Schakowsky backs Evanston mayor to take over congressional seat

(Editor’s Note: Alex Harrison reported this story for the Evanston RoundTable, a neighboring independent newsroom. It was shared with The Record as part of an ongoing collaborative effort.)

U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky on Wednesday endorsed Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss in a highly fractured Democratic primary to take over her 9th Congressional District seat.

In an announcement from Biss’ campaign on Wednesday, Schakowsky said she feels a “deep responsibility” for her successor having the right traits to represent the district.

“Daniel has served our community as an activist, a legislator, and now as Mayor of Evanston, and he has earned our trust and respect,” Schakowsky wrote in the announcement. “We cannot allow out-of-state donors and special interests to buy this seat, and Daniel is the candidate with the deepest local support.”

Schakowsky has represented the 9th District since 1999, and announced last May that she would retire at the end of her current 14th term. While a handful of Democrats had already launched campaigns by then, most notably Kat Abughazaleh, her exit prompted a flood of new bids from elected officials and others in the district. Seventeen candidates are set to appear on the March 17 primary ballot.

The race also includes Wilmette resident Phil Andrew, a gun-violence survivor and former FBI agent; and Skokie’s Bushra Amiwala, who is a member of the Skokie District 73.5 Board of Education.

Biss has long had close ties with Schakowsky, receiving her endorsement in past campaigns and having her introduce him at his mayoral reelection campaign kickoff last January. In Wednesday’s announcement, he cited her as a role model for his political career and wrote that it “means the world” to have her endorsement.

“In an era when ‘fighting’ has become a political buzzword, Jan has shown us what being a fighter really means — for peace, for justice, for people and the planet,” Biss wrote. “In this race, we are building a grassroots local campaign to carry on Jan’s mission in the 9th District, and I am truly humbled to have her support.”

Until this week, the longtime congresswoman had stayed mum about her preferred candidate, even as several leading contenders lobbied to be her chosen successor. Her announcement Wednesday came just as the campaign is intensifying, with end-of-year fundraising funneled into new TV ads and national pro-Israel lobby AIPAC reportedly pressuring one candidate, Bruce Leon, to drop out and consolidate support behind Ill. Sen. Laura Fine (9th District).

Fine reportedly was among those seeking Schakowsky’s endorsement, and following initial reports Tuesday anticipating Biss’ selection instead, she publicly disparaged the move in a statement posted to social media that called out Biss by name.

“I respect Congresswoman Schakowsky’s service, but this race is about the future of our community, not the past,” Fine wrote. “She’s wrong about Daniel Biss and my record shows that I’ll fight the hardest to protect residents in the 9th Congressional district from the billionaires and insurance companies that Donald Trump is determined to let screw us over.”

Abughazaleh’s campaign was more dismissive, writing that “When an insurgent campaign starts breaking through, the establishment reacts.”

“We are proud of the momentum we’re building and remain focused on organizing, listening, and earning support across the Ninth District because we deserve good things,” spokesperson Ramiro Sarmiento wrote.

While Schakowsky stands out as the retiring incumbent, she offered the race one of hundreds of endorsements — whether from organizations, elected officials and other notables. Veteran political consultant Thom Serafin compared them to ornaments on a Christmas tree, where even a large and flashy endorsement can “fall flat” in a long enough list.

“People that have the resources for an ornament, like an endorsement, usually have massive numbers of opportunities and resources to move it around, to use it to their advantage,” Serafin said.

Speaking to the 9th District race, he said Schakowsky picking Biss wasn’t too surprising, describing them as “birds of a feather.” Picking anyone at this point was more noteworthy, he said, as entering January with about 10 weeks until Election Day, “if she’s going to have anything to say about this race,” she’d need to say it soon.

“She’s out there enough now to give [Biss] a clear opportunity to take advantage of it, before everybody else starts pummeling each other with radio, TV, social media,” Serafin said.

Voting in the primary election will begin with mail ballots being sent out starting Feb. 5, and early voting begins March 2 at several local sites, including the Wilmette Community Rec Center, 3000 Glenview Road; Oakton College, 7701 N. Lincoln Ave., Skokie; Skokie Courthouse (cafeteria Room 100), 5600 Old Orchard Road; and Robert Crown Community Center, 1801 Main Street, Evanston.

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