November 2, 2010 2012 → 52.58 42.96 | 104,583 85,454 | |
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Illinois's 17th congressional district election, 2010 was held on November 2, 2010 to determine who would represent Illinois's 17th District in the 112th United States Congress. The seat contested was located in western and parts of central Illinois. Democratic incumbent Phil Hare had held the seat since 2006 and was running for re-election. The Republican nominee was Bobby Schilling. The Green Party nominee was Roger K. Davis.
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Schilling won the election in an upset with almost 53% of the vote.
Background
Hare was elected in 2006 with 57% of the vote and was unopposed in United States elections, 2008. Schilling is a restaurateur and owns Saint Giuseppe's Heavenly Pizza in East Moline, Illinois, which he started in 1997. Both were unopposed in their respective primaries.
Once thought to be safe by political analysts, Hare's seat was in trouble in the summer of 2010 as Schilling made his challenge. The New York Times's final rating was "Tossup", as was that of CQ Politics. RealClearPolitics's final rating was "Leans Democrat". FiveThirtyEight gave Schilling a 63% chance of winning. Politico rated it #5 on its list of "hottest House races in the country".
Though both were unopposed in their respective primaries, primary elections were still held as voters went to the polls to vote in other races. Out of 64,141 total votes cast in each party for the February 2nd Illinois primary, Hare took 32,496 votes (50.66%) to Schilling's 31,645 (49.34%). "After the results of yesterday’s election, one thing is clear: voters are ready for a clean break from the failed ideas of the past," Schilling said after the primary. "Voter turnout shows that my Democrat opponent and I nearly had identical votes." Because of the close results, National Review said the race is "worth keeping an eye on."
General election campaign
National organizations were heavily involved in the race, with the National Republican Congressional Committee injecting $350,000 into the race and the conservative American Future Fund buying $500,000 worth of ads in the district, both on behalf of Schilling. The Republican National Committee funded the opening of a "Victory Center" similar to that used for the campaign of Sen. Scott Brown in 2010. On Hare's side, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee bought $90,000 worth of airtime and SEIU bought $317,000 for similar commercials alleging Schilling wants to send jobs overseas, which the Schilling campaign denies.
Schilling's campaign outraised Hare's by $51,000 in Q3 2010 and had more cash on hand than Hare as of September 30.
All three candidates participated in one televised debate on October 26, which covered topics ranging from social security, taxes, and job creation to abortion and stem cell research.
Endorsements
Schilling received the endorsements of the Illinois Federation for the Right to Life PAC, the Republican National Coalition for Life PAC, the Quincy Tea Party, Congressman Aaron Schock, Congressman John Shimkus, Sgt. John F. Baker, Jr., recipient of the Medal of Honor, Rep. Michele Bachmann, CatholicVote PAC, former Governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney, John Deere PAC, the Chicago Tribune, and the United States Chamber of Commerce.
Hare was endorsed by the Sierra Club and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Fundraising
Figures are final as of December 31, 2010.