It may be early, but the race has already begun to heat up between Raja Krishmamoothi and Tammy Duckworth in the 8th congressional race for the Democratic nomination. The first issue of contention between the two candidates? The support of the last Democrat who held the 8th congressional distric seat, Melissa Bean, as well as that of former U.S. Rep. Debbie Halvorson of the 11th Congressional District.

This morning, Duckworth's campaign sent out materials pointing out some of her latest accomplishments, including her nod from Emily's List, and highlighted the following comments made by Bean and Halvorson about their candidate:

"Tammy's heroism on the battlefield is well known, but what I observed first hand is her record of service in the Northwest suburbs and in Washington DC on behalf of our nation’s Veterans. Tammy understands the struggles facing middle-class families, seniors and small businesses in this tough economy and she will fight to restore their economic opportunities.” - Melissa Bean

"As Majority Leader in the Illinois Senate, Tammy and I forged public-private partnerships to get around bureaucratic logjams and get things done for Illinois Veterans. She showed that same commitment when we worked together in Washington.  Tammy will have that same drive in Congress -- a relentless desire to help turn around the economy and make things better for people in Illinois' 8th District and across the country." - Debbie Halvorson

Duckworth's campaign also pointed out that both of the former House members have said they will remain neutral during the Democratic primary and are not endorsing Krishnamoorthi as previously reported and "some reporters were led to believe."

Krishnamoorthi's camp fired back with the following statement:

We have never claimed that former Congresswoman Melissa Bean publicly endorsed our candidacy. While it is true that Bean cannot formerly endorse a candidate due to her position in the private sector, the facts are clear. It was Bean who initially recruited Raja to run for the new 8th district seat, Bean has supported Raja’s candidacy financially with $1,000 cash donation and a $2,000 in-kind contribution of office equipment left over from her previous campaign. Additionally, Bean released the following statement in June praising Raja's candidacy:

"Raja's priorities are well aligned with the families and businesses of Illinois' 8th Congressional District.  He and his wife have been raising their two sons in Hoffman Estates, so they know the challenges that families here are facing and are invested personally in the success of suburban public schools.  As president of a small business, he also recognizes that greater innovation is critical to our economic strength.  His candidacy brings extensive public sector experience, an impressive academic background, and a Midwest work ethic to the race."

While it is true that former Congresswoman Debbie Halverson is remaining neutral in the 8th District primary, she has been very supportive of Raja’s candidacy.