Republican Esther Joy King – who came near to beating Cheri Bustos in 2020 – announces she's going to run again in 2022. See full quote below!
QUAD CITIES – Illinois is losing one congressional seat in the upcoming re-districting map, as the state's population continues to shrink. One of those districts likely to be affected by the remap is IL's 17th CD.
At once represented by the late Tea Party Republican Bobby Schilling, Democrats in the 17th CD have mystified many with the repeated re-elections of five-term Democrat Congresswoman Cheri Bustos, a close ally of former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel .
Quad Cities' media is reporting Friday that Bustos will not seek re-election in 2022.
Bustos faced a very close race in 2020 with first timer Republican Esther Joy King, winning by just 52% of the vote.
"I've never lost an election in my life," Bustos said – and 2022 is likely to be a tough year for Democrats – especially those in districts where Trump won in 2016 and 2020.
It is unknown whether Esther Joy King will try again in 2022.
UPDATE: King sent out this quote after the original story was published:
I want to thank Cheri Bustos for her service and I wish her the best going forward. Cheri has always claimed she knew this district well – so she clearly saw what we’re seeing every day: IL-17 was going to make a change in 2022 and Cheri was destined to lose. The people of the IL-17th accomplished this! I’m proud to be part of a movement to bring better representation to the best people I know.
And while we were planning to make this official in a couple weeks – I’m announcing today that yes, I am running for Congress in 2022 because I know that the residents of this district deserve so much better than what the liberal elites have been serving them up in Washington. We need a battle-ready leader. We need a fighter who won’t back down. Someone who knows that the residents of the 17th district matter more than Washington DC special interests. I can’t wait to share that message with everyone in IL-17 and look forward to the battle ahead.
The development drew a comment from the NRCC's Mike Berg, who said,“Cheri Bustos made the right decision to retire rather than face defeat in 2022.”
