Illinois House Candidate Claims Opponent's Supporters Attacked Him
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A candidate running for the Illinois House says he was attacked by supporters of the incumbent's campaign, but someone else is claiming the candidate attacked him outside his campaign office.
Robert Zwolinski, 30, is running for the 4th Representative District, which includes parts of the Bucktown, Humboldt Park, Logan Square, Noble Square, Ukrainian Village, West Town, and Wicker Park neighborhoods.
He told police he saw two people stapling posters for state Rep. Cynthia Soto outside his campaign office in the 800 block of North Ashland Avenue late Sunday, and when he confronted them, the situation escalated.
Zwolinski said the man and woman began beating him. Police said the man hit Zwolinski in the chest, and the chest, and the woman hit him in the head with a bottle, and shot a staple gun at his forehead.
Zwolinski's girlfriend took him to the hospital, where he received six stitches to close the wound in his forehead.
He said he believes his attackers work for Soto's campaign.
"Absolutely, I do believe that they were the people. I do not believe that this was an orchestrated attack from my opponent," he said. "The first thing I told my staff, and I told everybody all around who was not even just here tonight, we're not here on a street battle. We're not going to retaliate by going on a gang-style warfare on the streets. That's not what we stand for. That's not what we're going to do."
Although Zwolinski said he doesn't believe Soto set up the attack, he said she should step down. He said Soto has been in office nearly 16 years unopposed, and many people rely on her position for jobs and power, "and those individuals are still part of her."
"I want her to resign, absolutely. This is not something that, in 2016, that should ever happen. This is democracy, this is not gangland warfare," he said.
Less than 90 minutes after the fight, a 26-year-old man filed a police report claiming Zwolinski started it, by throwing him to the ground and punching him in the face multiple times.
That man was treated at St. Mary of Nazareth Hospital for minor injuries.
Frank Avila, an attorney for the alleged attackers, insists Zwolinski's injuries are a result of self-defense.
"When they were putting up the signs, they were putting them around the office, not on his office and he came out, 'you cannot put signs here,' then he grabbed the man and he pushed him and a fight ensued," Avila said. "If he started a fight and got the worst of a fight, that's on him."
Zwolinski denied instigating the attack.
"I wasn't throwing punches. I was not throwing punches, and I told him that. I said, 'I'm not punching you. I'm running for office. This is not something that I'm going to do. This is ridiculous," he said.
The Soto campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Sources tell CBS 2 that charges are pending against two people in connection with the incident, but it is unclear who they are.
There appeared to be several surveillance cameras in the area, but it was not clear if they were working at the time of the altercation.
