Nearly eight months after Illinois voters handily rejected his candidacy for governor, Darren Bailey announced Tuesday his bid for Congress in downstate’s massive 12th District, setting up an intense Republican primary battle against veteran U.S. Rep. Mike Bost.

       Bailey’s announcement came a year to the day of one of the biggest self-inflicted stumbles he made in his gubernatorial campaign. While the gunman was still on the loose during the mass shooting that killed seven people at Highland Park’s Fourth of July Parade, Bailey on Facebook urged people to “move on and let’s celebrate — celebrate the independence of this nation.”

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       On Tuesday, as Highland Park marked a day of remembrance and Bailey made his campaign announcement at his family farm in Xenia, his Facebook page featured a banner with the words, “Hands off my AR” superimposed over a semi-automatic weapon of the type used in the mass shooting.