WILMETTE, Ill. - As the 10th Congressional District race heats up, challenger Dan Seals has gained an endorsement from a large labor union, while incumbent U.S Rep. Mark Kirk has lost an endorsement from a major environmental group.
The Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the fastest growing union in the country, endorsed Seals after giving Kirk a failing grade for his votes in the 109th Congress. The SEIU, with 1.8 million members in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, is the largest health care union, the largest property services union, and the second-largest public employees union. It has 2,000 members in the 10th district.
"I am gratified to receive the SEIU endorsement," Seals said. "During the Bush administration, the concerns of working Americans have been off the Congressional agenda. When I am elected to Congress, fair treatment for working Americans will be a top priority. And we need to reform our health care system so that all Americans can receive affordable access to quality care."
Meanwhile, Rep. Kirk lost the endorsement of the Sierra Club. This directly contradicts his recent direct mail campaign that touts his environmentalism.
"The reputation that my opponent has cultivated as a pro-environment moderate has been decisively debunked," Seals said. "The Sierra Club wouldn't pull its endorsement from an incumbent congressman unless his voting record had not been supportive of important environmental goals."
The League of Conservation Voters gave Kirk a 39 percent rating last year for, among other things, voting to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
