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Ex-congressman, radio host Joe Walsh endorses in Elgin races

Former Illinois congressman-turned-conservative radio host Joe Walsh has endorsed candidates in local races, including one incumbent and three challengers in Elgin.

The former Tea Party activist has endorsed challenger Joe Galvan for mayor, along with incumbent Toby Shaw and challengers Jason Dusenberry and Julie Schmidt for city council.

Altogether, Walsh said, he has endorsed 40 to 50 candidates running in local elections April 7.

“All of them support freedom and limited government,” said Walsh, whose “Joe Walsh Show” is on AM 560 radio. “I thought it was really important to support candidates locally who believe in protecting tax dollars, the money you make and all that good stuff.”

Walsh, who lost re-election to U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth in 2012, said his “grass-roots army of volunteers”called Walsh Freedom has been making phone calls and knocking on doors to support candidates. Walsh said neither he nor Walsh Freedom have contributed any money to the Elgin candidates.

Galvan said the endorsement is a reflection of Galvan's policy on taxes and fiscal responsibility. “I think it really does differentiate me as a fiscal conservative looking to watch over people's hard earned tax dollars versus Mayor Kaptain's tax-and-spend policies,” he said.

Incumbent Mayor David Kaptain said he doesn't care who Walsh endorsed.

“I think it might say something about the other candidates,” he said. “He's been a very controversial guy and he's said some pretty outrageous things that I think were over the top.”

Walsh Freedom endorsed statewide and congressional candidates in the fall and is now endorsing in local elections for the first time, Walsh said.

“So many people that think that who we send to Congress, who we send to Washington, and who we send to govern downstate in Springfield, are more important that who we send to city councils, school boards, library boards and village boards,” he said. “These local elections, these local positions, impact our lives, impact our quality of life and impact our pocketbooks.”

Shaw said he, Dusenberry and Schmidt were guests on Walsh's radio show. Galvan said he hasn't been on the show.

“Joe Walsh has a philosophy of a limited government model ... and I have a like-minded value of wanting to support limited government here in Elgin,” Shaw said.

“Whenever you sign up with someone like Joe Walsh — or anybody for that matter — there is always something you disagree on. Joe Walsh doesn't probably agree with everything that I do and I probably don't agree on everything that he does.”

Dusenberry and Schmidt couldn't be reached for comment.

Walsh Freedom numbers 30 to 50 volunteers in Elgin among up to 2,000 in the suburbs and up to 6,000 statewide, Walsh said.

Joseph Galvan
Toby Shaw
Jason Dusenberry
Joe Walsh
David Kaptain
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