Winnetka businessman joins crowded 8th District race

A fourth Republican has entered the race to unseat Democrat Melissa Bean as the 8th District's representative in Congress.

Joe Walsh, a 47-year-old Winnetka venture capitalist, kicked off his campaign with a news release critical of Bean and her peers in the House.

"Like people all over the 8th Congressional District, I am ticked off at how much money our government is spending and how quickly government is growing," Walsh said in the news release. "I want to stand up to what Washington is trying to do to our community, our state and our country."

A Bean spokesman declined to comment.

Walsh, who grew up in Barrington, lives well outside the 8th District now but plans to move back to the Barrington area, his campaign manager said.

Long Grove Mayor Maria Rodriguez is the most prominent of the three other Republicans already in the race. Also running are Mundelein resident Greg Jacobs and John Dawson of Barrington.

Bean, also of Barrington, is the only Democratic candidate thus far. She's seeking her fourth term in the House.

She soundly defeated Republican Steve Greenberg in 2008.

Walsh's announcement came just days after congressional candidates across the country filed quarterly campaign financing reports with the Federal Election Commission.

Of the candidates in the 8th District races, Bean had the most successful quarter, raising $157,571 between July 1 and Sept. 30, reports showed. Rodriguez followed with $22,425. Neither Jacobs nor Dawson raised enough money to reach the $5,000 threshold that requires FEC paperwork.

Walsh did not file a quarterly report but, in his news release, said he expects to raise the hundreds of thousands of dollars needed to win a Congressional primary.

The 8th District includes parts of Cook, Lake and McHenry counties.

The primary election is Feb. 2, 2010.