In Tossup Race, 10th District Candidates Stumping Up To The End
CHICAGO (CBS) -- One of the most hotly-contested congressional races in the country is in the 10th district, which encompasses much of northern Cook and Lake Counties.
The neck-and-neck race assured that Democratic U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider was at his Highland Park polling place with his wife Julie and son Adam to cast their ballots minutes after it opened. Asked if he planned to catch a nap today, he said, "Maybe tomorrow."
Schneider said he intends to be campaigning until the polls close at 7 p.m.
"It's the opportunity to get around and talk to people and make sure they exercise their right to vote," Schneider said. "It's the most important thing we do as American citizens."
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Predecessor and GOP opponent Robert Dold's campaign bus (a bus that was once the "Straight Talk Express" bus used by U.S. Sen. John McCain during McCain's bid for the presidency) broke down, so Dold jumped into a car for his first stop in Lake Forest, arriving 25 minutes behind schedule.
"We were up early and we're going to be up all day. We've been spending a lot of time over the last five days, we've been traveling about 1,300 miles at 50 different events, and the momentum has been fantastic," Dold said. "We're really excited about what we're hearing from people.
Each claims to be confident and said his views represent a long-time swing district.
Dold lost to Schneider in 2012 by a margin of a little more than 3,000 votes. He said a lot has changed since then, and said having Gov. Pat Quinn instead of President Obama at the top of the ticket alone may prove to be enough to swing the vote in the opposite direction.
Dold campaigned as late as Monday night alongside Quinn's Republican challenger, businessman Bruce Rauner.
Both will go direct from their last campaign stops to election night parties, Schneider in Highland Park and Dold in Libertyville, and campaign workers for both said they believe it will be a long day of last day campaigning, followed by a vote count that will go well into the night before the winner is known.
