Tammy Duckworth to Challenge for Mark Kirk's U.S. Senate Seat

Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth will be the first Democrat to formally declare her pursuit of the U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican Mark Kirk, a source tells the Chicago Tribune.

Duckworth, 47, will announce her candidacy Monday in a video to supporters, the Tribune reports.

Kirk, 55, is viewed as the most vulnerable Republican senator because Illinois is a blue state and the 2016 Senate election takes place in a presidential election year. Elected in 2010 to replace Barack Obama, Kirk suffered a stroke in 2012. Politico suggests Kirk might even lose his seat in the Republican primary. Former congressman Joe Walsh, now a radio host, has said he wants to challenge Kirk.

Duckworth, elected to her second term in Congress by narrowly defeating Walsh, would need to get past possible primary bids from fellow Democrats, U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly of Matteson, U.S. Rep. Bill Foster of Naperville, and U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos of East Moline, according to the Tribune.

If she does, and Kirk survives the primary, the 2016 Senate election would pit a U.S. Army National Guard veteran against a Navy Veteran. Duckworth, deployed to Iraq in 2004, lost her legs and partial use of an arm when her Blackhawk helicopter was hit by an RPG. Kirk served as an intelligence officer in the Navy Reserve, seeing duty in Yugoslavia. He served a few short deployments in Afghanistan, with the last being in 2011. He retired with the rank of commander in 2013.

Before Congress, Duckworth led the Illinois Department of Veteran Affairs, appointed by Gov. Pat Quinn in 2006. In 2009, Obama appointed her Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

Kirk, who served five terms in Congress before the U.S. Senate, told Politico he plans to make his stroke recovery and key theme in his re-election campaign. Kirk uses a cane to walk and is sometimes seen in the Capitol in a wheelchair, reports Politico.

Duckworth represents the 8th Congressional District, which includes parts of Cook, DuPage, Lake and Kane counties, encompassing these communities: Addison, Bloomingdale, Carol Stream, Elgin, Elk Grove Village, Glendale Heights, Hanover Park, Hoffman Estates, Lombard, Palatine, Roselle, Schaumburg, Streamwood, Villa Park and Wood Dale.

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