Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA) surprised much of the House, including her own Democratic colleagues, on Wednesday by introducing a motion to condemn Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia (D-IL) for his decision to no longer seek reelection and essentially pave the way for his chief of staff to replace him.
Perez introduced a privileged motion that called out Garcia for “undermining the process of a free and fair election.”
“Whereas Representative Garcia’s actions are beneath the dignity of his office and incompatible with the spirit of the Constitution. Now therefore, let it be resolved that the House of Representatives disapproves of the behavior of the representative from Illinois, Mr. Garcia,” Perez said.
Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-MA) was sternly talking to Perez on the floor ahead of her, introducing her privileged motion. Perez did not take questions while leaving the chamber.
Garcia filed for reelection on Oct. 27, but on Nov. 7, he put out a video that he would not seek reelection because his cardiologist warned him about his health, so he “could walk those grandkids into adulthood.”
His chief of staff, Patty García, filed for the race on Nov. 3, just prior to the state board’s deadline. She officially launched her campaign on Wednesday.
Rep. Garcia did not have any Democratic Party primary challengers, so speculation arose that he gave his chief a heads-up that he would retire, allowing her to file for candidacy ahead of the deadline.
In a statement, Perez said Garcia’s stated reasons for retiring are “honorable,” but his decision to “anoint an heir is fundamentally undemocratic.”
“This is the kind of thing that makes folks tune out of electoral politics,” Perez said. “And frankly, who’d blame them? If we fail to hold our colleagues accountable for the subversion of elections, we own the consequences.”
“Americans bled and died to secure the right to elect their leaders,” the congresswoman continued. “We can expect to be taken seriously in the fight for free and fair elections if we turn a blind eye to election denial on our side of the aisle.”
Perez received support from a former House colleague and current Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ).
“Rep Chuy Garcia’s decision to end his re-election at the last second and plant his chief of staff as the only candidate to succeed him was undemocratic and should not be allowed,” Kim said in a post to X. “Standing against corruption means standing up no matter which political party violates. The House should condemn and steps need to be taken to restore the people’s right to choose.”
Illinois’s 4th District is rated D+17 by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, so whoever wins the Democratic nomination is all but assured a win in the general election, hence Perez’s resolution.
Byron Sigcho-Lopez, a progressive Chicago alderman, told the Chicago Sun-Times last week he is considering an independent bid in the district. Republican candidate Lupe Castillo and Working Class Party candidate Ed Hershey are also running in the race.
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Under the rules of a privileged motion, the House has to vote on the resolution within two legislative days. It is a rare moment of party vs party infighting, and an even rarer instance of a lawmaker seeking a reprimand of someone within the same party.
However, Perez, a centrist Blue Dog, has made challenging the status quo on Capitol Hill the forefront of her agenda. She is expected to be one of the handful of Democratic “yes” votes on the continuing resolution set for a vote Wednesday evening. She meant to vote “yes” in September for the original spending deal, but she missed the vote.
