This is our third and final installment of endorsements for contested U.S. House primaries. You’ll find candidates’ answers to our surveys, and our endorsements for the March 20 primary, at chicagotribune.com/candidates.
10th District
The north suburban 10th Congressional District has toggled between red and blue in the last four elections. It’s now represented by Democratic Rep. Brad Schneider, who is unopposed in the primary. Three Republicans want to take him on: Jeremy Wynes, a foreign policy lobbyist from Highland Park; Sapan Shah, a physician and entrepreneur from Libertyville; and Douglas R. Bennett, a business consultant from Deerfield.
Wynes is the type of fiscally conservative, socially moderate candidate the 10th District favors. A former regional director for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, he says the U.S. needs a strong military to promote security and check aggression around the world. He supports President Donald Trump’s decision to shift the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. “We have a better chance of a peaceful resolution of the Israel-Palestinian issue when we stand close to our ally,” he tells us. On the key issue of health coverage, including Medicare’s shaky future, he says the answer is to encourage competition, not expand federal control. “Less government involvement and more private market participation is a good thing.”
Shah, who founded a malpractice insurance brokerage, also warns against a shift in health insurance toward more government control. He favors term limits and says he’d serve six years max. Bennett, a social conservative, is vice chair of the West Deerfield Township Republican Organization. Wynes is endorsed.
11th District
Republican Nick Stella, of Darien, a cardiologist, is running again in the 11th Congressional District after losing in the 2016 primary. As we noted last time, Stella is well-prepared to address deficiencies in the Affordable Care Act. Stella is endorsed over Constant G. “Connor” Vlakancic, of Naperville. Rep. Bill Foster is unopposed on the Democratic side.
12th District
Republican Rep. Mike Bost of Murphysboro seeks a third term representing the 12th Congressional District. Bost is focused on key southern Illinois issues, such as supporting farmers and the military. The district is home to Scott Air Force Base. Bost’s opponent, Preston Nelson, of Benton, is a wireless network technician who describes himself as Libertarian. He would end foreign aid to other nations and says our military should not rely on “or even work so much in conjunction” with allies.
On the Democratic side, Brendan Kelly, of Swansea, the state’s attorney for St. Clair County, has made combating the opioid epidemic a campaign issue. Kelly told The Southern Illinoisan that a joint effort from law enforcement and the mental health and substance treatment fields is required: “We are going to break our justice system if we don’t have people from both sides come forward.” Also running is David Bequette, a marketing consultant from Columbia.
Bost and Kelly ducked scrutiny by declining to answer our candidate survey. We’ll go with no endorsement in the Democratic and Republican races. Randy Auxier is the Green Party candidate.
13th District
Five downstate Democrats want to take on 13th Congressional District Republican Rep. Rodney Davis of Taylorville in November. Our pick is Erik Jones, of Edwardsville, whose background as a government attorney at the state and federal levels would give him a running start in Congress. Jones is a former assistant attorney general in Illinois and former counsel to U.S. House and U.S. Senate committees in Washington. “Congress has an important oversight role to play, no matter who the president is,” Jones wrote in his Tribune questionnaire. Another intriguing candidate is Betsy Dirksen Londrigan, of Springfield, who has worked as a fundraiser for Sen. Dick Durbin but is running for the first time. She says her first goal is to stabilize the Affordable Care Act, but ultimately she wants a universal health insurance program. Other candidates include David M. Gill, a physician from Bloomington who has run for Congress repeatedly; Jon Ebel, a religion professor from Urbana; and Angel Sides, of Springfield. Jones is endorsed.
14th District
Seven Democrats running in the 14th Congressional District primary seek to challenge Republican Rep. Randy Hultgren of Plano. They include Jim Walz, of Gurnee, a sales representative who challenged Hultgren in 2016; Victor Swanson, a high school social studies teacher from Batavia; John J. Hosta, a business owner from Spring Grove; George Weber, a retired chemical engineer from Lakewood; and Daniel Roldan-Johnson, a teacher from Volo.
Two others stand out: Matthew Brolley, an engineer, is the mayor of Montgomery. He says the job taught him how to build consensus and coalitions. “Mayors have to get stuff done,” he told us. “We can’t get stuck in the squabbling.” Our favorite is Lauren Underwood, of Naperville, a nurse and former Obama administration health policy adviser who works for a Medicaid managed care plan. Underwood says the Affordable Care Act was obstructed by Republicans but can be stabilized. “Americans need health care,” she told us. “The free market-only approach, without oversight and intervention in terms of reforms and certain requirements, didn’t work. We tried it for decades.” Underwood has political experience and boundless enthusiasm. She is endorsed.
15th District
In the 15th Congressional District in southeast Illinois, incumbent Republican Rep. John Shimkus of Collinsville will face one of two Democratic challengers. Kevin Gaither, of Charleston, who operates a tutoring business, wants to boost the local economy by increasing Small Business Administration resources and cutting regulatory burdens on small oil and gas companies. Gaither also advocates legalizing industrial hemp. Also running is Carl Spoerer, a marketing executive from Mahomet, who says he would tackle the deficit by reducing military spending by 30 percent. In his Tribune survey, he calls for the government to “immediately” start a single-payer health care system because “the free market has shown it will not necessarily look out for the best interests of the people.” Gaither is more realistic about health care reforms, saying he could not support a Medicare-for-all plan without a specific funding plan. Gaither is endorsed.
16th District
Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Channahon, who supported President Trump’s tax reform measures, says he’s already seeing benefits from the deal in the 16th Congressional District. “Businesses across the nation are announcing that they are reinvesting in their workforces,” he notes in his Tribune questionnaire. Kinzinger, seeking his fifth term, faces a challenge from the right by James T. Marter, of Oswego, who wants to eliminate nearly all of the Internal Revenue Service and institute a 10 percent flat tax on individuals and businesses. Kinzinger, a pilot in the Air National Guard, has a broad, balanced perspective on the issues. Kinzinger is endorsed.
Four Democrats are running in the 16th. All are new to politics. Neill Mohammad, of DeKalb, a health care management consultant, and Sara Dady, of Rockford, an immigration lawyer, want the government to take control of the health care system via a universal single-payer insurance system. Amy “Murri” Briel, of Joliet, director of coaching for a kids’ soccer club and a former social service agency case manager, is more pragmatic. She’d like everyone to have some form of health care coverage, but says the way to start is to preserve Obamacare. Also on the ballot is Beth Vercolio-Osmund, of Ottawa, who runs a farm with her husband. Briel is endorsed.
18th District
Finishing his first full term representing the 18th Congressional District, Republican Rep. Darin LaHood of Peoria faces a primary challenge from Donald Ray Rients, of Benson, who also ran for the seat in 2015. We think voters got it right the first time. LaHood recently joined the Ways and Means Committee, which holds sway over tax and trade issues. LaHood supported tax reform, as we did. He also agrees that the United States in the era of globalization can’t turn its back on trade. LaHood is endorsed.
There are three candidates in the Democratic primary. Junius Rodriguez, a history professor at Eureka College, challenged LaHood in 2016. Brian J. Deters, a high school teacher from Morton, has lived in Switzerland for several years due to his wife’s job. Then there is Darrel Miller, a farmer from Danvers who also has run previously, as a Republican and a Democrat. Miller is deeply informed on the issues and takes a pragmatic approach to thorny problems. Miller is endorsed.
