsement from the local party leader. Wiggins took leave from his party post to serve the Lauzen campaign. He responds that Oberweis ran against him for Kane County GOP chairman in 2006 — and lost. Lauzen says Oberweis tried to hire Wiggins as an adviser to his own campaign.

"Obviously, there's still sour grapes," Lauzen says.

This is Oberweis' fourth run for office in as many election cycles. He lost Republican primaries for U.S. Senate in 2002 and 2004 and for governor in 2006. Just as he did 

in his previous races, Oberweis is again making his quest to curb illegal immigration his campaign centerpiece.

In his 2004 campaign for Senate, Oberweis ran a television commercial depicting himself in a helicopter hovering above Soldier Field. Over the buzz of the chopper's engine, he shouted, "Illegal aliens are coming here to take American workers' jobs, drive down wages and take advantage of government benefits such as free health care. And you pay. How many? Ten thousand illegal aliens a day. Enough to fill Soldier Field every single week."

Oberweis now concedes the ad was "a little too harsh and it didn't really clearly communicate our position on the issue." Still, he says, "I believe the population has caught up with my view."

"Nobody wanted to hear about the issue at that time," he says of illegal immigration. "Today, it's on everybody's mind."

Oberweis says America must secure its borders by building a fence, beefing up border patrols and improving tracking of individuals coming and going from the nation. Asked whether there must be a fence along the Canadian border as well as the Mexican border, Oberweis responds, "Look, I think we need the fence wherever we have the problem."

Lauzen is known in Springfield for fiscal and social conservatism. He consistently complains publicly about the state's budget mismanagement. He says his priorities in Congress would boil down to "faith, family and the fruits of freedom."

"My commitment to the people who are going to be making the decision on February 5 is the same commitment that I made when I first ran 16 years ago. I didn't promise anybody a road through their town or a cushy contract or a government job," he says. "The three promises were to work hard, stay honest, use common sense."

;He supports an overhaul of the nation's health care system, including incentives to end employer-sponsored insurance. He argues the current system drives down wages and consumers should have the option of getting insurance elsewhere, perhaps from a trade association or religious organization. He also hopes to encourage the use of health savings accounts and preventive medicine.

Oberweis supports a similar plan to discourage employer-sponsored programs and encourage individuals to manage their own health care. He says tax-free health savings accounts, in which individuals save for future medical benefits, is one way to accomplish this. Both men advocate reduced federal spending and lower taxes.

Both Oberweis and Lauzen hail from the GOP's right wing. Jack Roeser, the ultraconservative president of the Family Taxpayers Network, has alternately backed each of them over the years. Burns, the third Republican candidate, hopes voters will note this: He says he's the "only moderate candidate" in the GOP race. 

"This district, the way it has shifted demographically, calls for a more moderate, reasonable approach to our issues and our problems," 

he says. "That's not to say we need to become more Democratic in order to win or succeed."

Burns says his record as Geneva mayor stands as a model of how he would perform as a member of Congress. He promotes increased use of renewable energy, incentives to allow individuals to control their own health care decisions, and empowering state and local governments with the "tools" to fight illegal immigration. 

&"I have done what the Republican Party is looking for," he says. "I have lowered taxes. I have shrunk the size of government. I have improved communications between the private sector and public sector. I have secured immediate and long-term energy needs for my community and clean    water-resource needs. I have improved relationships with the local, state and national levels." Lauzen led the Republicans in fundraising at the end of September with $528,583 on hand. Oberweis had $178,905, while Burns had $51,266.

Democrats also are hoping to win this seat, and a November win for them would be something of a trophy. Hastert, a former high school teacher and wrestling coach, was the longest serving GOP House speaker and hailed from a traditionally Republican district. He was first elected to Congress in 1986, becoming speaker in 1999 after Newt Gingrich resigned. Hastert was replaced as speaker when Republicans lost their majority in the 2006 election. He announced he would retire prior to the end of his term in January 2009, triggering a special election for his congressional seat.

