Democratic Rep. Jesús 'Chuy' García won't seek reelection

Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García (D-Ill.) is not running for reelection, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Monday. 

García, 69, has represented the state’s 4th Congressional District since January 2019. A member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the House Judiciary Committee, he is also the deputy whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. 

He filed to run for reelection with the Illinois State Board of Elections on Oct. 27. However, just ahead of Monday evening’s deadline, his chief of staff, Patty Garcia, filed with the board to run for her boss’s seat.

The Sun-Times reported that the incumbent Rep. García is expected to pull his petitions and back his chief of staff. The Hill has reached out to García’s campaign for comment. 

A native of Durango, Mexico, García is a longtime figure in Illinois politics. He started as an alderman on the Chicago City Council from 1986 to 1993, then served in the Illinois Senate from 1993 to 1999 and on the Cook County Board of Commissioners from 2011 to 2018. 

He also ran for mayor of Chicago twice, coming in second to Rahm Emanuel in 2015 and fourth to Brandon Johnson, Paul Vallas and Lori Lightfoot in 2023. 

The Democratic primary in the 4th District, which includes parts of Chicago and Cook County suburbs, is set for March 17, 2026. The district is majority-Hispanic or Latino, with 55 percent of residents of Mexican descent, according to the Census Bureau’s 2024 American Community Survey.

According to the Illinois State Board of Elections, Republican Lupe Castillo and Working Class Party candidate Ed Hershey also filed to run for the seat on Monday.

García defeated Castillo and Hershey in his reelection bid last November.