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Kent Mercado
Kent Mercado (Republican Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Illinois' 11th Congressional District. He lost in the Republican primary on March 19, 2024.
Mercado completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Kent Mercado was born in Fort Meade, Maryland. He studied at Kent State University in 1988 and earned a law degree from the University of Illinois Chicago in 1998. His career experience includes working as a physician, attorney, and humanitarian. [1]
Elections
2024
See also: Illinois' 11th Congressional District election, 2024
Illinois' 11th Congressional District election, 2024 (March 19 Democratic primary)
Illinois' 11th Congressional District election, 2024 (March 19 Republican primary)
General election
General election for U.S. House Illinois District 11
Incumbent Bill Foster defeated Jerry Evans and Anna Schiefelbein in the general election for U.S. House Illinois District 11 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Bill Foster (D) | 55.6 | 199,825 |
 | Jerry Evans (R) | 44.4 | 159,630 | |
 | Anna Schiefelbein (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.1 | 229 | |
| Total votes: 359,684 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 11
Incumbent Bill Foster defeated Qasim Rashid in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 11 on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Bill Foster | 76.6 | 35,159 |
 | Qasim Rashid | 23.4 | 10,754 | |
| Total votes: 45,913 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 11
Jerry Evans defeated Susan Hathaway-Altman and Kent Mercado in the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 11 on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jerry Evans | 50.7 | 17,814 |
 | Susan Hathaway-Altman | 37.1 | 13,032 | |
 | Kent Mercado | 12.3 | 4,312 | |
| Total votes: 35,158 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Alec Martin (R)
Endorsements
Mercado received the following endorsements.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Kent Mercado completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Mercado's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I am a dedicated professional with a diverse background in providing exceptional medical, legal, and professional services. With extensive experience as both a surgeon and an attorney, I have proven myself as an accomplished leader in healthcare management, law, governmental affairs, and international medical missions.
Beyond my professional pursuits, I am a devoted family person, proudly married for over 30 years and raising three successful adult children. Their values have shaped both their personal and professional lives.
Bringing a wealth of experience and expertise to my work, I am a true leader in my fields. My unwavering commitment to improving the lives of those I serve remains steadfast.
- As a physician Dr Kent Mercado believes Every American deserves access to quality affordable Health and Mental Care. Our nation’s current system is in need of repair.
- As a father Dr Kent Mercado believes in Strong education from birth throughout life is the building block for success for every child and the foundation for our country’s long-term economic strength in our Illinois 11th District
- As a Busisman Dr Kent Mercado believes We must foster a pro-growth economic environment where businesses and workers of all levels can thrive with minimal government intrusion and support local business.
We need to do our part and recognize the importance of adult and children’s mental health care. There needs to be an awareness in terms of normalizing the concept since there are many that still are fearful around their own and others mental health fluctuations. We need to normalize it in terms of the prevalence of mental health issues and the range in the way that mental health needs surface.
It is the lower chamber of the bicameral U.S. Congress, which means it shares equal responsibility for lawmaking with the U.S. Senate1.
It is designed to represent the popular will of the people, as its members are directly elected by the people for two-year terms1.
It has a fixed number of 435 members, which is apportioned among the states based on their population every 10 years after a census1.
It has several exclusive powers that are not shared with the Senate, such as initiating revenue bills, impeaching federal officials, and electing the President in case of an electoral college tie2.
It has a centralized leadership structure, with the Speaker of the House as the most powerful and influential member, who presides over the chamber, sets the agenda, and appoints committee chairs and members1.
It has a majoritarian decision-making process, which means that most bills and motions are passed by a simple majority vote of the members present and voting1.
It may allow for more diversity and innovation in the House of Representatives, as people from different backgrounds, professions, and perspectives may bring new ideas and solutions to the policy process1.
It may increase the responsiveness and accountability of the representatives to their constituents, as they may be more in touch with the needs and preferences of the people they represent, and less influenced by the interests of political parties or other groups2.
