What do you think this year’s election will be best remembered for?
29 Comments
- Ravenswood Right Winger - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:06 am:
Also, the voters being dumb enough to concur with the Cook County Democratic Politburo’s decision to have a monarchy run Cook County (if Stroger wins) or voters saying they are fed up and voting for real reform and saying “Screw You” to the Cook County Democratic Politburo (if Peraica wins).
Campaign finance “reform” has failed miserably.
Negative ads work.
About the only information a candidate can get out to voters is what he or she has money to pay for. Oftentimes that means their own money (eg. Senator Fitzgerald). The Springfield news media, with the exception of WTAX, had virtually no reporting of any campaigns, including the Governor’s race.
The fraud perpetrated by The C(R)ook county machine (Stroger), the allegations against the gov, and the failure of the GOP candidate, who is already elected statewide to gain much traction, according to the polls. The Dems running three candidates for congress, none of which live insude the district. Finally, the need for the GOP to field real candidates in all major races.
- NoMoreAdsForAWhile - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:09 am:
Extreme negativity, coupled with a lack of focus on the real issues. Candidates should be able to clearly, concisely, and quickly answer the voters’ “What’s in it for me?” questions. I don’t see that being done, between the negativity, and the misleading, often untrue, messages. The ads are beyond annoying.
Most legislative leaders seem to have put a little money behind each of their candidates. House Republican Leader Tom Cross is the exception: he put two really big bets on challengers ($200K to Steve Haring and $138K to John Cavaletto) rather than give middling amounts to all of the candidates he’s been supporting. We’ll see tomorrow how that worked for him.
Because it will be part of the GOP picking up the pieces afterwords… assuming worst case on Illinois voters and felons.
Because it meaing Tom Cross I think will have a big roll in picking up the pieces. He and Brady, but I want to watch Cross’s bets. Peraica too if he wins ’cause I think he could be a real raising star then.
For Illinois politicos, the growth of CapitolFax (and youtube) to a entirely new level of indispensibility.
- The Picolo Player is a... - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:20 am:
The top 5 things that will be remembered:
5. Slogans: “Had enough?” “What was she thinking?” These two were everywhere.
4. Tony Rezko: Oddly enough, the man with the golden touch became the man with the touch of death. I haven’t seen that many people run away from another man since Robert Sorich got indicted.
3: NOT being someone else. Rich Whitney may not be great but he isn’t Blago or Judy. Peraica may not be great, but he isn’t John Stroger. This is one of the few elections where you are praised for who you AREN’T.
2:
AND THE NUMBER ONE THING THAT WILL BE REMEMBERED ABOUT THIS YEAR’S ELECTION WILL BE:
THE COOK COUNTY BOARD PRESIDENT’S RACE.
Here, you must include the primary. Young, entrenched democrat who worked for the machine turns reformer and launches four-year attack on elderly, life-long Democratic Machine stalwart. Heated, high-profile race takes turn when Dem Machine Loyalist has stroke, but reform versus machine contest goes on, with machine pulling out victory for the old man.
BUT…
Machine crowns lesser known Dem - son of the older politico, no less - to assume father’s role in election versus fiery, tough Republican reformer. Reformer isn’t loved, but son is reviled on every level, with reformer reaping huge benefits. Rock star politician and local heavy-hitters come to younger machine backed candidates aid at the eleventh hour in a dogfight so hotly contested that no poll seems credible.
SERIOUSLY FOLKS, you couldn’t write this stuff as fiction.
Question is, how does the story end. I guess we find out tonight.
VOTE VOTE VOTE EVERYONE!
- The Picolo Player is a... - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:22 am:
OOPS, I forgot my number 2!
2: Bean, Duckworth, Roskam, McSweeney. The congressional races have real consequences and the national Dem party is salivating.
Have we ‘had enough’ of him while we wonder ‘what she’s thinking’.
- Diversity of Thought - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:36 am:
In the long run, political scandals will come and go, and “What’s she thinking???!!” will become a very tired joke approximately two weeks after the election.
While negativity and corruption have dominated this campaign cycle, it’s also not unique to this election.
I really think people will remember this election cycle as the one where the Green Party got itself established, and began to be a player in Illinois politics for years to come. Maybe I’m being too optimistic, but Rich Whitney is poised to take more votes than any third party candidate in Illinois history (Perot took around 16% in ‘92), and the Illinois Green Party as an organization seems to be here to stay.
I really like the Green Party, but for those who don’t, it could also signal the rise of several other third parties over the course of the next decade, and other than the paid staff that posts on here, I think everyone agrees that the Dems and Pubs (especially in Illinois) have really failed as leaders in every sense.
This election will be remembered as the first election in which a new political party, since Stevenson’s Solidarity Party, that has legally established itself statewide, as a major party in the state of Illinois. Also notable will be Rich Whitney’s showing, unusually high for a new party candidate in a state with such unfair laws.
