La Shawn K. Ford, a Democratic state legislator, won his party’s nomination on Tuesday for an Illinois congressional seat that includes the West Side of Chicago, according to The Associated Press.
Mr. Ford’s victory in the Seventh District, which is heavily Democratic, makes him the clear favorite in the general election to succeed Representative Danny Davis, who is retiring after 15 terms in Congress.
Mr. Ford, a member of the Illinois House of Representatives, emerged from a large field of Democratic candidates that included Richard Boykin, a former county commissioner; Melissa Conyears-Ervin, the Chicago treasurer; and Jason Friedman, a businessman.
Mr. Ford was endorsed by Mr. Davis. On the campaign trail, Mr. Ford called for abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and for making child care and housing more affordable. In 2014, Mr. Ford pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor tax crime in federal court and was sentenced to probation.
Democrats gerrymandered the Illinois congressional map to benefit their party. The Seventh District is shaped a bit like a construction crane, with a base that begins on Chicago’s South Side and goes up to the city’s downtown, and then a larger branch that encompasses the West Side and several western suburbs.
A victory by Mr. Ford in November would preserve Black representation of the Seventh District, which has been served by a Black member of Congress since the 1970s. A plurality of Seventh District residents are Black, though the district is also home to large numbers of white, Hispanic and Asian residents.
The leading Democrats in the race criticized President Trump and pledged to serve as a check on his priorities in Washington. United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, invested millions of dollars in the race and supported Ms. Conyears-Ervin.
The Associated Press said on Tuesday that Chad Koppie, a member of a regional school board in suburban Kane County, won the Republican primary. Mr. Koppie lost to Mr. Davis in 2024.
Jennifer Medina contributed reporting.
Mitch Smith is a Chicago-based national correspondent for The Times, covering the Midwest and Great Plains.
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