Underwood Upsets: Naperville Nurse Unseats Randy Hultgren

NAPERVILLE, IL --The race for Illinois's 14th Congressional District promised to be one of the most pivotal ones in Tuesday's mid-term election. Lauren Underwood, a 32-year-old nurse from Naperville, made history as the first female elected to represent District 14. when she defeated incumbent Rep. Randy Hultgren (R).

"Today, we made history," Underwood said to a packed audience, eliciting applause and cheers.

Underwood's win puts her among several females who had historic wins on Tuesday. She joins the ranks of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, the country's youngest member of Congresswoman ever, and Kim Reynolds, Iowa's first female governor.

When she took the stage to deliver her victory speech, Underwood jumped up and down and pumped her fist into the air, the very embodiment of the millennial wave that helped put control of the House of Representatives in the hands of Democrats.

"50 years and one day ago, Shirley Chisholm was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. She was the first black woman."

Underwood then invoked Chisholm's motto as her own, promising to remain, "Unbought and unbossed."

Underwood wound up with 51.9 percent of the vote, defeating Hultgren by a more than 10,000-vote margin and flipping the district.

Underwood's background in nursing has made affordable health care a huge part of her platform, as has a heart condition she was diagnosed with at age eight. She served as a senior advisor for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Barack Obama and helped raise awareness and support for the affordable care act, according to her campaign website.

For Hultgren, his focus is dedicated to helping to preserve small businesses to reform the tax code, and to help kick start the economy. During his time in Congress, Hultgren, who recently held a rally at Scot Forge, an employee-owned metal factory in Spring Grove, has also worked to reinvigorate manufacturing in the U.S.

Election Results: Underwood (D) Versus Hultgren (R)

Immigration

When it comes to immigration, one of the more polarizing issues in the country, Underwood supports "comprehensive immigration reform," according to her campaign website. In this vein, she recommends evaluating countries that are given "preferential treatment" for people emigrating to the United States. She's also staunchly stood behind a "clean Dream Act" to give DACA recipients a path to citizenship.

Hultgren has also encouraged immigration reform and supports a "piece by piece" system of reform to the current rules and regulations. Hultgren's campaign website calls for a "biometric entry-exit system" at the U.S. and Mexico border, along with an updated visa system for "productive members of society who go through the legal process to obtain proper status."

Gun Control

The election comes just weeks after 11 Jewish worshipers were killed in a shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue, making gun control one of the more hot-button issues for voters. Underwood's campaign asserts that "We have a moral obligation to address the gun violence epidemic that is threatening communities across our country." On this note, she supports universal background checks "for all gun sales" and a repeal of the Dickey amendment, which prevents CDC funds for being used toward gun control.

In an interview with Sun-Times, Hultgren said he was in favor of "keeping guns out of the hands of people who should not have them."

Reproductive Rights

Hultgren, who has been vocally pro-life, has a 100% pro-life voting record, according to the Right to Life Committee. His website states that he opposes "any efforts by the federal government to pay for abortion-inducing drugs or procedures that violate [the] consciences" of any religion and asserts that "A thriving society celebrates and protects life at all stages."

Underwood states unequivocally on her website that she "rights to the full range of reproductive health services, without restrictions," adding that "[t]his includes access to safe, legal, and affordable abortions."

High-Profile Endorsements

Both candidates recently had high-profile politicians come to Illinois and stump for them. On Wednesday, former Vice President Joe Biden came to St. Charles for an early voting rally held by the Underwood campaign. During the rally, Biden focused on affordable health care, a cause that's near and dear to Underwood, and addressed the recent hate crimes that took place in Pittsburgh and Kentucky.

Meanwhile, House Speaker Paul Ryan trekked to Spring Grove on Friday to speak at a rally held for Hultgren. Ryan told the crowd that Hultgren has been instrumental in fighting the opioid epidemic and battling human trafficking.

Image credits: Lisa Farver/Patch