Londrigan on Democrat list to flip House seat from red to blue

Jan. 29--*

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SPRINGFIELD -- The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which works to elect Democrats to the U.S. House, has named 13th Congressional District candidate Betsy Dirksen Londrigan of Springfield as one of the first 12 candidates nationally to its 2020 "red to blue" list.

The program is designed to help candidates who can flip House seats held by Republicans into the Democratic column.

Meanwhile, the Republican House member that Londrigan hopes to unseat in the 13th Congressional District, Rep. Rodney Davis of Taylorville, was named one of more than 80 supporters of President Donald Trump who will campaign for the Republican president in Iowa on Monday, the day of the state's presidential caucuses.

According to a statement from the DCCC, Londrigan earned a spot on the "red to blue" list by surpassing aggressive goals for grassroots engagement, local support, campaign organization and fundraising.

"Betsy is running for Congress to champion access to affordable health care, lower the proce of prescription drugs and to end the corruption that has plagued our political process," said U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Moline, who chairs the DCCC. "With strong grassroots support and momentous fundraising on her side, Betsy is ready to unseat Congressman Rodney Davis in 2020."

Londrigan also made the DCCC's red-to-blue list in her 2018 run, but not after that year's hotly contested, five-way Democratic primary. She came within a percentage point of defeating Davis that fall. She is the only candidate from Illinois on the list released Tuesday.

Londrigan has opposition from political newcomer Stefanie Smith of Urbana in the March 17 Democratic primary. While Londrigan reported raising more than $530,000 in the fourth quarter of 2019, Smith said Tuesday her campaign has raised more than $6,000.

Smith said she thinks the DCCC's stance towards her has been "to ignore, isolate and alienate me."

The DCCC does not do endorsements, but the red to blue designation is considered recognition that a candidate has a viable path to win a seat held by a Republican.

Planned Parenthood Illinois Action, the non-partisan and political and advocacy arm of Planned Parenthood of Illinois, also announced endorsements Tuesday including one of Londrigan. The group also endorsed her in 2018.

"This year more than ever we need champions in our corner who are willing to fight for the reproductive rights of all Illinois residents," said Matea Varvodic, board president of the group. Smith is also in favor of abortion rights, while Davis is opposed to abortion.

Davis is unopposed in the GOP primary and seeking his fifth two-year term in the House. As a Trump surrogate in Iowa, Davis will campaign for the president at caucus locations Monday.

"This will be the strongest, best funded, and most organized presidential campaign in history," said Brad Parscale, Trump's campaign manager. "We are putting the Democrats on notice -- good luck trying to keep up with this formidable re-election machine."

The president's sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump also are among the surrogates as well as Eric's wife, Lara Trump; presidential chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and cabinet members Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.

Among long-shot candidates against Trump in the GOP primary is former U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh of Illinois, whose campaign issued an Iowa schedule with several stops.

"While Trump is sending a cohort of surrogates out of fear of an embarrassing performance here due to his massive unpopularity, Walsh is on the ground in-person listening to the issues facing Iowans," according to a news release.

Davis is now a strong advocate of re-election of the president, though he had said before the 2016 election that he could not vote for Trump because of Trump's "abhorrent" and "inexcusable" comments.

He was referring to the Oct. 7, 2016 release of a 2005 conversation Trump had while an "Access Hollywood" microphone was live, and Trump, getting off a bus, talked of women letting him grab and kiss them because he was famous.

Though Davis said in 2016 that he could not vote for anyone in that year's presidential race and asked Trump to step aside to allow now-Vice President Mike Pence to be elected president, Davis in July 2018 would not say if he carried through on not voting for Trump. He said he respects the privacy of voting.

By then, Davis said he had been impressed with the Trump administration on a wide variety of issues, including tax cuts.

The Davis campaign also has opposed the move toward impeachment.

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