Democrat Dan Seals will get his third crack at a North Shore congressional seat, facing Republican political rookie Robert Dold in what’s expected to be an expensive, nationally watched contest this fall.
Seals squeaked out a win Tuesday against state Rep. Julie Hamos in the 10th Congressional District Democratic primary. With 99 percent of the unofficial results in, Seals had 48 percent to 46 percent for Hamos. Late in the evening, Seals declared victory after Hamos conceded.
On the Republican side, Dold will try to succeed five-term U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, who opted to run for U.S. Senate instead of seeking re-election.
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In another contest that attracted some national attention, Ethan Hastert, son of former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, conceded defeat in the Republican primary to state Sen. Randy Hultgren in the far west suburban 14th Congressional District.
Both suburban districts could be in play as Republicans try to make gains in the House against the Democrats.
Along the North Shore, Dold, a Kenilworth pest control company owner, portrayed himself as the best candidate to take up Kirk’s mantle.
“We need to focus on common-sense, small-business thinking,” Dold said after declaring victory Tuesday night.
Dold got 39 percent in a five-way primary, with state Rep. Elizabeth Coulson of Glenview finishing second with 31 percent.
On the Democratic side, Seals held on against Hamos, a fundraising powerhouse and veteran state lawmaker from Wilmette. Having twice run unsuccessfully against Kirk, Seals took significant name recognition into the contest.
The 14th District contest saw Hastert come up short in his bid to take back a Kane County seat his father held for decades before retiring in late 2007. But the Hastert name might have proved as much as a burden as a blessing as some conservative voters resented the 31-year-old Hastert’s first run being for such a high-profile office.
Hultgren scored 55 percent to Hastert’s 45 percent with 98 percent of the vote counted. He’ll take on Democratic U.S. Rep. Bill Foster in November.
The contest turned nasty in the final weeks, with Hultgren accusing Hastert of working for a law firm that represented companies with a history of human trafficking. In response, Hastert had his wife record a phone message to voters blasting Hultgren, who later apologized.
In the far southwest suburban 11th District, 31-year-old Air Force Capt. Adam Kinzinger of Manteno easily bested a crowded Republican field, scoring 63 percent with 100 percent of the vote counted. Kinzinger will take on freshman Democratic U.S. Rep. Debbie Halvorson of Crete, who won the longtime Republican seat in 2008.
In the northwest suburban 8th District, business fundraiser Joe Walsh of Winnetka, who once ran as a liberal Republican, outpaced five other Republicans (this sentence as published has been corrected in this text).
He’s now set to face Democratic U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean of Barrington.
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