EDUCATION
Strong education from early childhood through college or career is the building block for success and the foundation for our country’s long-term economic strength. In order to have a strong education policy, we must have a competitive and diverse K-12 education system with meaningful options to meet the needs of a diverse population of students and families. I support giving families the freedom to choose the very best education for their children, with access to education, including public and private schools, charter schools and homeschooling. Every student deserves educational success, and I will work to increase the opportunities for our families and students. The cost of college tuition has soared faster than the cost of food, energy, real estate, and healthcare. If we are to compete on a global level, support for STEM programs will be vital. It is hard for American college age students to compete when, in other countries, Engineering degrees are 3-year programs that start at age 16, Medical Degrees are awarded with just 5 years of education that can start as early as the age of 16 and full-fledged Law degrees are granted to students who have attained a level of education equivalent only to a bachelor’s degree, in America. There are many other paths that a student can take, and there are more than 7 million jobs available across the country, that do not require a four-year
An Aurora man was placed for adoption by mother one, mother two raised him for 11 years until her untimely death. He was paced in the foster care system and had twenty different mothers. all of them believed in him so he was able to believe in himself. He not only finished collage but has a PhD
• Promote economic growth and recovery in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, by supporting policies that stimulate demand, create jobs, and invest in infrastructure, education, and innovation.
• Ensure fiscal responsibility and sustainability in the long term, by supporting policies that balance the budget, reduce the debt, and reform the entitlement programs.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign website
Mercado’s campaign website stated the following:
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HEALTHCARE Promoting insurance policies that work, and revising the ones that do not, is the first step to achieving better access to healthcare for all. Universal Healthcare is not free, just prepaid, and not the answer. The average tax bracket is over 40% in many Illinois counties that sponsor socialized medicine. My main interest and passion are policy and legislation, particularly for the underserved (rural and urban) and historically disadvantaged communities. I am certain I have a great deal to offer, through thought leadership, regulatory, and business acumen. I am confident that I can leverage my decades of expertise to effectively progress major legislative initiatives that will benefit my constituents. We need to lower costs and offer multiple options to the Market place including Healthcare sharing options i.e. Medi-share and Impact Health. MENTAL HEALTH EDUCATION If we are to compete on a global level, support for STEM programs will be vital. It is hard for American college age students to compete when, in other countries, Engineering degrees are 3-year programs that start at age 16, Medical Degrees are awarded with just 5 years of education that can start as early as the age of 16 and full-fledged Law degrees are granted to students who have attained a level of education equivalent only to a US bachelor’s degree. There are many other paths that a student can take, and there are more than 7 million jobs available across the country, that do not require a four-year degree. We may have to revise our system and focus on job specific education and vocational training that can be delivered through community colleges, trade schools, apprenticeship programs and online resources. ECONOMY IMMIGRATION United States in search of freedom, democracy, and opportunities to pursue the American Dream. We are a nation of immigrants and, as such, we welcome all that come through the legal and proper channels. There are many channels to enter, live, and work in our nation, such as visas for H1 (technical) and H2 (agricultural) workers and asylum in special and limited circumstances (currently only 25,000 annually). We must, however, maintain border security and keep our communities safe and secure. We must restrict human and drug trafficking. The opioid epidemic has claimed over 100,000 deaths, 77,000 from Fentanyl alone. We must start by enforcing the current laws that we have at all levels of government. We need to emphasize the value of safe and secure borders, as well as the need for legal immigration, because a country without borders is no country at all. INFRASTRUCTURE AGRICULTURE Estate Tax to keep the farm in the family CDL vs changes to J51 (to allow river access/interstate) Emanate domain private to govt, not private to private (winners/losers) EPA Wotus drainage.[2] |
” |
| —Kent Mercado’s campaign website (2024)[3] | ||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
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Candidate U.S. House Illinois District 11 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on September 15, 2023
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Dr. Kent Mercado for Congress, “Issues,” accessed February 21, 2024
