It is now up to the Illinois Republican Party to choose the Urbana
Republican's replacement for District 13 in the Nov. 6 general
election.
“This is 100 percent, nothing more, nothing less than a personal,
family decision,” Johnson, 65, said, according to the
Urbana-Champaign News-Gazette.
Johnson has served in Congress since 2000. It was expected that he
would have a hard time getting re-elected this year after the
Democrats redrew the congressional map in the state after the 2010
U.S. Census.
But David Gill, a Bloomington doctor, beat Matt Goetten in the
Democratic primary last month.
Gill is much more progressive than Goetten, who was also backed by
many prominent Democrats, including Illinois Sen. and Democratic
Whip Dick Durbin. Gill’s outspoken support of gay marriage and
pro-choice stances are seen as liabilities in the downstate
district.
Gill has run against and lost to Johnson three times.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By ANDREW THOMASON] |