Chicago Bears star Brian Urlacher's brother running for 26th Illinois Senate

Mettawa Mayor Casey Urlacher has entered the 26th Illinois Senate District race, making the Republican primary to replace outgoing Sen. Dan Duffy a three-way race.

Urlacher, who is the younger brother of legendary former Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher, said he is running as a conservative who will promote fiscal responsibility and “promote traditional family values when creating state government policies and practices.” Voters in Mettawa, a well-to-do Lake County village of 547 people, elected Urlacher as mayor in 2013.

“We need to elect a new Republican senator who is a fiscal conservative that will adhere to core Republican values and principles in the fight to end Illinois government’s addiction to spending, taxing and borrowing,” Urlacher said.

He will run against Barrington Hills Village President Martin McLaughlin, also elected to his municipal seat two years ago, and Dan McConchie of Hawthorn Woods, in the March 15 primary. Duffy, of Lake Barrington, announced in September that he would honor his 2008 promise to limit himself to two terms and not seek a third.

Urlacher said in his announcement that he plans a “full-blown campaign effort” complete with his knocking on thousands of doors and committing to spend $300,000 to the effort.

A former football player himself, Urlacher is a small business owner and investor, who has a business degree from Lake Forest College.

"I support the demand for structural reform to a government finance and personnel system that has been unsustainable for a decade," Urlacher said. "There is no easy road back to solvency, but it will take experienced elected officials with firsthand experience in government finance and government operations. I have that experience."

The 26th District covers southeastern McHenry County, southwestern Lake County, far northwestern Kane County and a sliver of Cook County, including all or parts of Crystal Lake, Lake in the Hills, Algonquin, Cary, Fox River Grove, Carpentersville and Barrington.