CHICAGO (AP) — An outspoken Holocaust denier is likely to appear on the November ballot as the Republican nominee for a Chicago-area congressional district.
The Chicago Sun-Times reports that 70-year-old Arthur Jones of Lyons is the only Republican candidate in the March 20 primary for the 3rd Congressional District. The heavily Democratic district stretches from Chicago’s southwest side to suburban Western Springs and LaGrange.
Jones calls the Holocaust “the biggest, blackest lie in history.” He said he’s a former leader of the American Nazi Party and now leads a group open to “any white American citizen of European, non-Jewish descent.”
Jones has run before but never been a viable candidate. This year, Illinois Republicans didn’t field another candidate and no one challenged Jones’ petitions.
Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner released a statement saying there was “no room for Neo Nazis in American politics.” He said he condemned Jones “in the strongest possible terms.” Illinois Republican Party Chairman Tim Schneider added: “We strongly oppose his racist views and his candidacy for any public office.”
U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski and Marie Newman are seeking the Democratic nomination.
