The Daily Herald's Kimberly Pohl turned to political science professors to try and explain why the 8th CD's Joe Walsh may very well be the surprise winner over Democrat incumbent Melissa Bean. With a 553 vote lead and absentee and military votes still outstanding, Walsh has declared victory while Bean has not yet conceded.
Pohl refuses to acknowledge the obvious: the energy and drive of the candidate Joe Walsh and his wife Helene and the tireless commitment of the Palatine Tea Party volunteer team. Walsh could be the ultimate example of what the Tea Party movement can do, and it's not yet received the national attention it should, especially with this surprise being in Obama's backyard. Walsh appears to have won over financial shortages that would have discouraged and stopped other candidates, but for which his local Tea Party faithful ultimately made up.
In his last filings on October 13, Open Secrets showed Walsh with a little over $4000 on hand, having raised $465,000, the vast majority through individual contributions. His opponent Melissa Bean filed October 13 with over $441,000 on hand, having raised almost $2 million. (click on image at right to enlarge)
The Palatine Tea Party consistently sent out press releases that were well-researched, emphasizing their disgust with the current U.S. representative. They turned up en masse at protests and rallies. They volunteered their efforts when paid staffers threw up their hands and walked away, at times they claimed in lawsuits, unpaid. You either loved Joe Walsh or you despised him in the 8th CD.
But Walsh and his wife Helene did not stop. After pulling a surprise upset in the February primary over very well qualified opponents, Walsh was featured on a Fox News spot that seemed to indicate the campaign was disorganized, underfunded and would be ultimately unable to put up any resistance to Bean's re-election bid. The Walsh campaign had volunteers step up and the campaign staff was whittled down to virtual non-existence. But Walsh, a charismatic speaker and inspirational campaigner with his fingers on the pulse of an angry constituency, didn't take his eyes off the goal of winning back Phil Crane's old congressional seat.
The final determination on that race is still up in the air, but if Walsh pulls this race out as it appears he will do, the race will deserve much more study and evaluation. And national attention.
