Progressive groups back Lipinski challenger in Illinois House race

Six progressive groups on Monday threw their support behind Democrat Marie Newman’s bid to unseat Rep. Daniel Lipinski (D-Ill.), providing a crucial early boost for the second-time primary candidate.

The coalition includes EMILY’s List, NARAL Pro-Choice America, MoveOn, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, Democracy for America (DFA) and the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC).

{mosads}DFA first announced its endorsement of Newman last month.

Lipinski is one of very few remaining Democrats in Congress to oppose abortion rights and has long been a primary target for liberals and progressives, who argue that he is out of step with modern Democratic values. 

“In a time when the president and GOP have made it clear that stripping away the fundamental rights of women is at the top of their agenda, we must have a leader to stand up against Trump,” Stephanie Schriock, the president of EMILY’s List, said in a statement. “That is not Congressman Dan Lipinski.”

Newman challenged Lipinski in Illinois’s 3rd District in 2018, but narrowly lost to him in the primary. Last month, she announced that she would run for Lipinski’s seat once again.

Still, Newman is likely to face a tough battle if she hopes to win her party’s nomination in the Chicagoland congressional district next year.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) announced earlier this year that it would not deal with vendors who work for candidates challenging Democratic incumbents in primaries. Newman told Politico last month that four consultants had left her campaign as a result of that policy.