Tammy Duckworth says she's weighing a challenge to Mark Kirk next year

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Conventional political wisdom holds that U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois is among the least likely Republican incumbents to win re-election next year - for several reasons.

For starters, Illinois is a bastion of Democratic strength. Then, too, Kirk still has lingering effects of a serious stroke he suffered three years ago this month.

But more to the point, if Kirk wins the GOP nomination, he might well face formidable opposition in the general election, as we see HERE :

<p style="padding-left: 30px">Rep. Tammy Duckworth, a two-term Democrat, told CQ Roll Call Monday that she is seriously considering challenging vulnerable Sen. Mark S. Kirk, R-Ill., in 2016.

<p style="padding-left: 30px">Duckworth, currently finishing maternity leave following the birth of her daughter, said in a phone interview she is beginning the process of exploring a Senate bid as she gears up to return to Capitol Hill&#8230;

<p style="padding-left: 30px">Democrats must pick up five seats to ensure Senate control this cycle, and the race in Illinois is on top of the party's list of targets. President Barack Obama carried Illinois by a 17-point margin in 2012, and the Illinois Senate race is rated a Tossup by the Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report/Roll Call&#8230;

<p style="padding-left: 30px">Many Democratic operatives view Duckworth as the top contender to take on Kirk in his first re-election in 2016.

<p style="padding-left: 30px">Both are veterans: Kirk was an intelligence officer in the Navy Reserve, while Duckworth served as a helicopter pilot in the Army.

<p style="padding-left: 30px">Kirk suffered a stroke in January 2012 and sometimes uses a wheelchair and cane for mobility. Duckworth lost her legs and damaged her right arm in 2004, when a helicopter she was co-piloting in the Iraq War was shot down&#8230;

<p style="padding-left: 30px">A number of other Democrats are alsi considering bids, including two of Duckworth's House colleagues: Reps. Cheri Bustos and Bill Foster.