Betsy Dirksen Londrigan Discusses Why She’s Running Again In Illinois’ 13th Congressional District

By Jaclyn Driscoll,

Published October 23, 2020 at 12:58 PM CDT

Betsy Dirksen-Londrigan is once again trying to unseat Republican Congressman Rodney Davis in Illinois' 13th District. She's using much of the same playbook as she did in 2018, warning health care is at stake for her constituents. — Betsy Dirksen Londrigan is once again trying to unseat Republican Congressman Rodney Davis in Illinois' 13th District. She's using much of the same playbook as she did in 2018, warning health care is at stake for her constituents.

Democrat Betsy Dirksen Londrigan is the latest guest on Politically Speaking. She spoke with St. Louis Public Radio’s Eric Schmid and Jaclyn Driscoll about her race against U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis in Illinois’ 13th Congressional District, which includes a portion of the Metro East.

Dirksen Londrigan ran against Davis in 2018, narrowly losing to the incumbent Republican by 2,058 votes. The race is again expected to be close on Nov. 3. Davis won reelection in 2014 and 2016 by nearly 20 percentage points each time.

Here’s what Dirksen Londrigan talked about during the program.

Why she’s running for a second time to unseat Davis.
The status of the Affordable Care Act and her support of “Medicare-X,” which would add a public option to the health care marketplaces.
The national response to the coronavirus pandemic and her vision for how the federal government can help Americans make it to the other side of the pandemic.
College costs and her ideas for how to make higher education more affordable.

Dirksen Londrigan was born and raised in Springfield. She was formerly a teacher and the director of Alumni Affairs at the University of Illinois in Springfield. She also worked on downstate fundraising for U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin.