The Cook County Republican Party was so desperate to find candidates to fill the Nov. 7 ballot that it recruited a mentally ill man who lives in a nursing home.
James Batek, 55, has been living in a Chicago nursing home for treatment of his bipolar disorder and schizophrenia for 14 years. He said he was contacted this spring by Tom Swiss, executive director for the Cook County GOP, and was asked to run against State Rep. Harry Osterman, D-14th.
No Republican ran in the primary for the spot, and Swiss found Batek's name on a list of GOP election judges in Osterman's district, Batek said.
We read buried in the story:
Batek, who earned an economics degree from Yale University in 1973, said he was homeless for eight years during the 1980s.
"It taught me discipline to survive without money," he said.
In many cases, the GOP in Cook County isn't picky when it solicits candidates, instead merely hoping to find people "willing to be on the ballot," Swiss said. "These are not competitive districts. We don't want to get people's hopes up. There's no chance they can win these."
Batek, presumably about 56, now lives in a nursing home. At least he'll be able to keep an eye on things when Democrats sweep in to "help" residents make their choices on the ballot---assuming they have a choice.
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