i worked for both of christine cegelis's congressional campaigns.
we didnt win, but her hard work set the stage. she didnt have money but she had an army.
i will never get over the grudge i have against the dnc for pushing a totally unprepared tammy duckworth into that second primary, because cegelis wasnt raising enough money. if they had just supported cegelis, the world would have been spared ro-scum.
a coouple other du'ers were on that campaign. kevin spidel was her manager and we got an assist from a smart mouthed kid named will pitt.

i love to tell the story of the rally the weekend before that '04 election.
mostly what i did was plant signs in my art car. besides christine's signs, i planted a lot of signs for a skinny guy w a funny name that was running for the senate that year.

dupage dems had been almost nothing for years. but we packed the auditorium at college of dupage that night.
everyone wanted to see this phemon. that was the first time i heard barack obama speak.
i thought the place was going to spontaneously combust.

i got to chat w him after. hear that laugh and see that smile up close.
i was driving around the parking lot in that crazy car afterward, and he and christine were walking out just as i passed the front door.
the smiles and waves i got from them is a moment i will never forget.
i've often thought about whether he remembers that night. maybe i will get to chat w him again at the foundation. i bet he does, cuz that's how he is.

and folks might remember that my kid sister, sheila rutledge was one of those 4 that got in in '18.
and yes, the demos have shifted, but it started back then.
and it started w christine.