Newcomer, not Dold, to challenge Schneider in 10th District
Three bouts in the ring were enough for boxers Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali, and they also will be enough for Democratic U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider and former Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Dold, three-time opponents in the 10th Congressional District.
Highland Park Republican Jeremy Wynes is announcing his candidacy against Schneider, a Deerfield resident, in the moderate swing district, and Dold, who held the seat from 2011 to 2013 and again from 2015 until January, is bowing out.
Dold, of Kenilworth, "has decided not to run for Congress in 2018," Dold spokesman Danielle Hagen said.
Hagen added that "serving as a strong, independent voice for the 10th District has been one of the greatest honors of Bob's life. Commitment to public service will remain a top priority for him."
Wynes said he considers Dold a friend and "would have no interest in running a campaign against him."
It's clear the Illinois GOP is taking Wyne's candidacy seriously in a district that frequently has been targeted by both political parties. Chip Englander and Mike Schrimpf, top campaign aides in GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner's 2014 bid for governor, are consultants on Wynes' campaign. And James Slepian, who oversaw Dold's campaigns, put together Wynes' introductory video.
Wynes, a 37-year-old father of three, was raised in western Illinois, attended Illinois State University in Normal and went to law school at DePaul University in Chicago.
After spending some time in private practice, he was director in the Chicago office of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. In 2014, he launched a Chicago office for the Republican Jewish Coalition.
Wynes says he'd continue the tradition of moderate independence. He supports abortion rights and gay marriage, and says he wouldn't have voted alongside a majority of Republicans who last week moved to repeal and replace portions of the Affordable Care Act.
"I don't think that this is something in its current form I would have supported. My hope is that there's still a long way to go in this process," he said, noting "I hope to see a different bill emerge."
The 10th District stretches along the North Shore all the way to the Wisconsin state line and south to Mount Prospect.