Biss-Elleson congressional candidate forum set for this month in Skokie

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

Congressional nominees Daniel Biss and John Elleson will attend their first joint candidate forum for the 9th Congressional District race Thursday, Sept. 24. The event will be hosted by chapters of the League of Women Voters from across the far-flung district, which stretches from the city’s far North Side through Skokie and part of Wilmette and up to McHenry County.

The forum will be held from 6:30-7:30 p.m. at the Skokie Public Library, 5215 Oakton St., with a meet-and-greet session with the candidates to follow. A recording of the event will be uploaded to the League of Women Voters of Evanston’s website afterward for on-demand viewing. LWV chapters out of Wilmette and Glenview/Glencoe are also supporting the event.

Residents are invited to submit questions for the forum through Friday, Sept. 18, for potential inclusion. “Questions should be directed to both candidates, not individuals,” according to the event page, and not all questions are guaranteed to be asked.

Biss and Elleson won their parties’ nominations in the March 17 primary through markedly different races. Biss, currently the mayor of Evanston, won the Democratic side with 29.4% of the vote in a crowded race of 14 opponents in which tens of millions of dollars were spent by top candidates and outside super PACs.

Elleson, a pastor from Arlington Heights, won the Republican side with a near-majority of 48.9% over just three opponents, without ever forming a campaign committee to officially raise or spend money.

The competitive gap is demonstrated by the two sides’ vote totals, as the Democratic primary had more than eight times as many votes as the Republican primary. The 9th District is a historic Democratic stronghold, with the party holding the seat uninterrupted since 1949 and incumbent U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky winning each of her 14 terms with at least 66% of the vote in the general election.

Between this history and the district’s current gerrymandered borders, Biss is the heavy favorite to win the general election. He already plans to leave his mayoral seat by Oct. 18, triggering an election for Evanston in early 2027 for the last two years of his term that has already drawn seven candidates at time of writing.

Notably, after raising more than $2.8 million through the end of March for the primary, Biss raised only $115,458 between April and June and, per reporting from Politico, has been working to boost other Democrats, like Montana candidate Sam Forstag and U.S. Reps. Frank Mrvan (IN 1st) and Josh Riley (NY 19th). Elleson, meanwhile, still does not have an official campaign committee at time of writing, indicating he is not officially fundraising or spending for his campaign.

A spokesperson for Biss confirmed last week that no other events featuring both candidates are scheduled at this time.

Mail ballots for the general election will be sent out starting Thursday, Sept. 24, and local early voting will begin Monday, Oct. 19. Election Day nationwide is Tuesday, Nov. 3.

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