Illinois incumbents in Congress have fundraising advantage over rivals heading into March primary

WASHINGTON — The latest Federal Election Commission disclosure reports show that heading into the March 19 Illinois primary, U.S. House incumbents in the most contested races — Danny Davis, Sean Casten, Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, Bill Foster and Mike Bost — have more cash on hand than their rivals.

The year-end FEC reports, due Jan. 31, cover fundraising for 2023.

Once again — and this has been the case for years — the champion fundraiser among House members from Illinois is U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., who collected $5,529,137 in 2023 and who has a balance of $15,360,692. He’s one of the top fundraisers in the entire Congress. As I’ve reported previously, Krishnamoorthi is stockpiling cash for a potential Senate run. Krishnamoorthi faces no primary Democratic opponent in his northwest suburban 8th Congressional District.

The Illinois House Republican with the biggest political war chest is U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood, R-Ill., with $4,876,463. LaHood has no primary opponent, and no Democrat filed to run against him in this heavily Republican central Illinois district.

Here’s an overview of districts with the biggest primaries, with fundraising a key indicator of the strength of a campaign.

4th Congressional District — Democrats

U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, one of the most far-left members of the House, is being challenged by Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th) one of the police union’s staunchest City Council supporters, and a regular guest on Fox News. The district is designed, under civil rights voting laws, to yield the election of a Hispanic lawmaker.

The district includes parts of 13 Chicago wards as well as portions of 30 suburbs, including Cicero and Berwyn as well as Stickney, Lyons, Summit, Melrose Park, Franklin Park and parts of Oak Brook, La Grange, Riverside and Brookfield.

Garcia:

Contributions: $336,637

Operating expenses: $227,532

Cash on hand: $202,798.42

Lopez:

Contributions: $46,343

Operating expenses $14,920

Cash on hand: $31,422

6th Congressional District — Democrats

U.S. Rep. Sean Casten has an overwhelming fundraising lead over Mahnoor Ahmad, a digital strategist, and Charles Hughes, an operation tech with Nicor in this west suburban district.

Casten:

Contributions: $1,437,788

Operating expenses: $627,749

Cash on hand: $1,041,501

Ahmad:

Contributions: $5,875

Operating expenses: $1,728

Cash on hand: $4,146

Hughes:

Contributions: $5,875

Operating expenses: $1,728

Cash on hand: $9.39

7th Congressional District — Democrats

The main challenger to Rep. Danny Davis is City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin. Davis has more cash on hand, but Conyears-Ervin raised more than Davis last year. Kina Collins, an executive in a nonprofit, is making her third try to oust Davis. There are several others in the race, none with substantial fundraising numbers.

While Collins’ year-end balance is low, she is getting an enormous fundraising boost from ticket sales — actually donations to her campaign — for a March 8 concert to benefit her campaign headlined by the Grammy Award-winning indie rock band The Strokes. The concert, at Credit Union 1 Arena, already has generated more than $600,000 that will be reported to the FEC, Collins said. The haul will be hefty even after paying expenses. The band is donating its time, Collins said.

The Conyears-Ervin campaign on Thursday released endorsements from Ald. Jeanette Taylor (20th), Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29th), the Illinois Nurses Association and Chicago Fire Fighters Local 2.

The district is drawn, under the Voting Rights Act, to increase the power of Black voters.

The 7th District runs west from parts of downtown Chicago to the western suburbs, including Maywood and Oak Park, with a leg on the Near South Side, taking in parts of Bronzeville and Washington Park. Politically, it is rooted on the West Side.

Davis:

Contributions: $378,981

Operating expenses: $249,998

Cash on hand: $320,319

Conyears-Ervin:

Contributions: $495,178 (includes $6,600 for general election)

Operating expenses: $205,007

Cash on hand: $291,191

Cash on hand for Collins is $10,327; Kouri Marshall, a former staffer in the Pritzker administration has $24,374; and Nikhil Bhatia, an educator, has a balance of $5,952.

11th Congressional District — Democrats and Republicans

Rep. Bill Foster has a massive fundraising advantage over Qasim Rashid, an attorney who previously ran for Congress in Virginia. The district sweeps in suburban and rural areas north, south and west of Chicago.

Foster:

Contributions: $1,360,806

Operating expenses: $648,687

Cash on hand: $1,659,073

Rashid:

Contributions: $624,908

Operating expenses: $385,523

Cash on hand: $234,580

On the GOP side, music educator Jerry Hughes has $145,173 cash on hand, compared with Kent Mercado, a surgeon, with a balance of $11,020; and business owner Susan Hathaway-Altman, with $21,950.

12th Congressional District — Republicans

This is the biggest GOP primary in Illinois, with U.S. Rep. Mike Bost facing former GOP gubernatorial nominee Darren Bailey in a race to the right. Both rivals back former President Donald Trump. The two men are on the March ballot twice, as both also are running to be Trump delegates from the 12th District.

However, Bost has a commanding lead when it comes to fundraising for this Southern Illinois district seat.

Bost:

Contributions: $1,880,891

Operating expenses: $835,497

Cash on hand: $1,356,767

Bailey:

Contributions: $326,037

Operating expenses: $208,653

Cash on hand: $117,383

The 12th Congressional District is heavily Republican, so the primary winner is virtually certain to clinch the seat in November. The 4th and 7th congressional districts are heavily Democratic, with the March winner headed to a win in the general election. The 11th and 6th districts are, in 2024, seen as not competitive for Republicans, so the Democratic nominees are the November favorites.