Leading Democratic contenders running to represent Illinois’ 9th Congressional district debated their priorities at a heated forum hosted by the Central Street Neighbors Association at Northminster Presbyterian Church in Evanston on Wednesday.
Mayor Daniel Biss, State Sen. Laura Fine (D-Glenview), progressive content creator Kat Abughazaleh, Skokie school board member Bushra Amiwala, economist Jeff Cohen and former FBI hostage negotiator Phil Andrew were all in attendance.
U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston) announced her retirement in May, kickstarting a contested primary for a congressional seat that she has held for decades. Sixteen Democrats are slated to compete for their party’s bid in the March 17 primary election.
The winner of the subsequent general election will represent a far-reaching district that includes Evanston, Skokie, Glenview and Wilmette.
While Schakowsky has thrown her support behind Biss, the Democratic Party of Evanston declined to back a candidate at its endorsement session in late January. Biss led the pack with 53% of the vote among members, but fell short of the two-thirds majority required for the party’s endorsement.
Campaign finance has been a contentious topic throughout the race and dominated Wednesday’s discussion.
More than $11 million in funds have flooded the race, according to Federal Election Commission filings released at the end of January. Abughazaleh, Biss and Fine have led the fundraising field.
In mid-January, Chicago 50th Ward Committeeperson Bruce Leon announced he would drop out of the race, following a months-long pressure campaign from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the country’s largely pro-Israel lobbying group.
Leon alleged that the group was attempting to consolidate support around Fine. AIPAC has not endorsed Fine, but the group has reportedly sent at least two fundraising emails on her behalf.
At Wednesday’s forum, Biss routinely attacked Fine for her purported connection to AIPAC. While decrying Israel’s actions in Gaza, Biss said it should be “troubling” to voters that Fine supports a “blank check of military aid for Israel” and has allegedly received donations from AIPAC supporters.
“That is deeply problematic,” Biss said. “That is a right-wing policy that is bad for Palestinians, Jews, Israelis, America and the world.”
At that, Abughazaleh applauded. Abughazaleh took a more veiled strike at Fine in her remarks, suggesting that voters should be “looking at who supports unconditional military aid to Israel and who is backed by AIPAC.”
In her rebuttal, Fine focused on her record and experience as a legislator in Springfield, but did not address claims about her donors.
At one point, Fine and Biss got into a brief back-and-forth about her campaign contributions. Andrew interjected and said the debate represented “what is wrong with politics today.”
“What’s absurd is how you are seeing two career politicians use an incredibly critical and nuanced issue as a political football — both trying to fundraise on it, both trying to use one community against another in an already incredibly divided country,” he said.
Still, Andrew denounced the influence of large PACs. Amiwala echoed this sentiment, arguing that it was essential to eliminate corporate money in politics.
National politics also clouded the debate. Many of the moderator’s early questions revolved around how candidates would push back against the Trump administration’s actions.
Many candidates indicated that Congress needed to increase oversight and improve accountability in the federal government, all while restoring Constitutional rights.
“I feel like this administration has taken our Constitution, ripped it apart and thrown it away,” Fine said.
Candidates also touched on bipartisan polarization, immigration enforcement and the country’s affordability crisis. All but Andrew and Cohen said that they would support Medicare for all.
Throughout the forum, some criticized the Democratic establishment and presented themselves as candidates who could solve the party’s flaws.
“We can’t keep being spineless,” Abugazaleh said. “People don’t trust the Democratic Party to represent them if we keep doing concession after concession after concession, if we keep collaborating with fascists and if we keep having a party that’s afraid of criticism and primaries.”
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