The contempt for the voter - that pretty much sums up this election - by pundits, politicians, political activists, and poltroons.
Rich, hit the nail on the head, yesterday with regard to Green spleen-venting. Whine up a storm, but unless you are willing to ascend the gradus of political life, go take up knitting.
The negative ads, getting neiuked, the shenanigans of the Cook County Democratic Party, the continued insistence of the incumbent governor that he isn’t corrupt although people around him keep getting indicted, yet by connection to George Ryan his challenger is guilty of that too. That’s just to name a few.
Republicans lose when they are corrupt.
Democrats win.
Nixon’s corruption led to the country tossing Republicans out of Congress.
George Ryan’s corruption brought in Blagojevich.
Blagojevich’s corruption is rewarded with Democrat votes and he is re-elected.
- Name/Nickname/Anon - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 10:50 am:
In Cook County it will be a water-shed moment and the Cook County GOP might actually be able to recruit some people who are disgusted with Stroger’s win. These people will finally realize that the Cook County Democratic Party (machine) doesn’t care about people, but rather only about themeselves.
With the State House crowd, it will be a suprise at how well Tom Cross did compared to Frank Watson.
The extreme dislike for the incumbent, mostly all over the state. The visciousness of the ads, blatant lies and Photo-Shopping of images to make them something they weren’t. The brazen use of taxpayers money to finance the incumbent’s campaign and his use of his own money to libel a challenger. The major hubris of the deputy governor who told ABC Chgo that he “didn’t really care about federal or state laws and that the Governor’s office is the final say as to whether a federal or state law should be legal or is in the best interest of the people of the state.” (Capital Fax Blog, 9/21/06, 2.44 p.m.)
I’m willing to predict that Tom Cross get’s 100% of the vote, and you know what? That’s just an indication that our ballot access laws are too liberal, and the voters are getting confused by having so many choices on the ballot. We obviously need to stop letting so many candidates onto the ballot–approximately HALF of all state legislative races were actually contested in the last election cycle! Can you believe that?! I mean, with two candidates in the race, one might steal votes and spoil the election for the other.
Robo-calling while giving the impression it’s from a different candidate. I suspect that legislation or existing law enforcement will end that practice and they will have to state up front on whose behalf the call is being placed. Or, if we’re lucky, political calls will be added to the callers who cannot call due to the do not call list.
- Jake from Elwood - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 12:45 pm:
I think this is a close runoff between the $10,000 birthday gift for Blago’s little girl and the Machine manuevering for the Todd Squad.
How about the last election before the rest of the country loses all respect for the citizens of Illinois? For the second time in the past three elections we are set to elect a governor that any sentient being knows is soon to be a convicted felon. This is beyond embarrassing. All that this election has told us is that democracy as it has evolved in Illinois is an absolute failure.
Filan, the rest of the country is already laughing at Illinois. I just emailed Rich an FYI, since I didn’t see it on Cap Fax at all (unless I overlooked it), but if anyone still has the Monday Tribune, there’s a really nice Editorial called “If you cast only two votes.”
I liked it a lot. The thought of helping to prop up the alleged corruption by the “crooks and cronies” of one candidate by voting that way should make everyone embarrassed to cast their votes that way.
Think about it. Part of that campaign war chest was the result of an alleged shakedown operation, regardless of whether someone knew or didn’t know what was going on with the cronies.
Hope to see that Editorial up on the site (hint hint).
The news from this election: A Democrat (Rod) learns how to play Karl Rove politics, and the ‘party of conscience’ abandons principles to drag us all further into the muck. Prediction: the next election shames us all even more than this one. When will the electorate wake up and punish those who will do anything to win?
- So Blue Democrat - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 2:36 pm:
Illinois voters again elect a Governor (I hope I am wrong) who will be indicted. Of course, this time, the Governor will be indicted before his term is over.
- Tired of the Mess - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 5:02 pm:
Most memorable moment of the campaign–”Sure I have given that much money to my nephews. If you are asking me, um, uh,… Could you repeat the question?…”
- Ravenswood Right Winger - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:06 am:
Also, the voters being dumb enough to concur with the Cook County Democratic Politburo’s decision to have a monarchy run Cook County (if Stroger wins) or voters saying they are fed up and voting for real reform and saying “Screw You” to the Cook County Democratic Politburo (if Peraica wins).
- Inquiring Mind - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:08 am:
Campaign finance “reform” has failed miserably.
Negative ads work.
About the only information a candidate can get out to voters is what he or she has money to pay for. Oftentimes that means their own money (eg. Senator Fitzgerald). The Springfield news media, with the exception of WTAX, had virtually no reporting of any campaigns, including the Governor’s race.