The district runs from Elgin, St. Charles, West Chicago and Batavia to Aurora, taking in Kane and Kendall counties and much of DeKalb County, and west through northern Illinois to Geneseo, near the Quad Cities. Hastert won 59.8 percent of the vote in 2006, while Democrat John Laesch won 40.2 percent. 

President George W. Bush won 55 percent of the vote in 2004, compared to Democrat John Kerry's 44 percent.

Democratic candidates include Fermilab scientist Bill Foster of Geneva and St. Charles lawyer Jotham Stein. Yorkville's Laesch, who is making another attempt at winning the district seat, and small business owner Joe Serra of Geneva also are in the race. Naturally, the Democrats say they're confident the district is ready to embrace one of them. "An early poll in the district is showing a generic Democrat defeating a generic Republican 40 to 30," says Stein, a former law school lecturer now in private practice.

Laesch, a carpenter and former navel intelligence officer, believes three factors bode well for a Democratic general election victory: the changing demographics in the east-suburban side of the district, the growing strength of local Democratic organizations and the continuing presidency of George W. Bush.

"As long as he is in office, we can continue to expect him to stay the course in Iraq and do the will of corporations instead of people," he says.

Foster, also an entrepreneur and the establishment candidate in this race, agrees national fatigue with Bush and his Republican allies may help propel a Democrat into the 14th District seat. "The whole nation is very unhappy with the way George Bush and the Republicans have been leading our country," he says.

Stein has a "10-point plan to fix global warming," including tax breaks for buying fuel-efficient vehicles and using alternative energy sources. He advocates a federal law requiring the government to provide food and health care to every child who lacks either. He also supports universal health care for adults.

Foster believes the key to immigration reform is "an electronically verifiable  tamper-proof worker identification card." He says it's unclear whether every worker in America would have such a card, though he insists it would not be akin to a national ID. On health care, he says the government must encourage greater use of information technology — such as electronic patient records, hospital information systems and community health information networks — to minimize medical errors and reduce costs.

Foster boasts the endorsement of 22 Nobel Prize winners. "The eastern part of the district now understands its future is connected to high-tech industry, and the western part is connected to the future of biofuels," he says. "At either end, they understand that the problems and challenges they will face are economic and technological. As a businessman, I can answer the concerns that they have."

Stein, who specializes in business and employment law, says, "I have lots of experience with jobs and entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, and bringing the kinds of jobs we need to this district."

All three men say the nation must withdraw its troops from Iraq. Laesch, who spent three years living in and studying the Middle East, primarily Iran, goes a step further in saying he opposes any pre-emptive strike in Iran. Foster and Stein do not rule out such an attack, depending on intelligence.

Laesch is jockeying for the far left side of the primary field. He says intraparty conflict between liberal "progressive" and conservative "blue dog" Democrats may play out in the 14th District's Democratic primary, just as in Washington, D.C. He has written several posts for dailykos.com, the nation's premier blog for liberal Democrats. He supports a single-payer, publicly financed national health care plan. 

Foster was well ahead of his opponents in fundraising. He had $407,331 on hand at the end of September, compared to Stein's $60,928 and Laesch's $4,938.

In the 10th District, the demographics and political dynamics of the primary races mirror the 8th District. Republican Kirk represents a district leaning Democratic. Democrat Bean holds a seat that was held for a generation by a Republican. The Democrats hoping to unseat Kirk cast the incumbent as too close to Bush, just as the Republicans hoping to oust Bean paint her as too liberal.

But even as the Democrats hoping to succeed Kirk try to paint him as a hawk, they're careful to avoid painting themselves as too far left.

"Much was said in the last election about soccer moms becoming security moms, and I think that's true," says    Democrat Jay Footlik, a former White House adviser who worked part-time in the Middle East. "And I think people look to their public officials and would-be    public officials for the kind of experience that makes us more secure and makes us safer at home."

