Former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stressed the importance of the November election during an appearance at an abortion rights event in Chicago on Monday.
“Winning is a decision. Mobilize, message, money — no regrets the day after the election,” the California Democrat told several hundred people at a luncheon fundraiser at the Hilton Chicago put on by Personal PAC, a political advocacy group for abortion access in the Midwest.
While most congressional races in Illinois are not competitive, Pelosi took time to highlight the moderate bona fides of incumbents including first-term U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski and to stress the importance of voting with only six weeks and one day to go.
“This is like the Olympics. Gold, silver, bronze, honored to be an Olympian — within one second. These are close races, and every vote counts,” Pelosi said.
Outside the Hilton, a crowd of anti-abortion protesters waved graphic signs and heckled people arriving at the event, where Pelosi was joined by Gov. JB Pritzker, Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch and members of the U.S. House and state General Assembly.
After speaking about the importance of mobilizing and messaging, Pelosi turned to a “third M: money,” before ribbing Pritzker, a billionaire who last year launched Think Big America, a tax-exempt organization that promotes abortion rights: “Right, governor?”
Budzinski introduced Pelosi, who praised the congresswoman running for a second term in a district that spans from Urbana to nearly St. Louis.
“She’s highly respected by the veterans’ community, also recognizing how important agriculture is to Illinois,” Pelosi said. “She makes sure your point of view prevails in this Congress.”
Budzinski ran in one of the tighter downstate congressional races in 2022 but won by about 13 percentage points. This year, she has multimillion dollar fundraising advantage over Republican challenger Joshua Loyd, a former member of the Army National Guard, according federal campaign finance records.
All House members are up for reelection this year. Illinois Democrats have drawn district maps that are expected to keep most of the party’s seats safe in November.
Early voting in Illinois can start as early as this week, though Chicago’s early voting doesn’t open until Oct. 3.
Pelosi repeatedly told the crowd of abortion rights activists that she does her work “for the children.”
Politics is “tough, not for the faint of heart. You have to be ready to take a punch, and you have to be ready to throw a punch,” she said.
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