- Wumpus - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:08 am:
The fraud perpetrated by The C(R)ook county machine (Stroger), the allegations against the gov, and the failure of the GOP candidate, who is already elected statewide to gain much traction, according to the polls. The Dems running three candidates for congress, none of which live insude the district. Finally, the need for the GOP to field real candidates in all major races.
- NoMoreAdsForAWhile - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:09 am:
Extreme negativity, coupled with a lack of focus on the real issues. Candidates should be able to clearly, concisely, and quickly answer the voters’ “What’s in it for me?” questions. I don’t see that being done, between the negativity, and the misleading, often untrue, messages. The ads are beyond annoying.
- Bill Baar - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:12 am:
I agree with Cal and CC… The Gov race, and Cook County are the races I find most interesting…
…and then how this plays out,
Most legislative leaders seem to have put a little money behind each of their candidates. House Republican Leader Tom Cross is the exception: he put two really big bets on challengers ($200K to Steve Haring and $138K to John Cavaletto) rather than give middling amounts to all of the candidates he’s been supporting. We’ll see tomorrow how that worked for him.
Because it will be part of the GOP picking up the pieces afterwords… assuming worst case on Illinois voters and felons.
- Bill Baar - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:17 am:
Because it meaing Tom Cross I think will have a big roll in picking up the pieces. He and Brady, but I want to watch Cross’s bets. Peraica too if he wins ’cause I think he could be a real raising star then.
- Mike K - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:18 am:
For Illinois politicos, the growth of CapitolFax (and youtube) to a entirely new level of indispensibility.
- The Picolo Player is a... - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:20 am:
The top 5 things that will be remembered:
5. Slogans: “Had enough?” “What was she thinking?” These two were everywhere.
4. Tony Rezko: Oddly enough, the man with the golden touch became the man with the touch of death. I haven’t seen that many people run away from another man since Robert Sorich got indicted.
3: NOT being someone else. Rich Whitney may not be great but he isn’t Blago or Judy. Peraica may not be great, but he isn’t John Stroger. This is one of the few elections where you are praised for who you AREN’T.
2:
AND THE NUMBER ONE THING THAT WILL BE REMEMBERED ABOUT THIS YEAR’S ELECTION WILL BE:
THE COOK COUNTY BOARD PRESIDENT’S RACE.
Here, you must include the primary. Young, entrenched democrat who worked for the machine turns reformer and launches four-year attack on elderly, life-long Democratic Machine stalwart. Heated, high-profile race takes turn when Dem Machine Loyalist has stroke, but reform versus machine contest goes on, with machine pulling out victory for the old man.
BUT…
Machine crowns lesser known Dem - son of the older politico, no less - to assume father’s role in election versus fiery, tough Republican reformer. Reformer isn’t loved, but son is reviled on every level, with reformer reaping huge benefits. Rock star politician and local heavy-hitters come to younger machine backed candidates aid at the eleventh hour in a dogfight so hotly contested that no poll seems credible.
SERIOUSLY FOLKS, you couldn’t write this stuff as fiction.
Question is, how does the story end. I guess we find out tonight.
VOTE VOTE VOTE EVERYONE!
- The Picolo Player is a... - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:22 am:
OOPS, I forgot my number 2!
2: Bean, Duckworth, Roskam, McSweeney. The congressional races have real consequences and the national Dem party is salivating.
- Suburban - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:35 am:
Have we ‘had enough’ of him while we wonder ‘what she’s thinking’.
- Diversity of Thought - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:36 am:
In the long run, political scandals will come and go, and “What’s she thinking???!!” will become a very tired joke approximately two weeks after the election.
While negativity and corruption have dominated this campaign cycle, it’s also not unique to this election.
I really think people will remember this election cycle as the one where the Green Party got itself established, and began to be a player in Illinois politics for years to come. Maybe I’m being too optimistic, but Rich Whitney is poised to take more votes than any third party candidate in Illinois history (Perot took around 16% in ‘92), and the Illinois Green Party as an organization seems to be here to stay.
I really like the Green Party, but for those who don’t, it could also signal the rise of several other third parties over the course of the next decade, and other than the paid staff that posts on here, I think everyone agrees that the Dems and Pubs (especially in Illinois) have really failed as leaders in every sense.
- Squideshi - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:36 am:
This election will be remembered as the first election in which a new political party, since Stevenson’s Solidarity Party, that has legally established itself statewide, as a major party in the state of Illinois. Also notable will be Rich Whitney’s showing, unusually high for a new party candidate in a state with such unfair laws.
- Shallow Pharnyx - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 9:54 am:
George Ryan- he’s been thrown into as many ads as possible.
- Pat Hickey - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 10:02 am:
‘the voters being dumb enough to concur . . .’
