Gov. Pat Quinn's first choice for lieutenant governor has turned him down.
Tammy Duckworth, an assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and formerly Illinois' VA director, called Quinn today and asked that her name be removed from consideration. NBC Chicago first reported the phone call.
Duckworth's refusal to join Quinn's ticket puts the Democratic governor in a tough spot.
Quinn chose her for the No. 2 position after Scott Lee Cohen, a pawnbroker with a troubled past, dropped his nomination for lieutenant governor under pressure from state party leaders.
By choosing Duckworth, Quinn risked alienating black voters.
Art Turner, a black state representative from Chicago, earned the most votes after Cohen in the primary election. Yet Quinn, a longtime advocate for veterans, chose to court Duckworth.
Part of the calculus was an attempt to balance the Democratic ticket with someone outside of Chicago. State Sen. Bill Brady, the presumptive Republican nominee, has strong support among more conservative downstate voters.
Now, Quinn might need to go back to the drawing board.
Having passed over Turner during the first round, he may gain little good will from picking him as second fiddle.
And with Brady's lead holding up, trying to reconnect with black communities by picking Turner would not help Quinn where his competition would be strongest.
Windy Citizen 