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Election Information
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Published by KenoshaNews.com.
Photo: Democrat Paulette Garin of Kenosha, here leading a 2009 health care town hall meeting at UAW Local 72 headquarters, has announced she will not challenge U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Jaynesville, this fall. (Kenosha News file photo).
Paulette Garin of Kenosha announced Sunday she won’t be running for the U.S. Congressional seat currently occupied by Paul Ryan, R-Janesville.
Frustrated with the lack of response from the Democratic Party’s First Congressional District board, Garin said the party never really backed her or even acknowledged her. She believes this is because the party thought she was too progressive.
“I filed papers in May 2009 as a legitimate candidate,” Garin said. “And they (Mark Pienkos, the Democratic chairman of First Congressional District, and the board for the district ) are acting like I don't exist.”
Another reason she pulled out of the race—the Democratic Party has a new horse in the game.
Garin said the party is now rallying around John Heckenlively, a secretary of the 1st Congressional District Democratic Party, who lives in Racine. Garin says the party is now trying to get signatures for him, which are due Tuesday.
Garin knows Heckenlively well, she said, and likes him. Running against him in a primary would have created an adversarial relationship, which she wasn’t open to doing.
“And, no matter if I had all the support in the world, it would have taken an obscene amount of money to run against Paul,” Garin said.
As of June 30, Ryan had raised nearly $2.2 million, according to federal filings.
But Garin points to a fundamental flaw within the Democratic Party.
“What has become clear to me is that they had no plan and they had no strategy for this district,” she said. “They burned up all of this time and they are going to have to support John in this grassroots manner and the very best I can do is just step aside. But the higher-ups can't ignore this congressional district.”
Calls made to Mark Pienkos and John Heckenlively were not returned.
See related: Rep. Paul Ryan will have an opponent after all.
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