WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Darin LaHood, the son of former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, said he would run for the U.S. House seat being vacated by embattled Republican Representative Aaron Schock.
Darin LaHood, a Republican member of the Illinois state Senate, told WMBD radio in Peoria, Illinois, that he planned to run in the special election to fill the seat once held by his father.
"This is going to be a competitive race. I'm going to work really hard, and I'm going to leave no stone unturned," Darin LaHood told WMBD.
Schock announced on Tuesday he would step down at the end of this month, following questions about tens of thousands of dollars in inappropriate mileage reimbursements and lavish office decorations in his Capitol Hill office.
Ray LaHood, a Republican, represented Illinois' 18th Congressional District from 1995 to 2009 before stepping down to take the helm of the U.S. Department of Transportation until 2013. Schock succeeded LaHood in the House seat.
The 47-year-old Darin LaHood spent nine years as a state and federal prosecutor before becoming a state senator.
State law requires that Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner schedule a special election within five days of Schock's March 31 resignation, and a vote must happen within 120 days of the seat becoming vacant to fill the remainder of the term.