Citing health and family considerations, U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia on Tuesday defended a last-minute maneuver that all but guarantees his chief of staff will take his place.
The Chicago-Sun-Times broke the news that Garcia will not seek reelection, with his chief of staff, Patty Garcia, filing petitions for the 4th Congressional District just before a 5 p.m. Monday deadline for filing. Two sources confirmed Garcia’s plan to step down and pull petitions he filed on Oct. 27.
On Tuesday in an interview with Capitol Fax’s Rich Miller, Garcia said petitions for his chief of staff were circulated Saturday and his organization collected 2,500 over the weekend. The congressman said a warning from his cardiologist last week to slow down — and his wife telling him not to run — were among the contributing factors in his decision. Garcia’s wife suffers from multiple sclerosis.
“I wish that the things that happened could have happened earlier, but this is my faith. This is how things unfolded, and I had to respond,” he said in the interview.
Garcia also defended the petition bait-and-switch, which clears the room for his chief to staff to secure the Democratic nomination — a move that has garnered criticism. If Garcia had announced his decision earlier, the district could have seen a competitive open primary process.
“I respect their views. I can see why they would do that, but I think I followed the rules,” Garcia said. “I followed the filing calendar and of course, took time to reflect on making this choice, because it came as a shock to all of our supporters, it’s still shocking many of our allies. “…My entire family, my two boys and my daughter in laws and some of my grandkids were begging me to come home, and I’m responding to that.”
Garcia’s decision is the latest to shake up Illinois politics this year. There are now five open congressional seats and an open Senate race in the March 17 primary. Districts include the 2nd Congressional District, with U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly running for Sen. Dick Durbin’s seat; the 9th District, where longtime U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky announced her retirement; the 7th District, where U.S. Rep. Danny Davis also announced his retirement, and the 8th District, with U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi running for the Senate.
Garcia could not be reached for comment Tuesday. His decision comes as Illinois Democrats mull redistricting to create a 15th favorable district.