Former two-term Illinois governor Jim Edgar on Monday revealed he is battling pancreatic cancer 鈥� but told the Sun-Times he鈥檚 fighting the deadly disease because he鈥檚 鈥済ot a lot to hold out for.鈥�
Edgar, 78, has been undergoing chemotherapy for three weeks after a diagnosis last month, the downstate Republican told the Sun-Times Monday night. He said he鈥檚 halfway through his first round of treatment 鈥� and the cancer first appeared in the pancreas and spread to his liver.
鈥淓very day they come up with some new possibilities, so we鈥檒l just have to kind of fight our way through it, and hopefully we get the right combination or they come up with the silver bullet, which they don鈥檛 have yet,鈥� Edgar said.
鈥淚鈥檓 hopeful that I鈥檒l be around, but you just don鈥檛 know at this point. This, historically, has been an extremely deadly cancer, and I guess the only consolation 鈥� I鈥檓 going to have it better now than 25 years ago.鈥�
Edgar said he鈥檚 currently undergoing chemotherapy in Arizona but plans to return to Springfield in May for further treatment.
鈥淚鈥檝e told many people I want to stay around. I鈥檝e got a few things I want to do and see. I want to see great-grandchildren. I kind of like to see my horses do a little better than they鈥檝e done,鈥� Edgar said. 鈥淪o I鈥檝e got a lot to hold out for. But to be very truthful, if it ended tomorrow, I鈥檝e had a great life.鈥�
Edgar, who also served as Illinois secretary of state, and leads the Edgar Fellows program at the University of Illinois鈥� Institute of Government and Public Affairs, wrote in an email to the program鈥檚 fellows that he and his wife, Brenda, are 鈥渇acing a new, significant challenge.鈥�
鈥淲e do not underestimate this challenge, but we have confidence in the medical team helping us address it,鈥� Edgar wrote.
Edgar has faced health challenges before. In 1992, he had an angioplasty to open a clogged artery. And two years later, in the middle of his reelection campaign, he had emergency quadruple bypass surgery at Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove.
The former governor 鈥� known for his moderate views and love of horse racing 鈥� last year joined fellow Illinois Republicans including former U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, and former U.S. Reps. Adam Kinzinger and Joe Walsh in campaigning for Democrat Kamala Harris鈥� presidential campaign as part of a nationwide 鈥淩epublican for Harris鈥� push to woo anti-Trump GOP voters.
Edgar, was the state鈥檚 38th governor. He also served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1976 to 1979 and as Illinois secretary of state from 1981 to 1991. After retiring from office, Edgar was a resident fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
The Republican from downstate Charleston was routinely a big vote-getter for the GOP. When he was reelected to his second full term as secretary of state in 1986, Edgar won with a plurality then bigger than any other statewide candidate in Illinois history.
And when he was re-elected governor in 1994, Edgar racked up the largest plurality of any incumbent Illinois governor 鈥� winning 101 of the state鈥檚 102 counties, including Cook County. Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker came a bit closer in 2018 鈥� winning by 15.7%. That was the largest victory margin since 1994, when Edgar walloped Democratic challenger Dawn Clark Netsch 63.9% to 34.4%, a spread of nearly 29.5 percentage points.
Despite repeated GOP efforts to persuade Edgar to return to the fray to run for the U.S. Senate, another term as governor or other elected posts, he officially bowed out of electoral politics in 2005, wiping away tears as he addressed a room packed with reporters, former members of his administration and the politically curious.
鈥淚 always said, 鈥業 never say never.鈥� Today I say never,鈥� Edgar said at the time. 鈥淭his is it. ... This is my last political press conference.鈥�
Edgar ultimately served on Pritzker鈥檚 first transition team. He was also highly critical of former Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner during the state鈥檚 nearly three-year budget impasse.
Pritzker on Monday heaped praise on Edgar in a social media post.
鈥淓ven before I was sworn in, I鈥檝e regularly asked Jim Edgar for advice about being governor and carrying out my executive duties,鈥� Pritzker said. 鈥淛im is an honest and honorable Illinoisan 鈥� a true public servant, and I know we鈥檙e all rooting for and praying for him as he battles this disease.鈥�
Democratic Illinois House Speaker Emanuel 鈥淐hris鈥� Welch, who was an Edgar Fellow himself, called the former governor a 鈥渢rue statesman."
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