Chicago 50th Ward Committeeperson Bruce Leon withdrew from the race to represent Illinois’ 9th Congressional District on Tuesday, backing former FBI agent and hostage negotiator Phil Andrew.
“We live in a time where people with differing opinions have stopped talking. Civility is low and threats are high,” Leon wrote in a Tuesday evening news release from Andrew’s campaign. “Is there a better time than now to send a hostage negotiator to Congress?”
The announcement punctuated a “roller-coaster” conclusion to Leon’s campaign, the pro-Israel Democrat told The Daily Tuesday evening.
On Dec. 30, Leon told the Chicago Tribune that the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the country’s largest pro-Israel lobbying group, had successfully pressured key allies in his Orthodox Jewish community to switch their allegiances.
In an email to supporters the following day, Leon announced he would “temporarily suspend” his campaign, blaming “tremendous political pressure from Washington, D.C., interests.”
But when the formal deadline to remove his name from the ballot approached last Thursday, Leon refused to withdraw from the race. At the time, Leon told The Daily that AIPAC had begun pressuring him to drop out as early as July, reportedly seeking to consolidate support around State Sen. Laura Fine (D-Glenview).
Leon said an unnamed “mediator” between his campaign and AIPAC officials allegedly described Fine as “a pro-Israel candidate with a real path to victory” in a Thursday text message obtained by The Daily. The mediator also allegedly suggested Leon would be blamed for “splitting the vote” if he continued his campaign and either Mayor Daniel Biss or progressive content creator Kat Abughazaleh — who have both criticized the Israeli government — were to win.
Leon, Andrew, Biss, Abughazaleh and three other candidates released a joint statement on Jan. 6 denouncing “organized efforts” to pressure “a fellow Democratic candidate to withdraw from the race.” The letter also called for “full transparency regarding outside political spending and influence in this primary.”
While the statement did not explicitly name Fine or AIPAC, Leon said he participated in “negotiations” with AIPAC officials last week, during which he requested that Fine “come clean” about the lobbying group’s spending and adhere to the letter’s demands. He said those and other conditions were “rejected,” compelling him to remain on the ballot.
In an email to The Daily Thursday evening, Fine’s spokesperson wrote that her campaign was “not aware of, or interested in, any discussions between outside groups and other campaigns.”
As the joint statement circulated among the candidates, Leon said “there was a joke going around” asking them to rank their opponents by preference. By Tuesday, Leon said his top choice had become clear — and was no longer himself.
“I felt once I stood up to AIPAC, and I didn’t let them push me out of the race, that I could go and make a decision without feeling like somebody was pushing me,” Leon said.
Leon said he backed Andrew to “unify the moderates” and promote an agenda of “security and solutions,” calling his endorsement a “merger” of their two campaigns. He added that he came to believe Andrew could reach primary voters he struggled to connect with, including progressives, giving him a clearer path to victory.
Leon filed withdrawal papers with the Illinois State Board of Elections on Tuesday morning.
“I’m not just going to Florida. As a matter of fact, (Andrew) gave me six events to be with him at tomorrow,” Leon said. “Like I said to him, ‘I’m working harder with you than I did for myself,’ but honestly, I feel more comfortable that way.”
He said that while the Democratic Party’s progressive wing boasts “five pretty serious voices” in the race, including Biss and Abughazaleh, its moderate faction, encompassing Democrats who feel “the Mamdani movement is not what’s needed in the 9th District,” had to consolidate around a single candidate.
Leon sharply criticized recent messaging from Biss and Fine, who both launched TV ads this week targeting Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
He argued highly publicized incidents like Biss’ Dec. 17 confrontation of Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino in Evanston have distracted from the issues Democratic voters truly care about.
“Everybody wants to fight. There’s a lot of rhetoric about fighting and not enough rhetoric about just, ‘Here are my ideas,’” Leon said. “We’ve got to solve healthcare, we’ve got to solve affordability.”
In Tuesday’s news release, Leon also wrote that he trusts Andrew to keep the district’s Orthodox Jewish community safe amid rising antisemitic violence, citing the candidate’s experience as an FBI agent and his work with the Illinois Holocaust Museum.
In response, Andrew wrote that he is “very grateful” for Leon’s support.
“Bruce and I both understand the value of listening,” he wrote Tuesday. “We may come from different parts of the 9th District but share many of the same goals.”
Email: [email protected]
X: @jdowb2005
Related Stories:
— Bruce Leon refuses to withdraw from congressional race, defying AIPAC pressure
— State Rep. Hoan Huynh, 50th Ward Committeeman Bruce Leon jump into race for Schakowsky’s seat
