Abner Mikva Backs Geoghegan in Illinois’s 5th

Former Rep. Abner Mikva (D-Ill.) endorsed labor attorney Tom Geoghegan in the Democratic primary to replace White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel in Congress, adding to the list of Geoghegan’s liberal endorsers.

Mikva, a former lawmaker, federal judge, and White House counsel, backed Geoghegan in the special election primary in Illinois’s 5th congressional district.

“Tom Geoghegan has stood for integrity his entire career,” Mikva said. “He believes politics and government must be honest to meet people’s needs. That’s why he’ll make a great congressman.”

Geoghegan’s candidacy has attracted the support of many liberal blogs and other left-leaning political figures — they helped him raise just under $240,000 in the pre-primary period, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings.

Among other organizations and individuals to endorse Geoghegan are the Howard Dean-founded grassroots group Democracy for America, The Nation magazine, Progressive Democrats of America, and labor writer Barbara Ehrenreich.

The primary in the heavily-Democratic 5th district, which represents neighborhoods in northern Chicago, is March 3rd. The winner of that primary is expected to easily win the April 7th special election.