The contempt for the voter - that pretty much sums up this election - by pundits, politicians, political activists, and poltroons.
Rich, hit the nail on the head, yesterday with regard to Green spleen-venting. Whine up a storm, but unless you are willing to ascend the gradus of political life, go take up knitting.
- Levois - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 10:05 am:
The negative ads, getting neiuked, the shenanigans of the Cook County Democratic Party, the continued insistence of the incumbent governor that he isn’t corrupt although people around him keep getting indicted, yet by connection to George Ryan his challenger is guilty of that too. That’s just to name a few.
- Rochester Votes - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 10:06 am:
The corruption double standard is proven - again.
Republicans lose when they are corrupt.
Democrats win.
Nixon’s corruption led to the country tossing Republicans out of Congress.
George Ryan’s corruption brought in Blagojevich.
Blagojevich’s corruption is rewarded with Democrat votes and he is re-elected.
- Name/Nickname/Anon - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 10:50 am:
In Cook County it will be a water-shed moment and the Cook County GOP might actually be able to recruit some people who are disgusted with Stroger’s win. These people will finally realize that the Cook County Democratic Party (machine) doesn’t care about people, but rather only about themeselves.
With the State House crowd, it will be a suprise at how well Tom Cross did compared to Frank Watson.
- Disgusted - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 11:04 am:
The extreme dislike for the incumbent, mostly all over the state. The visciousness of the ads, blatant lies and Photo-Shopping of images to make them something they weren’t. The brazen use of taxpayers money to finance the incumbent’s campaign and his use of his own money to libel a challenger. The major hubris of the deputy governor who told ABC Chgo that he “didn’t really care about federal or state laws and that the Governor’s office is the final say as to whether a federal or state law should be legal or is in the best interest of the people of the state.” (Capital Fax Blog, 9/21/06, 2.44 p.m.)
- Elon - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 11:05 am:
The single worst negative add campaign in history.
Issues appeared to be a non-factor.
- Squideshi - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 11:39 am:
I’m willing to predict that Tom Cross get’s 100% of the vote, and you know what? That’s just an indication that our ballot access laws are too liberal, and the voters are getting confused by having so many choices on the ballot. We obviously need to stop letting so many candidates onto the ballot–approximately HALF of all state legislative races were actually contested in the last election cycle! Can you believe that?! I mean, with two candidates in the race, one might steal votes and spoil the election for the other.
[Note the sarcasm.]
- cermak_rd - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 12:02 pm:
Robo-calling while giving the impression it’s from a different candidate. I suspect that legislation or existing law enforcement will end that practice and they will have to state up front on whose behalf the call is being placed. Or, if we’re lucky, political calls will be added to the callers who cannot call due to the do not call list.
- Jake from Elwood - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 12:45 pm:
I think this is a close runoff between the $10,000 birthday gift for Blago’s little girl and the Machine manuevering for the Todd Squad.
- Filan's Nightmare - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 1:11 pm:
How about the last election before the rest of the country loses all respect for the citizens of Illinois? For the second time in the past three elections we are set to elect a governor that any sentient being knows is soon to be a convicted felon. This is beyond embarrassing. All that this election has told us is that democracy as it has evolved in Illinois is an absolute failure.
- Angie - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 1:32 pm:
Filan, the rest of the country is already laughing at Illinois. I just emailed Rich an FYI, since I didn’t see it on Cap Fax at all (unless I overlooked it), but if anyone still has the Monday Tribune, there’s a really nice Editorial called “If you cast only two votes.”
I liked it a lot. The thought of helping to prop up the alleged corruption by the “crooks and cronies” of one candidate by voting that way should make everyone embarrassed to cast their votes that way.
Think about it. Part of that campaign war chest was the result of an alleged shakedown operation, regardless of whether someone knew or didn’t know what was going on with the cronies.
Hope to see that Editorial up on the site (hint hint).
- St. Nick name - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 1:33 pm:
TIM NEUKIRK!!!!
- Dem Voting R - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 2:29 pm:
The news from this election: A Democrat (Rod) learns how to play Karl Rove politics, and the ‘party of conscience’ abandons principles to drag us all further into the muck. Prediction: the next election shames us all even more than this one. When will the electorate wake up and punish those who will do anything to win?
- So Blue Democrat - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 2:36 pm:
Illinois voters again elect a Governor (I hope I am wrong) who will be indicted. Of course, this time, the Governor will be indicted before his term is over.
- Free Pen Day - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 2:42 pm:
The negative campaigning. And next season it will start even earlier:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdAjGXFJw3s
- Tired of the Mess - Tuesday, Nov 7, 06 @ 5:02 pm:
Most memorable moment of the campaign–”Sure I have given that much money to my nephews. If you are asking me, um, uh,… Could you repeat the question?…”