Anderson to meet Hultgren in 14th District rematch

Democrat Dennis Anderson will get a second shot at dethroning Republican Randy Hultgren in the 14th Congressional District, and he used his victory Tuesday to come out swinging early.

Unofficial results had Anderson receiving 4,640 votes compared to 2,459 votes for fellow Democrat John Hosta with 471 out of 471 precincts reporting. Anderson came out with a 2 to 1 margin early and never looked back.

Hosta brought several views to the contest that are traditionally Republican talking points. Hosta told Democrats his pro-life and pro-gun stances made him more electable in a congressional district with boundaries loaded with traditionally conservative voters. With Hultgren unopposed on the Republican ballot, Hosta could neither lure Republican voters to vote for him in the primary nor Democrats possibly looking for a fresh face to run against Hultgren.

Anderson now moves to the general election with a game plan he believes will reverse the 18 percentage point loss he suffered to Hultgren two years ago. Anderson's campaign team is promising a more aggressive strategy that will attempt to pull Hultgren into more public debates this time.

“It's obviously in the best interest of the voters if they can see us and talk to us and question us together,” Anderson said.

Once voters get a chance to listen to them debate, Anderson believes support will flock to him regardless of political party.

“I really think it's as simple as the issues,” Anderson said. “If you examine Mr. Hultgren's record, his primary focus has really not been on the issues that are of primary importance to voters. He's focused on abstinence-only sex education and on weakening the Securities Exchange Commission. I'm running to represent all the people in district, not just Democrats or even Republicans.”