(Downers Grove, IL) October 27, 2018 – Former Illinois Lt. Governor, Republican Bob Kustra, penned an endorsement of Sean Casten this week, Sixth District candidate for Congress in the Daily Herald. In response, Sixth District Candidate Sean Casten released the following statement:

“I’m honored to have the endorsement of former Lt. Governor Bob Kustra. This race is about values over party, and it’s humbling to have bipartisan support in this race, and the endorsement of another well-respected Republican former elected official,” said Casten. “Peter Roskam and his rubber stamp for President Trump’s agenda doesn’t represent the values of Illinois Sixth, and both parties know this.”

Kustra’s endorsement is the latest in a series of endorsements by prominent Republican officials to endorse Casten including William Reilly, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under President George H. W. Bush; Nora Mead Brownell, former Commissioner of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission from 2001–2006 under the administration of President George W. Bush; and Harris W. Fawell, Congressman (R-IL) from 1985-1999.

Full Text of the Endorsement:

New leadership needed

As a former lieutenant governor of Illinois, serving along with Gov. Jim Edgar from 1990 to 1998 and as a Republican member of the Illinois legislature for 10 years, I endorsed many Republicans running for office. Today, I write in support of the Democratic candidate in Illinois’ Sixth Congressional District, Sean Casten.

Since I left politics and pursued a career as a university president, I have watched the Republican Party drift further to the extreme and alienate moderate voters. I have watched members of my party gravitate from serving as delegates of their constituents to serving the narrow interests of Donald Trump. This year’s midterm elections affords voters of both parties the opportunity to send a message to Washington that the politics of division and self-interest must be rejected.

We have all watched Peter Roskam talk about bipartisanship and then take every opportunity to align himself with President Trump. From voting to kick thousands of Illinoisans off their health insurance, to jeopardizing coverage for those with pre-existing conditions, to authoring a tax bill that cuts taxes for large corporations and adds trillions to the deficit at the expense of middle class families, Congressman Roskam has not demonstrated an interest in working across the aisle to find bipartisan solutions.

Today, I am endorsing a man who will serve as an independent check on the president, who will provide checks and balances to a Congress out of control and who will fight for common-sense, bipartisan policies in Congress: Sean Casten. Sean’s business record and commitment to working with both Democrats and Republicans in Congress are long overdue in Washington.

Bob Kustra