AIPAC, AI money propels Melissa Bean to comeback victory in Illinois

CHICAGO — Former Rep. Melissa Bean won the Democratic primary for Illinois’ 8th District, cementing her political comeback in a solidly blue seat more than a decade after she left Congress.

Bean, a moderate who served in the House from 2005 to 2011, defeated several progressive challengers on Tuesday in the race to replace Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, who launched a bid for the Senate.

Her win was heavily boosted by outside spending: A group called Elect Chicago Women, aligned with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, poured nearly $4 million into the race to support Bean, and another AI-focused committee ran ads in favor of her.

Bean, who had lost her seat during the 2010 Tea Party wave, built her campaign around a message of pragmatism — an approach she argued voters were seeking amid a hyper-partisan national political climate.

“What I’m hearing mostly from people is they would love to see a little more boring and a lot less drama from government,” Bean said during the race. “They just want to know [if] they elect you, you’ll put your head down, you’ll get the work done and you’ll deliver.”

After leaving office, Bean worked in the private sector at finance firms including JPMorgan Chase and Mesirow Financial before deciding to run again.

The race drew a crowded Democratic field of candidates who positioned themselves to Bean’s left. Among them was tech entrepreneur Junaid Ahmed, who had challenged Krishnamoorthi four years ago. He argued during this year’s campaign that the district needed someone prepared to challenge President Donald Trump directly, and he was endorsed by prominent progressive lawmakers, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).

The AIPAC affiliate backing Bean saw his candidacy as a threat. In the final days of the race, the group spent $664,000 in ads against him.

Another candidate, Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison, also emphasized a progressive agenda, arguing the Trump administration poses a threat to health care access, LGBTQ+ rights and reproductive freedom.

The progressive Justice Democrats PAC spent $56,000 in attack ads on Bean, but that hardly made a dent against the millions of dollars outside groups spent to assist her.