Pardoned Mayor Urlacher files paperwork with stated intent of running against Senate GOP Leader McConchie
Friday, May 7, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller [Bumped up from Thursday evening for visibility.] * Mettawa Mayor Casey Urlacher, who was pardoned by President Donald Trump in January after he was indicted on a couple of sports gambling-related charges, has filed a new Statement of Organization (D-1) with the Illinois State Board of Elections with the intention of running for the 26th Senate District seat. That district is currently represented by Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie. Leader McConchie defeated Urlacher in the 2016 Republican primary by just shy of 4 percentage points in a pretty rough race. Urlacher was reelected mayor last month as a write-in candidate. He decided not to run while under indictment then jumped back in after his pardon. Reached by phone tonight, Urlacher politely declined comment and hung up. Urlacher is the brother of former Bears great Brian Urlacher, who had a private meeting with President Trump at the White House last year. On January 7th, the day after the insurrection attempt at the US Capitol, Leader McConchie penned an op-ed for the Sun-Times that expressed horror at the violence, called for unity and took a thinly veiled swipe at the POTUS. “The Republican party is not, and has never been, one person,” McConchie wrote at the time. Never a dull moment in Illinois, campers.
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- Socially DIstant Watcher - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 7:43 pm:
A pardon is not an exoneration, not that primary voters will care.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 7:47 pm:
That map coming out will be mighty interesting now in that neck of the woods…
- Just Me 2 - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 8:20 pm:
This is just Trump land enjoying be a grenade throwing distraction.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 8:36 pm:
A twitter I check out constantly;
@ILElectionData - Virginia McCaskey continues to be an active donor this cycle, this time to Urlacher opponent McConchie for $2,500.
- Responsa - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 8:48 pm:
Kinda noivy of Urlacher if you ask me.
- Candy Dogood - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 8:55 pm:
This is the GQP as we have come to know them, and this is the GQP as we should expect them.
Whatever your thoughts were about the Republican Party in the past need to be reevaluated. Whatever pillars they stood for, even the pretend ones, have been reduced to dust and snorted up Matt Gaetz’s nose on his way to a sex party with trafficked minors.
- Socially DIstant Watcher - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 9:54 pm:
“Urlacher opponent McConchie” — does that really define the race?
- Dan Johnson - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 9:54 pm:
I really hope there are enough non-insurrectionist Republicans in Lake County (!!) to make this a dull primary for the Leader.
- 47th Ward - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 10:48 pm:
It’s not simply a pardon, it’s a Trump pardon, which is tantamount to a Trump imprimatur, a Trump endorsement if you will. Urlacher is the Trump candidate in this race.
Scumbag, juice-charging bookie, convicted gambler and loan shark, Casey Urlacher for General Assembly.
You can’t make this $#\£ up.
- Oswego Willy - Thursday, May 6, 21 @ 11:31 pm:
With McConchie here. Easy choice.
It should be “no need to choose” kinda choice.
- Ducky LaMoore - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 5:44 am:
The exasperation at knowing the GOP is weird enough to replace a decent leader with a crook is legitimate.
- PublicServant - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 6:23 am:
Well after this race is done, we’ll still end up with one of the Wit brothers. Dim, or Nit? Who will they choose? Who cares anyway?
- Nagidam - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 6:29 am:
By golly @Public Servant that may be the funniest comment in quite some time.
- Arsenal - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 8:23 am:
I like McConchie. And the things I like about him probably make him very vulnerable in a Republican Primary.
- walker - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 8:44 am:
Arsenal Agreed
- wow... - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 9:04 am:
==I like McConchie. And the things I like about him probably make him very vulnerable in a Republican Primary==
Make no mistake, McConchie is Trumpier than most.
- Jocko - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 9:07 am:
==Whatever pillars they stood for==
Family values? Law & Order? Pro-life? Fiscal responsibility? They even jettisoned pro-business by going after Coke & Delta.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 9:07 am:
=== Make no mistake, McConchie is Trumpier than most.===
Make no mistake, McConchie wasn’t pardoned for felonious deeds by a president who incited an insurrection.
Sometimes… the easy choice is what the other side offers.
I do understand your clarification, no doubt.
- Roman - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 9:19 am:
My guess is McConchie will be just fine, but then again…if the orange man gets personally involved?? A traditional GOP establishment figure gets beat in a primary by an indicted-then-pardoned, quasi-celebrity Trumpian sycophant? Not impossible in today’s GOP. Don Harmon might want to start looking for a general election candidate just in case.
- Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 9:38 am:
Thinking that a morally-devoid miscreant couldn’t possibly when a general election is kinda how the GOP got to where it is today.
- Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 9:39 am:
*win*
- Arsenal - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 9:49 am:
==Make no mistake, McConchie is Trumpier than most. ==
I’m not sure that’s true anymore, but either way I still don’t get the sense that McConchie’s animating principle is upsetting liberals (Where “liberal” is defined as anyone who hasn’t sworn an oath to Donald Trump).
- Annonin' - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 10:03 am:
What could possibly go wrong? With a Trump pardonee leading the charge and Darrin LaHood raising money on Trump’s Facebook ban it seems like GOPies are looking for more shrinkage.
- Candy Dogood - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 10:24 am:
=== it seems like GOPies are looking for more shrinkage. ===
Don’t mention shrinkage. Fear of shrinkage is the biggest driving factor for GOP politicians. Hence the big trucks with militia decals.
- Louis G Atsaves - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 10:31 am:
Urlacher originally lost to McConchie in a primary a few years ago in a three way race. May be one explanation.
- Rich Miller - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 10:35 am:
Yes, Louis, it’s in the post above.
- anon2 - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 12:31 pm:
In accepting the pardon, the pardonee tacitly admits he did something that he needed pardoning for.
- EssentialStateEmployeeFromChatham - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 12:51 pm:
I wonder who will get the Packer fan vote in this race.
- (not so) snarkie from Schaumburg - Friday, May 7, 21 @ 3:11 pm:
I learned about politics from Don Totten out here in Schaumburg. We disagreed about issues but he taught me in word and deed, that at the end of the day it is about the people, not personalities or blind loyalty to demigods. I truly miss him today. Please, my GOP friends take back your party.