Jeff Smith | Bowman Endorsement

Former Rep. Woody Bowman Backs Jeff Smith in IL-18

PRESS RELEASE

January 14, 2010

H. Woods (“Woody”) Bowman, who served 14 years as a Democratic state representative from Evanston and earned a reputation for political independence and fiscal integrity, has endorsed community leader and former state central committeeman Jeff Smith in the primary for the 18^th Representative District, which is centered in Evanston and includes most of Bowman’s former district. The endorsement is significant in the hotly contested Democratic primary for the 18^th District, in an election year and area that place a premium on political independence and reform.

In a statement released by the Smith campaign, Bowman declared, "Jeff Smith is the right choice for the 18^th District, a community I know well. Illinois's crises need the intellectual firepower and creative thinking that Jeff will bring to Springfield. Those of us committed to better government have known Jeff for many years to be a proven and dedicated advocate of reform. I know from experience that in the hurly-burly of Springfield, you often have to act on instinct, and I trust Jeff's instincts."

Said Smith, "I am deeply honored to have Woody Bowman on our team. He set a standard for area legislators to follow. His clear thinking, common sense, and independence from the type of politics that have put Illinois in its present fix were an extraordinary asset to the residents of this community, and to the General Assembly. I consider him a role model and hope to call on his considerable expertise in my work in the 97^th General Assembly."

Bowman, an economist and associate professor of public service management at DePaul University, was the longest-serving state representative from Evanston in recent memory. He subsequently served as the chief financial officer of Cook County, and writes a column for the Nonprofit Quarterly on ethics.

Jeff Smith, who has the deepest background in election reform and the most comprehensive website treatment of the issue of any candidate in the race, is already backed by numerous organizations and political leaders on the independent-reform side of local politics, including, among others, the Independent Voters of Illinois-Independent Precinct Organization ("IVI-IPO"), Americans for Democratic Action (NE Illinois chapter), Northside Democracy for America, Progressive Democrats of America (Illinois chapter), Congressman Mike Quigley (D-5^th), Alderman Joe Moore (49^th-Chicago), and former DPOE president and District 65 school board member Jonathan Baum, as well as business and local government leaders concerned with the state's budget crisis. A full list of Smith's endorsements is online at his website, electjeffsmith.org.

The 18^th District, currently represented by Julie Hamos, includes most of Evanston, approximately the eastern half of New Trier Township, and the northeastern part of the 49th Ward of Chicago.

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