Danny Davis' retirement lures 13 Democrats in primary race for Illinois' 7th Congressional District

A crowded field of 13 Democrats is running to replace U.S. Rep. Danny Davis in Congress, after he announced he will retire at the end of his term, following what will be 30 years in office.

Davis, the senior member of Illinois' congressional delegation, has represented the district since 1997. He also sits on the powerful Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over all tax legislation in the House.

Colleagues said he'll be remembered for his stance on voting rights, affordable healthcare, criminal justice reform, social justice, and civil rights.

The district spans from the Englewood and Chicago Lawn neighborhoods on the South Side north to downtown Chicago, and west to Homan Square, North Lawndale, Garfield Park, Austin, and the western suburbs of Oak Park, Forest Park, Maywood, Broadview, Westchester, and Bellwood.

Davis said he is proud of the changes he's helped bring about throughout the district, including on the West and South sides of Chicago, but he said the country is at a crossroads, and a strong voice in the House of Representatives is vital at this moment in order to push back and counter action by the Trump administration in the White House.

"We can either go forward, or we can go backwards, and I think there are elements in our society who are, as I would say, hellbent on taking the country backwards as opposed to moving it forward," Davis said. "So resistance has to be the order of the day."

Among the Democratic candidates vying for Davis' seat are former Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin, Chicago City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, Illinois state Rep. La Shawn Ford, and Forest Park Mayor Rory Hoskins.

Only two Republicans are running for the seat – radio host Patricia Easley and farmer and retired Delta pilot Chad Koppie.