* From an e-mail to his supporters…
It has been an honor serving as your Secretary of State for over twelve years promoting positive change, improving services and restoring integrity to an office once plagued by corruption.
Our work is not done. My goals for this office are to continue to modernize customer services, fight drunk driving and to make our roads even safer. I will continue to protect our new teen drivers and to ensure that the Illinois Organ/Tissue Donor program remains the best in the country.
Because of this and more, I am seeking a fifth term for re-election as your Secretary of State in 2014. I have devoted my life to public service. Whether it was as a paratrooper in the Army, a school teacher, a legislator, a county and state elected official, or as the founder and coach of the Jesse White Tumbling Team, I have worked hard to protect and improve the lives of the people of Illinois. I ask you to partner with me once again, so that together we can continue working to make Illinois a better place for all of us to live, drive and raise our children.
I am equally proud of my electoral successes. As you may recall, in 2002 I was the first candidate from either party, in over 40 years, to win all 102 counties. In 2006, I won another landslide victory and again, in 2010, I won 100 of 102 counties in a year that was certainly tough for Democrats. Since being first elected to the Secretary of State’s office, I have successfully advocated for important initiatives that impact the quality of life for all Illinoisans.
As we prepare for the 2014 election, our campaign will continue to send you information about upcoming events and ways you can get involved to help energize and engage voters in the electoral process.
I appreciate your support and friendship.
Sincerely,
Jesse White
Secretary of State
Unsurprisingly, White made no mention of his role in the Derrick Smith saga.
Discuss.
- wordslinger - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 8:50 am:
Yeesh, can we get 2012 done first?
- Oswego Willy - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 8:53 am:
Mike Cys WAS right … some people are thinking about 2014… and probably 2016 too.
- Aristotle - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 8:53 am:
Maybe this will be the term he gets major credit cards to be accepted at his offices for routine transactions.
- Publius - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 8:55 am:
They already accept major credit cards, I was just at the DMV the other day getting my new sticker and they had signs up everywhere that said they accept all cards EXCEPT Visa
- Anon - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 8:59 am:
Running again (or likely to run): gov. Quinn, lt. Gov Simon, ag madigan, sos white speaker Madigan, and pres Cullerton = restless mushrooms with no upward mobility. Will we see some frustration lead to primary challenges?
- Lincoln Parker - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 8:59 am:
And they charge a fee on credit cards, which is presumably because of the fee the credit card companies charge for processing, however they don’t account for the fact their are also costs & shrinkage when dealing with cash.
- amalia - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 9:03 am:
oh lucky us.
- reformer - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 9:03 am:
I pray the good Lord will give the Secretary continued good health so plans for 2014 and beyond may be realized.
- Shore - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 9:28 am:
Somewhere Raja Krishnamoorth just crossed that office off his list to run for.
Jesse White needs to go. 12 years is more than enough time for that office and with this derrick smith scandal he just looks like a professional hack trying to hang on.
- Sunshine - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 9:33 am:
He has done a good job.
Announcing at this time likely cuts down on the potential contenders.After all, he made a point to remind us of how strongly he won in the past.
I think he will continue to do a good job, as he does have competent people in place, aside from the Derrick Smith debacle.
- Rich Miller - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 9:39 am:
===Somewhere Raja Krishnamoorth just crossed that office off his list to run for. ===
Either that, or he’s decided to embark on yet another stupid kamikaze mission.
- Wumpus - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 9:41 am:
Get an early start on fundraising and keep others out of the race so he can name his replacement.
- Ron Burgundy - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 9:43 am:
He’s done a decent job, but four terms is enough. Sorry, Jesse.
- Pete Granada - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 10:00 am:
Drive for Five . With you all the way,airborne!
- Shore - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 10:06 am:
He has an impressive story and a nice resume and if he were a Republican he’d have a lot more opportunities, but sometimes guys like him and Dan Seals and other resume allstars just don’t know how to put the pieces together. Oh well.
- Excessively Rabid - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 10:25 am:
As far as I can remember, I’ve always voted for Jesse. But enough.
- LincolnLounger - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 10:34 am:
I’m guessing Jim Oberweis will run against him. After a few days in the Illinois Senate, everywhere he goes people will be asking him to run (or some sort of variation thereof).
- anon sequitor - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 10:43 am:
Drive for Five! Nifty slogan, but I doubt you’ll ever see it on campaign lit.
Jesse looked young back even when he was starting to get old, yet he just keeps on going. Sure, the young guys will be chomping at the bit to take the office, but my money is on Jesse to hold the office for another term.
Go for it Jesse! You’ve got my vote.
