Casten, Garcia face primary foes in congressional primaries

By Bob Bong

Sean Casten

Incumbent 6^th District Congressman Sean Casten has another primary campaign on his hands.

In 2022, he and fellow incumbent Marie Newman squared off in a heated campaign after they were both thrown into the newly drawn district, which runs from Orland Park to Lombard.

This time, he’s facing off with newcomer Mahnoor Ahmad, of Oakbrook Terrace, and Charles Hughes, of Chicago. Hughes ran against Marie Newman in 2020 and Casten and Newman in 2022.

Casten is a climate scientist and he has championed climate change legislation since being elected to Congress in 2018. Legislation he has backed has secured more than $1 billion for clean energy battery storage and research and development of low-carbon industrial technologies.

Mahnoor Ahmad

“Last year in the United States, climate-related weather disasters cost us $176 billion. Climate risk is not going away,” he said.

He has also focused on families by fighting inflation, worked to lower prescription drug prices, and believes in gun reforms including universal background checks.

He also has voted against more military aid to Israel until the U.S. provides more humanitarian aid for Gaza.

“The United States has a duty to provide aid to our allies in their times of need. That includes Israel, and I stand ready to support serious efforts to assist Israel in its absolute right to defend itself. Hamas gains power in the region in part because they are the provider of food, fuel, water, and housing. The United States must provide necessary humanitarian aid to Gaza to rebuild, suppress the power of extremist voices, and help ensure a more durable regional peace.”

He hails from Downers Grove but has made multiple visits to the south suburban portion of the district and has held town hall meetings in Orland Park and Palos Park as well as opening a satellite office in Oak Forest.

Ahmad, a health care advocate making her first bid for elected office, was born in Pakistan.

She has criticized Casten for ignoring his constituents stretching back to 2020 and the Sterigenics controversy, where he ignored constituent requests to meet his voters and address their concerns about a cancer cluster in Willowbrook.

She said her main issues include expanding Social Security benefits, protecting pensions, Medicare for all, supporting family caregivers, income inequality, and immigration reform.

“I will advocate for increasing Social Security benefits to ensure that seniors can retire with dignity and financial security,” she said. “That includes measures to adjust the cost-of-living adjustment formula to better reflect the expenses seniors face.

“I am 100% in favor of protecting workers’ pensions and expanding pension coverage to more workers. I support legislation to strengthen pension protections and ensure that workers receive the retirement benefits they have earned.

“I have always been and will be vocal proponent of Medicare for All, a single-payer healthcare system that would provide comprehensive coverage, including long-term care, to all Americans. I believe that Medicare for All would help address the rising costs of long-term care and ensure that everyone has access to the care they need as they age. This includes Dental, Vision, and Hearing.

As for immigration, she believes in a pathway for citizenship for undocumented immigrants already living in the United States as well as protection for Dreamers, children who came here with their parents.

She supports measures to enhance border security without demonizing immigrants and giving them humane treatment.

Hughes is making his third run for Congress. His career includes working at the City of Chicago Water Department, the city’s fleet management, and for Nicor/AGL Resources Local 19.

The district includes all or parts of Orland Park, Palos Heights, Palos Park, Oak Lawn, Hickory Hills, Evergreen Park, Worth, Chicago Ridge, Palos Hills Bridgeview, Bedford Park, Willow Springs, Countryside, Hodgkins, and portions of Chicago’s Clearing and Garfield Ridge neighborhoods.

The winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican Niki Conforti, of Glen Ellyn, in the Nov. 5 general election.

Garcia vs. Lopez in 4^th District

U.S. Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García is running against 15th Ward Ald. Raymond Lopez in the Democratic primary next week.

The district covers most of the Southwest Side and portions of suburban Lyons, Stickney, Summit and McCook.

García is a longtime Little Village resident. Lopez is a Garfield Ridge native who lives in Brighton Park.

No Republican has filed to run in that race, so whoever wins the March 19 Democratic primary will almost certainly be elected in November.

The contrasts between García and Lopez can be stark. Both are liberal Democrats yet part ways on issues such as crime prevention. Lopez, a longtime and high-profile foe of gangs, favors a more traditional, police-driven approach. García favors more of a social-worker, conflict-resolution view that aims to prevent crime by committing resources to fighting poverty and racism.

They also appear to differ on how to approach the migrant crisis. Through his political surrogates, García has been an ally of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s approach to house migrants in large facilities. In the 22nd Ward—the heart of García’s political power—Johnson established a “welcoming center” for migrants at Piotrowski Park, with another migrant site now open at a former CVS store near 26th and Pulaski.

Lopez, on the other hand, has been an open critic of Johnson, especially regarding his plan to build a tent encampment for migrants at 38th and California, on a vacant lot with soil found to be polluted from years of industrial use. (The plan was since cancelled by Governor JB Pritzker.)

While both are essentially liberals, García embraces the leftist ideology he follows and has been consistent about that throughout his career. Lopez, on the other hand, has been trying to market himself as a centrist alternative. He frequently refers to himself as a “common-sense Democrat”—which many interpret as being synonymous with pragmatic and therefore not bound to ideology.

One thing Lopez is doing differently this campaign relates to his sexual orientation. His campaign materials note that he is running to be Illinois’ first openly gay Hispanic congressman.

Lopez also has repeatedly criticized García for allegedly refusing to debate.

1^st District

The 1st Congressional District includes all or parts of Wrightwood, Ashburn, Parkview, Scottsdale and Chicago Lawn and portions of suburban Evergreen Park.

The incumbent is Democrat Jonathan L. Jackson, of South Shore. He has no primary opposition. Vying to face him are Republican hopefuls Marcus Lewis, of suburban Matteson, and Montelle L. Gaji, of Woodlawn.

Tim Hadac contributed to this report