The 10th District stretches along the lake shore from Waukegan through Lake Forest and Highland Park to Winnetka, Kenilworth and Wilmette, and west into Libertyville, Vernon Hills, Buffalo Grove, Arlington Heights, Northbrook and Glenview. Kirk has held the seat since 2001, when he succeeded Republican John Porter. He won a comfortable 53.38 percent of the vote in 2006, while Democrat Daniel Seals won 46.62 percent. 

Kerry took 51 percent of the district's vote in 2004, to Bush's 48 percent.

Seals, a business consultant and former GE Capital executive from Wilmette, is trying again to oust Kirk, but he must first contend with Buffalo Grove's Footlik. David Kalbfleisch, a Green Party candidate from Arlington Heights, also is running.

"I think my primary opponent is a good guy and a good man who ran a good race," Footlik says, referring to Seals' first run in 2006, "but he came up short in the best Democratic year in four decades in a solidly Democratic state in a solidly Democratic district."

Seals responds, "The biggest difference between he and I is that I've already demonstrated that I'm not just right on the issues, but also I'm able to draw support from independents and Republicans as well. The folks that are supporting us are already and continue to be supporters."

Both the Democrats are focused on casting themselves as the necessary alternative to Kirk on points such as the war in Iraq and health care. Seals says America must remove its troops from Iraq in a "responsible" fashion, while Footlik says troop removal must occur "safely and responsibly." Both say they would have voted to expand the health care program known as SCHIP, which complements Medicaid. Kirk voted for  the expansion, which proponents said would add another 5 million children to the rolls.

Both candidates are well-funded: Seals had $498,872 on hand at the end of September, compared to Footlik's $414,018. Seals has support from local heavyweights such as Evanston Democrat Rep. Jan Schakowsky who argue Footlik will only dilute Seals' strength in a general election battle with Kirk. Footlik has strong ties to the local Jewish community — a substantial constituency in the district. He was President Bill Clinton's liaison to this community.

State Sen. Jeff Schoenberg, an Evanston Democrat, complained to Roll Call that Footlik threatened to "effectively do Mark Kirk's work for him in splintering off a traditionally strong segment of the Democratic vote."

"Jay is unwittingly driving a wedge into some solidly Democratic precincts, which are heavily Jewish, by raising unfounded fears about Dan Seals' record on Israel," Schoenberg said, according to Roll Call.

Footlik responds, "That's one person's view, and he is certainly entitled to it."

The 8th District, immediately to the west, is more expansive. It reaches from tiny Hebron in northern McHenry County south through Woodstock, McHenry, Wauconda and Lake Zurich to eastern Elgin, east along the state line to Winthrop Harbor and Zion, then southeast into Gurnee, Grayslake and Mundelein.

Bean won the district seat in 2004 from longtime Republican Rep. Phil Crane. She kept it in 2006, a tremendous year for Democrats nationwide, with just 50.9 percent of the vote. Republican David McSweeney won 44 percent, and "moderate" candidate Bill Scheurer took 5.1 percent. Bush won 55 percent of this district's vote in 2004, compared to Kerry's 44 percent.

"We have a great opportunity to take this seat back," says Steve Greenberg, a Long Grove businessman and former professional hockey player.

Greenberg is facing fellow Republican Kenneth Arnold, a human resources and employee benefits consultant from Gurnee. Arnold ran unsuccessfully in 2006, losing the GOP nomination to McSweeney. Kirk Morris, a Gurnee man who lost his son to the Iraq war, also is in the GOP primary.

Both Greenberg and Arnold tout their business prowess and advocate lower taxes. Arnold pledges to get tough on illegal immigration, while Greenberg says the nation must "stay on offense" in the "terrorists' war."

Greenberg enjoys support from such establishment Republicans as Bob Kjellander, a Springfield lobbyist and the Illinois GOP's national committeeman, and from corporate moguls like Charles         Walgreen, chairman emeritus of Walgreen Co. Arnold calls himself a "reform" Republican and tags Greenberg as a member of the party's "George Ryan wing." As evidence, he points to a $1,000 donation that Greenberg accepted from Kjellander, whose business activities are a frequent target of conservative Republicans. "That's a distinct contrast between us — as to who is who and who is supporting who in this race," Arnold says.

