Politics & Government

Aurora Alderman Considering Run for Congress

Richard Irvin, a second-term alderman at large in Aurora, is exploring a run as a Republican in the newly created 11th District.

Aurora Alderman-at-Large Richard Irvin announced Thursday morning that he is mulling a run for Congress in the newly created 11th District.

Irvin plans to form an exploratory committee, and “consider a bid for the Republican nomination for U.S. Congress,” according to a press release sent shortly after midnight.

According to Steve Orlando, spokesman for the exploratory committee, Irvin will spend an undetermined amount of time talking to community leaders in the new 11th District, which includes Aurora, Montgomery, Naperville, Joliet, Downers Grove, and points east, including Woodridge and parts of Darien.

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He will use these conversations to gauge interest in his candidacy, Orlando said, adding, “This process could take three weeks, or it could take three months."

Irvin, a lifelong Auroran, is currently in his second term on the Aurora City Council, having been elected in 2007 and re-elected in April. He has run for mayor of that city twice without success, having lost both times to current Mayor Tom Weisner.

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Irvin is a veteran of the first Gulf War, and owns his own law firm, with an office on Broadway in Aurora.

Irvin decided to look into a congressional run after seeing the new district maps, signed into law on June 3, Orlando said. The new 11th District gives Irvin an advantage, he said, since he is well-known in Aurora, but also lives in DuPage County, and has name recognition in Naperville and Will County.

Orlando said Irvin brings his record on the Aurora City Council and his time as a small business owner to the table. The rising national unemployment rate is an important issue for Irvin, Orlando said, and he believes he can set policies that will help people get jobs and earn more.

“It’s all about family with Richard, and so many families, in Naperville and Aurora and (the 11th District), are stressed right now,” Orlando said.

Orlando said that should Irvin run, it remains to be seen what impact his two failed mayoral runs will have on his chances. He argued that as an unknown quantity in 2005, Irvin did well, winning the primary election and the right to face off against Weisner.

But he concedes that 2009 was a significant loss, with Weisner taking more than 55 percent of the vote, according to the Aurora Election Commission.

“We’ll have to see what the voters make of that,” Orlando said.

While Irvin is still considering a run for the 11th District, former Congressman Bill Foster is . He declared his candidacy May 31, before the new district maps were even finalized. Foster was elected to represent the 14th District in 2008, but lost to Rep. Randy Hultgren last year.

The filing deadline for next year’s congressional election is Nov. 2, according to the Federal Election Commission. But Orlando doesn’t think it will take that long for Irvin to make up his mind. 

“We will know between now and three months from now,” he said.


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