Amara Enyia Could Challenge Davis For 7th District House Seat

By aaroncynic in News on Sep 8, 2015 9:13PM

Former mayoral challenger Amara Enyia is looking to potentially challenge Congressman Danny Davis for the 7th District House seat. Enyia, who is a community organizer and executive director of the Austin Chamber of Commerce, filed papers to form an exploratory committee today after Davis announced over the weekend that despite rumors otherwise, he would be running for reelection.

“Now is the time for bold, servant leadership that empowers the residents of the 7th District and drives an aggressive, transformative agenda that is global in scope with maximum local impact,’’ Enyia said in a press release.

The Sun-Times reports Davis, who is 74 and has represented the district since 1996, told supporters at his kick off party on Sunday “We need as much seasoned leadership as we can get.”

Enyia says she’s running because the 7th District, which includes the Loop, the West Side, parts of the South Side and western suburbs, needs “a strong, vibrant voice with progressive thinking and action now more than ever.’’

“It’s all about recognizing the opportunity we have to do some transformative things for people,” said Enyia in an interview with Chicagoist. “We need bold aggressive vocal leadership to benefit our constituents.”

A challenge to Davis could prove to be an uphill battle. According to the Austin Weekly News, the congressman took 85 percent of the vote last election. “He's a very popular congressman,” said campaign manager Tumia Romero. “He gets between 80 and 86 percent of the vote each time he runs. People appreciate his commitment to them and that he hasn't shifted or changed.”

But a fresh face and bolder ideas could make an impact on 7th District voters. While Davis’ campaign manager said the congressman’s platform “hasn’t changed much” and will “include many things, such as his support for prison reentry programs, economic development opportunities,” Enyia says she’s passionate about other issues as well:

“I feel passionate about economic development and jobs, passionate about high quality education for every child. Passionate about preparing young people and adults for the future. Criminal justice reform. Ending mass incarceration. Those are the issues that I will be talking about.”

For Enyia, who was the first person to throw her hat in the ring to challenge Rahm Emanuel for the seat on the 5th floor of City Hall, a run would be about taking those issues and moving Chicago forward into the future.

"We can no longer settle for status-quo thinking," she said.