Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill) wanted to grab a leadership position in Congress that opportunity never materialized for Roskam and now he’s to maintain his post in the Sixth Congressional District of Illinois.
The Illinois congressman will be facing off against Michael Mason (D) in the November elections.
Earlier this year, Roskam was among few candidates vying to be the majority whip following the unexpected defeat of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in a Virginia primary election.
Ultimately, Roskam’s attempts were thwarted by Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise, whom House Republicans picked to be their No. 3 leader.
Scalise defeated Roskam and Indiana Rep. Marlin Stutzman, who had tea party support for his election.
As Kevin McCarthy's deputy whip, the 52-year-old Roskam -- who hails from the western Chicago suburb of Wheaton -- seemingly was in a prime spot to score a promotion. But he lacked unanimous support from his five congressional colleagues repping Illinois, including Peoria's Aaron Schock, who had been making calls on Scalise's behalf.
In Roskam's corner were Winfield's Randy Hultgren and Taylorville's Rodney Davis, while Collinsville's John Shimkus and Channahon's Adam Kinzinger ultimately didn't endorse him.
Roskam is poised to hold onto his seat in November's midterm elections, with the Rothenberg Political Report considering him a "safe Republican." He's up against Mason, a political rookie from Naperville, whom he has already outspent with a campaign war chest of $1 million and counting. He sits on the tax-writing Ways and Means committee and also joined the panel re-opening the probe into the Benghazi attack.
"I am a conservative who won in suburban Chicago in 2006 as a conservative through and through," Roskam said.
Mason is a former Postal Service executive who retired as the Manager of the Great Lakes Area Distribution Networks office.
Mason is running on a campaign focused on the middle class, including increasing the minimum wage.
The Sixth Congressional District covers parts of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and McHenry counties with roughly 725,000 residents.
