Kat's concession speech

[Ferrets are Cool]

[Chasstev365]

1. Love this kid! I think she has a great future.

[Ferrets are Cool]

3. I was really pulling for her. I am so disappointed this morning.

[Glaisne]

2. AIPAC won that one.

Damn those fuckers! Damn dark money groups!

[ChicagoTeamster]

6. Laura Fine received the AIPAC money. Biss got the politico endorsements. Kat had a great showing for an independent.

Last edited Wed Mar 18, 2026, 10:05 AM - Edit history (1)

She beat out Laura Fine. I'm sure that Dan Biss will now get offered the AIPAC money since he won the Democratic nomination. The question is, will he take it.

I've seen his ads on the mobile version of DU. I block ads on my pc.

[karynnj]

9. No they didnt

The winner was also attacked by AIPAC because he criticized Israel. He was endorsed by Jan Schakowsky, who held the seat and was very active with J Street.

Kat was second. The AIPAC favored candidate came in third. Although AIPAC succeeded in 2 other districts, in this one they failed badly.

[QueerDuck]

15. Stop.

[LuvLoogie]

5. She is what Democrats need.

What this country needs.

[cab67]

7. I was pulling for Biss.

I spend a little less than half of my time in Evanston, though I'm registered to vote where I spend the rest of my time.

[Prairie Gates]

8. Kat Abughazaleh's dramatic overperformance in IL-9 is the biggest political story of the night

Brava!

[mopinko]

10. no congrats to dan?

we’ll see what happens next for her.

[mountain grammy]

11. It is important that she and her supporters

now throw their support to the Democrat running for the seat.. As soon as possible..

Fuck trump, Fuck ICE and fucking VOTE FOR DEMOCRATS!!!!!

[Prairie Gates]

13. You forgot Free Palestine

If you're gonna quote her...

[mountain grammy]

18. No I didn't forget that

and I didn't quote her..

Look, I like her. I wanted her to win. She didn't .

NOW we support the Democrat running for the seat.

[Prairie Gates]

19. I mean

She ended her speech "Fuck Trump, Fuck ICE, and Free Palestine."

You said "Fuck trump, Fuck ICE and fucking VOTE FOR DEMOCRATS!!!!!"

It's reasonable to assume you were quoting her, no?

[MustLoveBeagles]

17. This

[gulliver]

20. Yep, I consider that disqualifying for a Democrat

She needs to learn to do better. She failed to support Democrats.

It's disloyal to the party not to congratulate your opponent in the primary and urge your voters to support them. It sounds like she might have been bitter given the frequent vulgar (and also unacceptable) foul language. But it's no excuse.

[mopinko]

23. childish.

we’ll see if she shows up at all for the general.

[BComplex]

24. That sounds a little parochial, considering what century we're living in.

Everyone says fuck these days. I'm surprised we haven't heard the Pope saying it. He's from Chicago, after all.

I didn't see the Democratic party machine lending her a lot of support. She's the new generation of activists, and I totally welcome that. The Democratic party itself is still very conservative, and they have not always reflected the populist wishes of their base, as seen by the legislation they have often narrowly voted to pass. We're working on it, but it hasn't made the turn yet.

[gulliver]

25. Foul language disgusts people involuntarily

I think it was Steven Pinker who pointed out to me (in one of his books) that foul language goes straight for your emotion centers, whether you want it to or not. You literally are forced to feel a certain way by those words. You don't get to choose. Therefore, it's obviously a candidate to be considered rude and even intolerable.

People who use foul language all the time are usually just idiots. They tell us they deserve to be ignored or laughed at (sometimes because they want to be ignored or laughed at). I use foul language sometimes. It really does depend on the context. There are acceptable contexts.

[Nanjeanne]

12. She has a future. Hope she keeps using her voice.

[Wild blueberry]

14. Really admire Kat

Especially appreciate her eloquent courage, which spreads outward.
Thank you.

[orangecrush]

16. ...

[littlemissmartypants]

22. Ditto.

[orangecrush]

26. She came really close

That says a lot.

[Liberal In Texas]

21. She ran a heck of a campaign.

If nothing else her frequent appearances on BlueSky were impressive.
If this had been in a state with run-offs she might have actually pulled it off.

She's young and I expect her to be back for another run in due time.