Former Lt. Gov. drops GOP bid, likely Ives vs. Casten in 6th Dist.

WASHINGTON — Former Illinois Lt. Gov. Evelyn Sanguinetti, facing an uphill slugfest in her GOP congressional primary against former state

Rep. Jeanne Ives, on Friday dropped out of the contest, setting up a likely showdown between

Ives and freshman Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill.

“There has been enough destruction in the Republican Party from past election cycles, and I choose not to contribute further to it by engaging in a costly and negative campaign against my opponents,” Sanguinetti said in a statement announcing her departure from the primary.

Though Ives lost a 2018 Republican primary for governor against former Gov. Bruce Rauner and his running mate Sanguinetti, Ives came into the 6th District primary with the experience of running a major campaign and with a national and local donor network.

Sanguinetti alluded to the tough, scorched-earth campaign the GOP primary was shaping up to be in her statement: “Although I firmly believe that I can and will win the nomination, if I stayed in the race, the question in my mind is at what cost.”

Casten beat former Rep. Peter Roskam, R-Ill., in 2018, winning 53.58% to 46.42% to flip the seat. The 2020 fight for the suburban district — which contributed to the Democratic takeover of the House — is a priority for national House Democrats and Republicans.

Sanguinetti was having a tough time raising the big money needed for the primary and quit the race just before the third quarter fundraising reports are filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Ives earlier in October announced she raised $340,298.13 in her first three months in the race.

Casten holds a commanding lead in fundraising; his campaign said Thursday he raised over $700,000 in the third quarter and has $1.4 million cash on hand.