Melissa Bean wins Illinois Democratic primary for her old seat in the US House of Representatives

Former Congresswoman Melissa Bean won Tuesday’s Democratic primary election in Illinois’ 8th District, the seat Bean held from 2005 to 2011.

Bean’s name recognition and high-profile endorsements propelled her to victory with the help of deep-pocketed interest groups that support Israel and big tech companies. His victory in the nine-person primary is something of a victory for the Democratic establishment over its progressive wing, which favored Junaid Ahmed in the 8th district.

In an interview with News themezone last week, Bean said voters appreciated how he served in Congress when Barack Obama was president and Democrats enacted sweeping reforms in the financial and health care industries. And he said voters valued an experienced candidate.

“They want someone to get to work, because what’s happening in this country is really urgent,” Bean said. “They want to know how to get out, stop the chaos and do something about it.”

Melissa Bean for Congress

Bean earned the endorsement of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and several other top Democrats, while Ahmed had the backing of progressive icons like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.).

The progressive group Justice Democrats He cursed Bean in a TV ad. for his centrist voting record during his three House terms: “He voted with Republicans to fund ICE, raise Medicare premiums, and give tax cuts to billionaires.”

Although Bean has touted his votes for the Affordable Care Act and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform bill, he worked against progressives on aspects of the latter bill and earned a reputation as “Wall Street’s Favorite Democrat.”

Bean told News themezone that he agreed with Democrats refusing to fund the Department of Homeland Security over aggressive ICE tactics that killed two U.S. citizens in Minnesota earlier this year.