Patrick Keating of Flossmoor became the 10th person who hopes to win the Democratic nomination for the 2nd Congressional seat in Congress.

The primary, set for March 17, will have 10 Democratic candidates, two Republicans and an independent. All are campaigning to fill the seat held by Rep. Robin Kelly, who is a candidate for the open Illinois Senate seat. 

At a press conference Thursday, Dec. 4, Keating said he’s never held a public office. The 59-year-old trial lawyer feels that he can help break the political impasse. Keating claims a number of his opponents are career politicians. He argues he has a unique set of skills that will help him be the most effective freshman congressman representing a district whose people are diverse and from multiple cultures.

The district runs from Chicago’s Kenwood neighborhood south to Danville. Keating said there is stark poverty throughout the district. In terms of median income, Keating said the 2nd District ranks 380th among the 435 Congressional districts.

“I’m not okay with managing the decline” of the district, Keating said. He said the district “has phenomenal infrastructure. It has energy and electricity, railroads and a port and multiple expressways and two of the fastest most powerful backbone internet pipelines going through it – a core internet connection system between Urbana and Chicago and a high-speed data line connecting markets in New York and Chicago.” 

Economic development needs to tap into those district resources, Keating said.

“This is a place that has incredible poverty and incredible opportunity,” Keating said. 

Keating hopes to win voters over by emphasizing four major points:

• Fix the tone in Washington and deal with the lack of ethics. He pledged to help end the vitriol in Congress “by breaking bread” with both Democrats and Republicans.
• Affordability: Make the 2nd District a leading producer for energy in the entire grid through clean nuclear energy and wind farm expansion. Investment could be as high as $50 to $70 billion to meet the increasing power needs of AI companies.
• A Healthcare Price Transparency Act that would make pricing of medical procedures available for cost comparisons. Market-based solutions will drive costs down.
• The Fresh Financial Start Act would modernize the credit reporting system so that Gen Z Americans who are dogged with long-term debt, such as student loans, can get better credit ratings by modifying those loans.

Kelly has been a major proponent of the proposed South Suburban Airport near Peotone. Keating said, “I’m fairly neutral on it, actually. I would love to see some economic development there, but it’s not a panacea. We’ve missed the moment for the airport, frankly.”

“I think overall we need to focus on economic development and NIMBY (not in my back yard). I don’t think the airport in the scope that it’s being talked about can get off the ground,” Keating said. 

He said he would confer with cargo airline representatives on the need for the airport.