No Senate bid for McCracken (R-IL) | Chicago Sun Times

No Senate bid for McCracken

August 8, 2003

BY SCOTT FORNEK Political Reporter Advertisement

Another one bites the dust.

RTA Board Chairman Thomas McCracken Jr. said Thursday he will not run for the U.S. Senate, a decision that Republican Sen. Peter Fitzgerald called "regrettable because he would have been a very strong candidate."

"I've decided not to make the race," McCracken said. "I'm interested in getting back into running for elective office. This just isn't the time for my family."

After he announced he would not seek a second term, Fitzgerald urged McCracken to enter the wide open race to succeed him. But after months of deliberation and appearances at candidate forums, McCracken decided to take a pass on the 2004 Senate contest to focus on his family and a possible return to electoral politics in 2006 or beyond.

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