July 2, 2007
Wife, husband might be rivals in U.S. House race
When Bill Scheurer ran as an independent in
last year's race for the northwest suburban 8th Congressional District seat held
by Barrington Democrat Melissa Bean, his wife, Randi, backed him every step of
the way.
But now it will be Randi Scheurer taking the lead when she makes
a run at unseating Bean, the two-term incumbent, in the 2008 Democratic
primary.
"I'm running because I want to bring our troops home from Iraq
now," said Scheurer, whose 29-year-old son recently returned from a tour of duty
in Iraq with the National Guard. "I consider this an illegal war, an immoral war
and a war of aggression."
Although she has never run for office, Randi
Scheurer got a firsthand look at how campaigns work when her husband ran under
the Moderate Party banner.
Bill Scheurer said he's likely to run again as
the Moderate Party candidate in next year's election. He garnered more than 5
percent of the vote in 2006, guaranteeing the party a spot on the
ballot.
Married 35 years, the Scheurers said they do not expect their
competing candidacies to drive a wedge between them because they both will be
campaigning for an immediate troop withdrawal from the Middle East.
"We'd
be happy if either one of us got in because the issue is so pressing," said
Randi Scheurer, an artist and mother of four who is a member of Military
Families Speak Out.
"I believe our representative isn't listening to the
voices of our community," said Scheurer, who criticized Bean for supporting
funding for the Iraq war.
Brian Herman, a spokesman for Bean, said her
voting record shows consistent support of the troops.
"She continues to
reach out and respond to her constituents, and looks forward to running on her
record," Herman said.
Long Grove businessman Steve Greenberg announced
plans to seek the GOP nomination.
Both Randi and Bill Scheurer said they
would rely on donations to fund their individual campaigns. Most important, they
said, will be taking their campaign directly to residents of their Lindenhurst
neighborhood and other 8th District towns.
"I know how to walk the
streets and go door to door, which I think will be the real key," Randi Scheurer
said.
skuczka@tribune.com