The race for the 51st District Senate Seat (which includes a lot of Decatur) is starting to rev up.
Republican Senator Kyle McCarter, who was named to replace retiring Senator Frank Watson several months ago is running for election to the seat he now holds.
With Watson gone, and a "new" guy presently holding the seat, the Democrats see an opportunity to put the seat in the "win column" come election day.
Democrat Tim Dudley indicated quite a while ago that he will seek to win his party's nomination and face McCarter in the General Election. It was a fairly common belief that Dudley would have no competition for the nomination, but, over Labor Day Weekend, Amy Bliefnick of Decatur, who is director of the Illinois State Fair, said that she also will be seeking the Democratic nomination to face McCarter for the senate seat.
However, Dudley is showing no signs of backing off, which apparently is going to set up an interesting primary between Bliefnick and Dudley.
Today, Dudley's organization issued a news release about all of the County Democratic committees and labor organizations throughout the 51st District that have announced their support for him.
District-wide support includes the county Democratic central committees from Macon, Madison, Fayette and Shelby counties along with the South Central Illinois Laborers’ District Council and other labor groups.
“We’ve been working hard for more than a year to meet the folks throughout the district and listen to the issues that affect their counties and their lives, Dudley said. “I am grateful for the strong showing of support this early in the race and will continue to work hard so I can represent the voters of the 51st District in Springfield.”
With more than four months to the primary election, the Dudley campaign has issued a full list of secured endorsements which includes: Macon County Democratic Central Committee; Madison County Democratic Central Committee; Fayette County Democratic Central Committee; Shelby County Democratic Central Committee; Bond County Democratic Chairman; Effingham County Democratic Chairman; East Madison County Democratic Chairman; South Central Illinois Laborers’ District Council; IBEW Local 146, Laborers' local 159 and Decatur Building and Construction Trades Council which includes 13 local craft unions.
“Tim is a candidate who genuinely cares about the needs of working families. He understands the real struggles people face in these economic times and he has the passion to fight for real solutions,” IBEW Local 146 Business Manager Jay Dunn said.
“In a time when a cloud of corruption hovers over the capitol, Tim is a breath of fresh air. He is an honest, hard working candidate and we are proud to support him in this race,” East Madison County Democratic Chairman Jeff Hurst said.
According to information sent with the news releases: "Dudley is a life-long Democrat, a hard worker and a family man. He believes strongly in the importance of protecting working families and strengthening the business climate in Illinois by helping to stabilize the economy, create jobs, balance the budget, educate our kids and fight for healthcare reform. He is currently a member of the Macon County Board and a licensed realtor in Macon County.
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