Greenberg had $160,700 on hand at the end of September, to Arnold's $7,849. Morris had not established a campaign fund by that time.

Bean also is facing Democratic primary challenges from artist Randi Scheurer of Lindenhurst. Iain Abernathy, a Moderate Party candidate from Round Lake Beach, also is running.

In the 18th District, downstate Republicans have lined up for the chance to succeed LaHood and keep the district in their party's corner. The GOP candidates are state Rep. Aaron Schock of Peoria, 

Jim McConoughey of Dunlap and former Peoria City Council member John Morris. On the Democratic side, Dick Versace, a former Bradley University basketball and NBA coach, is running unopposed.

The 18th District blends urban and rural communities, stretching from Knox, Stark and Putnam counties south through Peoria to Springfield, east over the northern edge of Decatur, and west through Jacksonville to Adams County, just shy of Quincy. LaHood won a whopping 67.28 percent 

of the vote in 2006, while Democrat Steve Waterworth won just 32.72. Bush won 57 percent of the district's vote in 2004, stomping Kerry's 42 percent.

Schock, a second-term state representative, is the front-runner because of his name recognition. He was first elected to the Peoria School Board at 19, and later defeated an incumbent Democrat in his first run for the Illinois House. He is just 26, one of the state's youngest legislators. "We're ahead in the polls and ahead in the fundraising, but having run against incumbents and beat them, I've always said that overconfidence will kill anyone," Schock says.

He advocates lower taxation, a tougher national stance on immigration and continuing the war in Iraq while pressuring the Iraqi government to stabilize its political climate.

"I believe there is a direct correlation to us fighting the war on terror in their region as opposed to in our home," he says.

In mid-November, Schock waded into foreign policy with a radical stance on a hot topic. He said America could give nuclear weapons to Taiwan, a nation long at odds with neighboring China, which views it as a breakaway province.

"If China continues to be irresponsible about nuclear proliferation in Iran, we should tell them that if they do not care about proliferation — and since they are enablers of it in Iran — that if they don't change their position, we will sell Pershing nuclear missiles to Taiwan for their defense," Schock said in a speech, according to the Springfield State Journal-Register.

After Bernard Schoenburg, a Journal-Register columnist, reported on the remark, and McConoughey and Morris criticized it, Schock formally retracted the statement.

McConoughey is president and CEO of Heartland Partnership, an economic development group. He is positioning himself as the rural candidate in the pack, saying he would focus on agricultural and other rural initiatives, such as creating additional markets for American farm products abroad while ending inheritance taxes on family-owned farmland. 

"I've done most of the work that my opponents are saying they'd like to be able to do in policy," he says. "I've done economic development. I've done infrastructure. I've done federal policy. I wrote a bill that got passed to organize a port authority."

McConoughey, the one candidate in the GOP pack who has not been elected to office, says voters like that he is "not a political insider or professional politician."

"Given the nature of not only our benchmark polling but just being out in the field meeting people, this has been a very high positive," he says. "Not being part of the political system is apparently a very positive feature."

Morris, the third GOP hopeful, calls himself the "only conservative candidate in the race." He casts himself as a hawk on the Iraq war, national security and illegal immigration.

"Faith and family are paramount to me," he says. "I think those are the answers to society's real issues — not new expenditures of the federal government."

In touting his own credentials, Morris alludes both to McConoughey's lack of experience in elected office and Schock's desire to jump from Springfield to Washington, D.C. "I'm not sure Washington is the place to try things out," he says. "I've got eight years of learning how to get things done, finding solutions and working hard to fight for a conservative outlook on the [city] council. I finished two full terms. I'm not skipping along from job to job."