- Oswego Willy - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 10:51 am:
===I’m guessing Jim Oberweis will run against him.===
At the rate Oberweis is going, he will run for the Illinois House next …got to keep that downward spiral …
How board is Oberweis going to be? He will be in the minority, he is going to be one of the lowest ranking members, and all the members are going to see how kooky he can be. It will get pretty lonely.
- Chevy owner/Ford County - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 11:09 am:
The office is his for as long as he wants it.
- Chevy owner/Ford County - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 11:10 am:
White has shown what an effective SOS can accomplish when they don’t simply look at the SOS office as a stepping stone to Governor or US Senate. He’s done a good job.
- Anon - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 11:14 am:
“if he were a Republican he’d have a lot more opportunities, but sometimes guys like him and Dan Seals and other resume allstars just don’t know how to put the pieces together.”
Say what?
- 3rd Generation Chicago Native - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 11:14 am:
Aristotle “Maybe this will be the term he gets major credit cards to be accepted at his offices for routine transactions.”
They do for a fee (debit, Visa, etc), no cash accepted and bring your checkbook. Also if you renew your plates on line there is an additional fee to use plastic.
- Carl Nyberg - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 11:40 am:
I like how the DMV facilities are run.
But I was doing some research and had to deal with another part of the Secretary of States’ office.
It was awful. The woman at the window did not know the basics of her job. When I dealt with the supervisor who told me to follow the instructions on the form. When I asked if it should be read one way or another, he insisted it was clear. Eventually I got him to read the form. And he told me what it meant.
The whole thing got rather heated and I was threatened with arrest if I didn’t leave.
I didn’t get any names b/c apparently there’s a policy of SoS employees not giving their last names.
I’m not a Jesse White hater, but it seems like it’s time for him to retire and allow some new ideas into the system.
And when I tried to re-register my grandmother’s Buick, it was a nightmare. I kept getting asked for one more document. You’d think they could have a checklist of things needed when someone inherits a car from out of state, a checklist the SoS’s office could give to citizens.
That was also handled poorly and was a DMV issue.
- The Captain - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 11:49 am:
The credit card processing fee is a pass through. It’s a real cost, the merchant banks charge you a processing fee for using their credit card systems, that’s how they make their money. Either the SoS could eat that cost (and they would have to raise their budget to do so) or they can have the person who is making the convenient payment absorb the cost. Rather than try to get their budget raised in the past few years (impossible) SoS has passed the cost on at the point of sale.
The reason you can’t use Visa is that Visa won’t allow an entity to charge the processing fee to the consumer, they mandate that the entity eat the cost. Since that isn’t an option for the SoS they can’t offer customers the option to use Visa.
I wouldn’t expect the variables in this equation to change anytime soon so this looks like a stalemate, and it won’t be any different regardless of whether Jesse White, Jim Oberweis or the Dalai Lama are the next SoS.
- the Other Anonymous - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 12:28 pm:
I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, White has been an OK-to-good SoS (not great, though), and his generally positive outlook is a nice addition to our political scene.
On the other hand, there is some fatigue in voting for him. Add that fatigue to the Derrick Smith debacle — well, it seems like he is missing an opportunity to retire on a high note and keep a certain position of influence on politics in this state. If he continues to hold on to office, especially after Derrick Smith, it becomes harder to view him as one of the few “nice guys” in politics and easier to picture him as just another political hack.
- Anon - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 1:01 pm:
Change is good !! We need change in many areas, yet we promote “thinking out of the box” but yet again we end up with the same old box with the same old pairs of shoes that run this whole state down to the ground and full of holes…We are the heels !!
- Thoughts... - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 1:10 pm:
I love Jesse but its time for him to go. I’ve voted for him many times but if there’s even a somewhat credible option in the primary, I’m going that way.
As for the office being run well, I call shenanigans. For some reason, they have at least three different spellings for me despite repeated attempts to fix it on my part, and the last time I was there for plates, they tried to give me a sticker for a car I got rid of 8 years ago.
- Terminator - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 3:28 pm:
I just got a letter from Jesse demanding my car insurance proof. While I can see the positive merits of this, why should I have to go make copies, pay for a stamp and then mail it in to him. They have access to the insurance data base so why not jut look it up and save me these headaches?
- Meanderthal - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 3:29 pm:
He should retire.
- Macoupin Observer - Tuesday, May 1, 12 @ 7:54 pm:
Give me a break. The service at SOS sucks since Jesse took over, but being a nice guy in public makes up for that right? They overwork the Union employees hiding overtime off the books and I believe there has been a good amount of corruption while he has been in charge. Can’t have it both ways and dog the Ryan administration forever when you have some same issues. Thanks but no thanks Mr. White.