Tim McCarthy, the former Secret Service agent wounded in the 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan, said Wednesday that he is receiving “overwhelming” support for his contemplated run for Illinois secretary of state.
But the 48-year-old McCarthy, a South Side Chicago native who serves as police chief in Orland Park, said he will wait at least two to four weeks to decide whether to seek the Democratic nomination for the post.
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“I’m looking at it very seriously, but I’m not ready to announce yet whether or not I will be running,” he said.
McCarthy, who served in the Secret Service for 22 years, including 14 years as head of the service’s Chicago field office, said he began considering running for the secretary of state’s post after the current officeholder, George Ryan, announced this month his decision to run for the GOP nomination for governor.
Since then, McCarthy said, “I have spoken to quite a few people about the possibility of seeking the secretary of state post. And, as a result of those talks, I’ve found that there would be a great deal of support for my candidacy if I choose to seek the job.
“As a matter of fact, the support I’ve gotten so far has been overwhelming. If I choose to run, all indications are that the money and organization would be there to support me.”
McCarthy, son of a former Chicago police sergeant, was a Secret Service agent assigned to the presidential detail in 1981 when he stood between Reagan and John Hinckley Jr. outside the Washington Hilton Hotel in the nation’s capital and took one of six bullets Hinckley fired at the president.
The bullet hit McCarthy in the chest, sending him to the hospital in critical condition. Four months later, he was back on the job.
After leaving the Secret Service in 1993, McCarthy, who lives in Orland Park, went to work as an executive for a security firm in Oak Brook. But he said he missed the excitement of public service, and in May 1994 he accepted the job of police chief in Orland Park.
Should McCarthy decide to run for the Democratic nomination for secretary of state, he could face competition from others in the party more politically experienced. Among those mentioned as possible candidates are Cook County Sheriff Michael Sheahan, Chicago City Clerk James Laski and Cook County Recorder of Deeds Jesse White.
Among the Republicans who have been mentioned as possible candidates for the post are Illinois House Minority Leader Lee Daniels, state Comptroller Loleta Didrickson and DuPage County Board Chairman Gayle Franzen.