LaHood Wins GOP Primary for Vacant 18th District Seat

Written by David E. Smith

In a Special Election held yesterday, Illinois State Senator Darin LaHood (R-Peoria) easily won the Republican primary to replace disgraced Illinois politician Aaron Schock and the open Congressional seat in Illinois’ 18th district.  The seat has been vacant since Schock resigned on March 17th.

LaHood beat libertarian Mike Flynn, a Breitbart News editor who has lived in the Washington area for the past two decades.   According to the Peoria Journal-Star, LaHood won the special primary election “by more than a 2-to-1 margin.”

With final results in from all 19 counties, the Peorian led with 31,319 votes, or 69 percent of the vote. Next in line was political writer Mike Flynn, a Quincy native, with 12,559 votes, or 28 percent.

LaHood will face high school teacher Robert Mellon on the Democratic side. Mellon beat out Springfield school board member Adam Lopez.  LaHood is the strong favorite to win the special election in the heavily Republican district.

The Peoria Journal-Star reports:

LaHood starts off the campaign for the Sept. 10 special general election with an advantage at the polls and in terms of fundraising. The district stretching from the Mississippi River near Quincy to northeast of Bloomington-Normal was drawn to favor Republican candidates, as voting patterns have proven in the 2012 and 2014 elections. LaHood also had a distinct cash advantage, with more than a half-million dollars remaining in the bank at the close of the last financial reporting period, according to Federal Election Commission records.

The special general election is Sept. 10, 2015.

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