The two main contenders to replace U.S. Rep. Chuy Garcia (4th) dropped the gloves at a candidate forum two weeks before Election Day.
More than 125 people packed the Berwyn City Council chamber for the Oct. 20 forum.
The four candidates answered questions submitted by the public during the roughly 90-minute forum: Republican Lupe Castillo, independent Christopher Getty, Democrat Patty Garcia and Ed Hershey of the Working Class Party.
Late in the forum, Garcia called Getty “a crook and a fraud.” Garcia was chief of staff for Chuy Garcia and is not related to him. Getty is the Lyons mayor and Lyons Township supervisor.
The audience, stacked with supporters of both Garcia and Getty, cheered and gasped.
A moment later, Getty said Garcia’s campaign “started with a lie.” Again, cheers and gasps filled the chamber.
Getty’s complaint is about timing. Chuy Garcia did not announce that he would not seek re-election until the day before filing closed in October 2025, giving Patty Garcia an early start over the other hopefuls.
Garcia accused Getty of mishandling campaign funds. She cited a Patch story that reported he used money intended for local races on a federal race. Getty denied the accusation.
Asked about her candidacy, Garcia said she had less than 24 hours to decide whether to run after Chuy Garcia said he would not.
Getty called the move “election subversion.”
“This is taking the voice away from the people. This is not just Chris Getty saying this. The House of Representatives voted to censure Chuy Garcia and Patty Garcia for their actions,” Getty said. “She was forced to resign as his chief of staff.”
Garcia said other candidates were able to gather the petition signatures needed to get on the ballot, and that district residents will have their say when they cast their votes.
At the start of the forum, Getty said, “This is what government should look like. You should be able to address your leaders and hold them accountable.”
Candidates fielded questions on ICE, immigration, taxes, the minimum wage, what improvements they would bring to the district and their top priorities if elected.
Each had 90 seconds to answer and 30 seconds to rebut the others’ comments.
Hershey, a Chicago teacher, said he was running because “inflation and the prices are eating into our lives.” He said both parties are to blame.
Garcia said she would abolish ICE, drawing a roar of approval from the audience. She said the money should go to what people care about and need.
“Not one more penny to ICE,” Garcia said. “ICE has received $175 billion. Think what we can do with that money. Build housing. Send kids to school. Feed our seniors. Feed our neighbors.”
Getty said that since his campaign began in January, he has learned that “affordability is the No. 1 issue.”
“This is a district of immigrants,” Getty said. “We can have secure borders and be a nation that welcomes everyone.”
Castillo, who grew up in Texas, said, “we need to enforce our immigration laws but we need to have people here.”
“Medicare will go broke if they impose Medicare for all,” she said.
Hershey said wages must rise to keep up with prices: “That can only change if working people fight for it.”
On taxes, Castillo said taxing billionaires would raise prices and drive companies out of the state. She said Tyson Foods, Caterpillar and True Value have already left Illinois over taxes.
“That does not help us,” Castillo said.
Taxes “should be fair, understandable and help our economy grow, but I don’t think we should punish high income earners,” said Getty, who said he would focus on closing tax loopholes.
Garcia said tax breaks for the wealthy hurt most people. “I believe we have to tax them their fair share.”
All four said they would work to bring more federal money to the district for aging infrastructure and flooding.
Castillo recalled losing her family’s home to flooding when she was a girl. “Yes, we need to bring more money to our communities to address flooding.”
The candidates also discussed artificial intelligence. Each called for regulations or safeguards.
“AI is something America can take the lead on. But at the same time, we have to be cautious. We need a national framework,” Getty said.
Garcia said AI raises airfare prices when someone searches for flights on a home computer. “It needs to be regulated,” she said.
Castillo wants data centers to have their own power and water sources.
“Where you going to put it, by the (former Hawthorne) racetrack? We don’t have any room (for data centers),” she said.
All but Castillo called for raising the federal minimum wage, now $7.25 an hour. Garcia wants it set at $25 an hour.
All but Hershey expressed interest in term limits for Congress. Getty suggested an age limit for the Supreme Court.
In his closing statement, Getty, a Morton West High School graduate, said that when he was first elected mayor, “Lyons was a divided town. We see that now in this country.”
“We need to break this madness,” he said. “We need to elect an independent who’s going to put the people of this district first.”
Garcia said “nothing was ever handed to me,” adding that she “worked hard” on Chuy Garcia’s staff. She said she has received more than 200 endorsements during her campaign.
Early voting is open throughout the district. Polling places will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Nov. 3 for Election Day.