WASHINGTON — Of the 16 Illinois Democrats in Congress, 10 are skipping Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration Monday, according to a Chicago Sun-Times survey, while jubilant Republicans from Illinois have been celebrating here all weekend.

Trump’s swearing-in lands on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the national holiday celebrating the civil rights icon always held on the third Monday in January. The confluence of events means Democrats can argue, if they want, that they are not boycotting Trump as much as they have some place better to spend their time.

One of the main King Day events in Chicago on Monday is the annual breakfast hosted by Rainbow PUSH, the civil rights organization founded by the Rev. Jesse Jackson. And as a who’s who of Chicago is expected, his son, Rep. Jonathan Jackson, D-Ill., will instead be at Trump’s swearing-in.

“I view it as my responsibility to attend the inauguration,” Jackson told the Sun-Times.

Illinois sends 17 members to the House; 14 Democrats and three Republicans. The two senators are both Democrats.

Sen. Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, will attend the inauguration. Sen. Tammy Duckworth will not.

Besides Jackson, Reps. Brad Schneider, Bill Foster, Lauren Underwood and Nikki Budzinski are attending.

Not going are Reps. Robin Kelly, Delia Ramirez, Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, Mike Quigley, Sean Casten, Danny Davis, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Jan Schakowsky and Eric Sorensen. Most are doing MLK Day events.

Kelly will be attending the Rainbow PUSH breakfast and doing other MLK Day events in her district. “A presidential inauguration is a beautiful ceremony to start the new administration, and I have been privileged to attend many in the past, including President Trump’s first inauguration. This year’s inauguration, however, I feel obligated to attend several events with my constituents in the Second District honoring Dr. Martin Luther King’s Day to continue his work toward racial justice and civil rights.

“Each event directly serves the people of the Second District, including feeding the hungry and donating blood. As we enter the next Trump Administration, I hope the President will also recognize the need to advance civil rights for all, not just the select few.”

Quigley will be doing a shift at Nourishing Hope, a food pantry, “and speaking with the people most vulnerable to the incoming administration’s dangerous agenda, which includes proposals to make drastic cuts to food security programs,” his spokesperson said.

Davis will be at the Rainbow PUSH event and then doing a town hall at the Family Altar Baptist Church, 5507 W. Chicago Ave., for a discussion on King’s mission.

“Instead of attending President Trump’s Inauguration, Ramirez and other elected officials will spend the day strengthening lines of defense and building (an) intergovernmental coalition ahead of threats of deportation raids,” her spokesperson said.

Schakowsky said that, on MLK Day, “I will be participating in several service-based activities in and around the Chicago community. I know many of my constituents are concerned about the direction our country is headed in, and I want to assure them that anybody who goes after the people of the 9th Congressional District will have to come through me.”

Casten said on Monday, “I could attend the inauguration and listen to the President-elect debase the office of President of the United States. Or I could spend the day with family, honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., his patriotism, and the dream he had for the United States. I choose the latter.”

Illinois Republican in DC jubilant

Downtown DC was flooded Sunday with folks here for Trump’s inauguration, with the swearing-in and parade moved inside because of the frigid weather forecast. The Illinois Republican Party, chaired by Kathy Salvi, hosted a reception Saturday at the University Club here, and everyone was euphoric about Trump’s return to the presidency, including two of the three Illinois Republicans in the House, Mike Bost and Mary Miller.

Illinois Republican Party Chair Kathy Salvi speaking at a state party reception in Washington for Donald Trump’s inauguration. Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill. is at left.

Bost is the highest ranking Republican from Illinois in Congress, and the former Marine is the chair of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee. He told me he and the other House committee chairs recently met with Trump at Mar-a-Largo.

I talked with Salvi and asked who — since Democrats hold every big office in Illinois — from Illinois will have some entrée into the Trump White House. Besides Bost and Miller, Salvi said she has “good relationships with many people who are on the Trump 47 team, political team, and many of those members will be going into the White House, so Illinois will have a voice, just a phone call away from decision makers.”

Miller told the crowd, “Our amazing president is going to be sworn in on Monday. We have the Senate, we have the House, we have the Supreme Court, we have Vivek (Ramaswamy) and Elon (Musk), we have Turning Point (a GOP-allied group) and we have this grass-roots army of people that are standing up for America, the land of the free, the home of the brave, the land of opportunity and freedom.”