Morris also slaps at Schock's relative youth by emphasizing his own "life perspective." He says, "I think life   experience is important to have. When you go to Washington, D.C., you ought to know yourself."

Schock responds with his own spin on the words of Ronald Reagan during the 1984 debate. "After four years on the school board and four years in the legislature, if all they can do is make an issue of my age, I'd say I've done a pretty good job," he says. "As Ronald Reagan said, 'I'm not going to use my age against them.'"

Schock led in fundraising at the end of September, with $301,239 on hand. Morris had $197,350 and McConoughey had $55,300.

Other notable primary contests  feature Republicans in the 11th District held by Weller and Democrats in the 6th District held by Roskam. In the 3rd District, U.S. Rep. Daniel Lipinski also is facing multiple Democratic challengers.

In the 11th District, Republican candidates include New Lenox Mayor Tim Baldermann, Jimmy Lee, a former White House staffer from North Utica, and airline pilot Terry Heenan, a New Lenox Republican.

They will square off for the chance to face state Sen. Debbie Halvorson, the majority leader from Crete, who is unopposed in the Democratic primary. Jason Wallace, a student at Illinois State University in Normal, is running as a Green Party candidate.

The 11th District includes Joliet and southwest suburbs New Lenox, Mokena, Frankfort and Crete, cutting south and west through Kankakee, Ottawa and Princeton, then south to Bloomington. 

In 2006, Weller won 55.1 percent of the vote, against Democrat John Pavich's 44.9 percent. Bush won 52 percent to Kerry's 45 percent.

Weller, who is married to a Guatemalan lawmaker, announced his retirement in September amid reports about questionable Nicaraguan land deals.

In the 6th District held by Roskam, Democrats will attempt once again to capture the seat held for a generation by GOP stalwart Henry Hyde. Roskam won the seat in 2006, beating back a challenge from Tammy Duckworth, an Army officer who lost her legs fighting in the Iraq war.

The Democratic front-runner this time around is another veteran, U.S. Army Reserve Ret. Col. Jill Morgenthaler of Des Plaines. Morganthaler, who left her post as homeland security adviser to Gov. Rod Blagojevich to run her race for Congress, faces Stan Jagla of Roselle in the primary.

Lipinski, a Western Springs Democrat, faces several primary challengers. In fact, two of those contenders — Palos Hills Mayor Jerry Bennett and Army officer Jim Capparelli — have disputed allegations they joined the race at the behest of machine Democrats to dilute potential   support for Mark Pera, a former prosecutor from Western Springs determined to unseat Lipinski.

Daniel Lipinski succeeded his powerful father in the seat three years ago. Bill Lipinski won the Democratic nomin-ation in 2004, then withdrew from the race and engineered his son's slating to the November ballot. The younger Lipinski, then a political science professor in Tennessee, handily won the general election. Liberal Democrats, particularly     bloggers, are now targeting Daniel Lipinski for his conservative views.

The national parties aren't waiting until after the primary to gear up their organizations in Illinois. They're already on the ground and mobilizing to fight over this state's congressional districts. GOP consultant John McGovern, formerly a top aide to Hastert, says he is optimistic his party will keep its seats in Illinois.

"With three open seats at stake, national Republicans have a compelling interest in making Illinois a top target," he says. "Since all three districts are reliably Republican in nature, the increased financial and political support at the national level will generate added energy and excitement in those areas and could help increase the GOP turnout in Illinois in an already intense presidential year."

Ryan Rudominer, a spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, says Illinois Republicans are in trouble.

"The political environment in Illinois continues to cause major headaches for cash-strapped Washington Republicans," he says, "and it's only getting worse with Republicans recently being blindsided by retirements, nasty infighting and a voting public that's fed up with President Bush." 

Note: The State Board of Elections had until December 6 to certify ballots for counties. Because Illinois Issueswent to press before that date, some candidates we identify may not appear on the ballot.

Aaron Chambers is Statehouse bureau chief for the Rockford Register Star.

Illinois Issues, January 2008