Entrepreneur, Army veteran and conservative activist David Ratowitz bested two Primary opponents on February 2 to become the Republican nominee that will challenge freshman Congressman Mike Quigley on November 2 for Illinois’ 5^th District seat.

Ratowitz commented after the final results were announced, as he and supporters celebrated at Wise Fools Pub in Chicago:

My campaign was consistent, informed and relentless in its delivery of a limited government and free market message to the people of Congressional District 5. Ultimately, the voters – both in the city and the suburbs – roundly accepted that message as their own.

I stand with the independent businesses and working families of the 5^th Congressional District who are insisting, in no uncertain terms, on a far less intrusive federal government and increased fiscal responsibility at all levels. This victory is a decisive win for liberty, the first of many that will propel our campaign to success in November.

I thank my family, supporters, staff and, most assuredly, my fellow citizens of Illinois District 5.

We 82nd Airborne paratroopers have a motto: “All the Way!” Coming into the February 2 Primary Election, Illinois conservatives have every reason for confidence that core Republican values will be reflected in our party’s nominations next Tuesday. We are secure in knowing that voters – through nationwide grassroots tea parties and recent high-profile elections – are resoundingly demanding the steadfast over the status quo, principled over the pay-to-play, and yes, ideology over expediency. Out on the street, the hue and cry is for an immediate end to the beyond-reckless overborrowing and overspending; it’s conservative “All the Way!”

Yet, everyone with a pulse places bets daily against our Land of Lincoln becoming a stronghold of liberty any time soon. Our state leaders are a national laughingstock, and we Republicans, an impotent backstop, at best, against persistent liberal creep. The Chicago Way is seen as Illinois’ one and only way. So, will we prove them wrong?

Will Illinois’ Primary results reflect the unquestionable public sentiment for bold and restorative fiscal reforms – deep, across-the-board tax and spending cuts; basic accountability; and real-life balanced budgets? Will we be able to secure a victory for Constitutional conviction and resist the pull to moderate at the 11^th hour? Will we regain our self-assurance and shift Springfield and Washington, D.C., for the better?

I maintain that we will. We will if we select those candidates with a verifiable record – garnered in the public or private sector – of relentless conservative leadership. We will if we require deep platforms and relevant legislative proposals. We will if we choose candidates who pledge to release us from the shackles of persistent government intervention. For it is only if we opt for the limited government bulwark in every race and in every district, from town council to governor, that we will make a dent in upending our cities, state and country from their economic distress and return to prosperity.

Native son Ronald Reagan had it more than right: “We've gone astray from first principles. We've lost sight of the rule that individual freedom and ingenuity are at the very core of everything that we've accomplished. Government's first duty is to protect the people, not run their lives.”

It is time – past time – for our state to pull its weight, and the lever, for liberty. Stand and deliver, Illinois!

The Pioneer Press Editorial Board today endorsed David as "the best Republican candidate to take on Mike Quigley in November."

David Ratowitz is the best Republican candidate to take on Congressman Mike Quigley, who is unopposed, in the November election for the 5th District.

Ratowitz, a lawyer specializing employment and real estate, favors smaller government and job growth through small business. In health care, he supports reforms that would make health insurance more competitive similar to auto insurance. He says health insurance should not be tied to employment.

He would remove our troops from Afghanistan and build up counter-terrorism measures from home.

He says he is the only one in the race who has real-world experience and his three main issues are "jobs, jobs, jobs."

We endorse Ratowitz for the 5th Congressional District.

See all David's endorsements here.

Podcast of David's 50-minute 1/10/10 interview on Blog Talk Radio's "Life, Liberty & the Pursuit of Conservatism" show. David - who tells LL&PC hosts that "We've been in an unsustainable paradigm of government since the New Deal" - discusses his positions on tax cuts, foreign policy, unions, fiscal responsibility, immigration, health care and more.

Click HERE to listen.

David's ABC 7 Candidate Profile, with video, can be found HERE. Find out a little more about why he's running, what sets his candidacy apart, his goals for the office and his views on the most critical issues of this election.

Excerpt:
"District 5 neighborhoods of small business owners and self-sufficient middle class workers do not support corrupt, big government solutions. It is an unfortunate fact that most of the local, state and national elected officials currently serving within the boundaries of the 5th Congressional District have won reelection by garnering the support of less than 25 percent of registered voters. Why is it that more than 75 percent of voters in the North and Northwest side neighborhoods that make up this district typically do not exercise their right and vote those whom they do not support out of office? Simply, they do not feel they have a viable alternative. Voters in the 5th District want an articulate candidate with a comprehensive message. They want a candidate with a professional image who can realistically challenge the establishment incumbent. Finally, voters expect a candidate with an organization and a strategy that establishes a presence in their neighborhoods . . . I seek election to Congress to provide voters with a true conservative alternative."

Read more HERE.

"David Ratowitz is an assertive, intelligent young leader with strong conservative convictions. His grassroots campaign is firing on all cylinders, aiming well beyond the February Primary to retake Illinois' 5th Congressional District for Republicans in November. Representatives who legislate within the boundaries of the U.S. Constitution -not according to special interests - are in painfully short supply in Washington, D.C. David understands well that enhancing personal freedom and prosperity means limiting government. I enthusiastically endorse David Ratowitz for U.S. Congress in 2010."

David's answers to a wide-ranging series of questions posed by the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board were published at the paper's website last week. Be sure to review his complete CANDIDATE PROFILE to learn more about his policy positions on the national debt, taxes, health care reform, foreign policy, entitlements, education and much more, beyond the standard talking points. The Trib asked for specific reforms, and David complied!