* I explained some of the back story on this to subscribers earlier this week…

Longtime State Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Cherry Valley, will have a primary challenge in 2022.

Winnebago County Republican Party Chairman Eli Nicolosi said he plans to formally announce his campaign to run against Syverson on July 19.

The Rockford resident filed paperwork to register Friends of Eli Nicolosi with the Illinois Board of Elections on Tuesday. The stated purpose of the committee is to elect Nicolosi to the 35th district of the Illinois Senate, the seat occupied by Syverson since 1993. […]

Syverson, 64, said he will run on his record, which he said includes passage of hundreds of bills, including property tax caps and ethics reform legislation.A gaming bill, which included a Rockford casino license and was approved by the General Assembly, was sponsored by Syverson.

* Politico’s national bureau…

Exile in the House GOP is proving extremely lucrative for Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger.

Cheney and Kinzinger are the most prominent anti-Trump voices among congressional Republicans, casting two of the 10 House GOP votes to impeach the former president and — unlike the other eight — sparing no opportunity in the months since to rebuke a party that has tethered itself to his image. That’s left them in a precarious position as they seek reelection back home and alienated them from the rest of their party in D.C.

It’s also given them a new route onto the national stage. The Wyoming and Illinois Republican allies may end up losing their seats next fall to primary challengers who are hugging the Trump machine. But the campaign war chests they’ve amassed could help launch the duo’s political careers outside of the House, or even Congress. […]

Kinzinger, who represents a deep-red district in exurban Chicago, never raised more than $350,000 in a single quarter during the 2020 cycle. But during the first three months of 2021 — after his support for the second Trump impeachment — he skyrocketed to $1.1 million.

* Tribune…

Conservative activist Charlie Kirk will headline the annual Northwest suburban Republican Party’s Lincoln Day Dinner on Aug. 16 at the White Eagle Banquet & Convention Center in Niles. Founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA and loyalist to former President Donald Trump, Kirk relishes a political battle.

Last week he was a guest on Tucker Carlson’s Fox News show, where he likened colleges that require students to have COVID-19 vaccinations to “almost this apartheid-style open-air hostage situation, like: ‘Oh, you can have your freedom back if you get the jab.’”

Such dramatics.

More…

The event is organized by the Schaumburg, Palatine, Wheeling, Elk Grove, Maine, Niles, Northfield, Hanover, Barrington township Republican organizations along with the Northwest Side GOP Club. Tickets are available through the organizing GOP organizations.

[Palatine Township Republican Committeeman Aaron Del Mar] said Kirk is an important figure in Republican circles. Turning Point USA is active on many college campuses along with some high schools. Del Mar said the organization serves as a “backstop to liberals in college, who are mostly left-leaning.”

* I’m not sure this is going to make much of a difference. The cable bookers likely won’t care much…

Illinois GOP Chairman Don Tracy sent a letter to Republican leaders Monday expressing frustration that MSNBC, CNN and local media turn to Republican consultants who “trash” other Republicans. “When they are listed as current or former party officials, it falsely gives the impression that these people are speaking for all Republicans in Illinois or the Chicago area,” according to Tracy’s email, obtained by Playbook.

He doesn’t name names but it’s not hard to figure out that former state GOP Chairman Pat Brady doesn’t mince words about far-right Republicans when he’s interviewed by reporters.

Tracy is the first downstate chairman of the Illinois GOP in more than 30 years. He lives in Springfield, three hours from Chicago, making it difficult to accommodate live broadcasts. So he’s now assigning two surrogate Republicans in northern Illinois, Kathleen Murphy and Ammie Kessem, to represent the party during TV interviews when he can’t make it.

The issue is the surrogates tapped align better with Republicans south of I-80 than those in the Chicago area. Murphy is the former spokeswoman for former GOP gubernatorial candidate Jeanne Ives and a defender of Ives’ controversial TV ad attacking Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner’s record by featuring actors playing out sensitive cultural issues. It was uniformly criticized, including by the state GOP, for being racist, sexist and homophobic.

Kessem, the 41st Ward GOP committeewoman, is a Chicago Police sergeant and avowed Donald Trump supporter.

* Not actually a campaign event, but might as well be…

MEDIA ADVISORY: Illinois House Republicans Call for State Action on Heightened Gun Violence

WHO: Illinois House Republican Leader Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs), State Representatives Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst) and Amy Elik (R-Fosterburg).

WHAT: House Republicans will discuss the need for action on violence and criminal activity plaguing Illinois.

WHEN: 11:00am on Thursday, July 15th, 2021

The General Assembly is not reconvening until October.

* The Hill…

I asked about a dozen senators and representatives what’s on their summer reading lists. Here are some highlights:

We must start with someone who knows a good book when she reads- or writes - one. Sen. Tammy Duckworth’s (D-Ill.) “Every Day Is a Gift” is one of the best memoirs I’ve ever read. When I asked for her summer reading list, she sent a screen shot of her Audible selections, including one that seems entirely appropriate for our current political climate: “Calm The F*ck Down,” by Sarah Knight. For a more, well, elevated perspective of nature and the universe, Duckworth is working on Steven Hawking’s “A Brief History of Time.”

*** UPDATE *** Facebook…

Join ILGOP Chairman Don Tracy with Finance Committee members Vince Kolber, Brian Kasal, and Richard Porter in hosting an evening reception featuring Texas Congressman and American Hero Dan Crenshaw.

* Related…

* Rock Island Mayor Mike Thoms considering run for state Senate