79 Comments - Grandson of Man - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:31 am: Pritzker won in part because he wasn’t as tame as some may have expected. He hit Rauner hard on his failures. I saw a few video replays that Pritzker or someone else posted. Rauner failin’ and lyin’. - Perrid - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:33 am: I think the facts back up Pritzker the most. He could have been better, I would like him to put forth an actual proposal just to put his marker down, but his stances make sense to me. As actual performance goes, could have been better but the zinger of “ in SPITE” of you was good. - Wilson - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:36 am: Pritzker simply because he looked less unreasonable than his opponents. - wordslinger - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:37 am: McCann. He raised his profile exponentially as a tough right-winger who won’t take any stuff from a “liar” and “liberal” like Rauner. Why Rauner chose to engage McCann by whining about airtime is beyond me. He looked weak and petulant and the result was more air time for McCann to land some haymakers. Would have been wiser to just ignore him and let the clock work its magic. I’m guessing those who voted for Ives in the GOP primary were duly impressed by McCann’s b-a pushback. - Ole' Nelson - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:37 am: Pritzker avoided any major errors while deflecting the toilet issue fairly well. Didn’t seem to be a slam dunk for either candidate to me, but if you are up in the polls by 15%+, you don’t need to knock it out of the park. Rauner seemed bitter, but that could have been my bias as I dislike him. - DarkHorse - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:38 am: Pritzker’s zinger aside, I thought his answer about “let’s remember why Kapernick took a knee - because of excessive police force”, was very good. - The Most Anonymous - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:39 am: Is there really any question? JB. If Sam McCann got Rauner that worked up, he clearly has no focus or strength. JB did a good job sticking to the “he’s a failed incumbent” message and appeared unfazed by anything thrown his way. Line of the night was certainly the “in spite of” line. - Neck tattoo - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:42 am: Senator McCann is clearly last nights winner, he not only answered the questions he answered them with solutions. He didnt just stand there and sling mud at the others. Pure class and exactly what Illinois needs, someone leading our state that knows what everyday people go through. - Anonymous - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:42 am: JB was well prepared. Rauner looks like he has given up. - Mom of Four - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:44 am: Pritzker because he came across more likable, and more believable. Rauner looked absolutely miserable, with a deer in the headlights look in his eyes, and a very angry demeanor. I noticed he didn’t drop any “ing’s” either. - Anonymiss - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:44 am: Rauner had nothing of substance to say and sounded small and angry. He continues to criticize the state as though he hasn’t been the one in charge of it for four years. Wait nevermind. - Ole' Nelson - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:44 am: The full result percentages so far look very similar to other poll results I have seen lately. - Lester Holt’s Mustache - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:47 am: McCann. Got some good shots in (although not many people watched this thing), but by going after Rauner as hard as he did he’ll get quite a bit of news coverage. Tribune story alone mentions his name 12 times, he comes out of this with more attention than he would have gotten with a round of commercials. Pritzker has nothing to gain from these with his huge lead but he didn’t mess up badly, so call it a win but McCann’s the one who upped his stock the most. - Bobby T - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:50 am: Rauner looked tired and already defeated. I suspect he’s pretty much given up in private –and is just going through the motions in public. - Arsenal - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:52 am: Pritzker. “Why?” The goal of these things is to come out of them more likely to win than you were when you went in, and JB did so- if only because one more day, and one debate, are now off the clock without anything changing. He probably also did the best job in the debate, particularly in throwing out red meat for his side (his best “zingers” are already buzzing around in social media graphics), but really he won because the clock is ticking. Honorable mention to Sam McCann, because Rauner going after him is the most publicity he’s had in months, and he handled Rauner very well for the voters he’s trying to reach. But frankly, that the most replayed exchange of the night was between McCann and Rauner plays to JB’s advantage, so Pritzker still comes out on top. - Ron Burgundy - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:54 am: Seems like the real winners here are those who didn’t watch. - Arsenal - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:54 am: ==The full result percentages so far look very similar to other poll results I have seen lately.== Which is probably a good sign that whoever you went in supporting, you came out supporting. No minds were changed. And that suits Pritzker just fine. - Anon221 - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:57 am: Pritzker, with McCann close behind. The “In Spite Of” would make a great new campaign line in addition to “You Lie”. - Anonymous - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:58 am: I think the anti-McCann ads will start in 3…2…1 Most do not know his background and baggage. - Just Sayin - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 9:59 am: Pritzker had the best responses. So where are all those comments from those who voted Rauner? - RNUG - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:02 am: The biggest winner was McCann because he increased voter recognition. This will be huge if he runs again in 4 years. Near term, JB won because he didn’t make any big mistakes. - Kayak - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:02 am: Winner: JB. Second place: Sam. Losers: Bruce and Kash. JB showed he was cool, confident, and can lead. Sam showed he isn’t afraid to call out Bruce and is a fighter for the people. Bruce was smug, petty, and lost most aurguments. Kash confirmed he is the fringe candidate and easily secured last place. - RNUG - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:06 am: == Honorable mention to Sam McCann, because Rauner going after him is the most publicity he’s had in months, == McCann has been pretty visible in low cost venues like social media. He can’t begin to match the kind of spending JB & Rauner are doing on TV and in print, so you are right, this free publicity is good for Sam. - Anonymous - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:07 am: RNUG, you know Sam’s baggage, many here do not and most likely 98%+ who watched the debate do not. You don’t think that will significantly hurt him? - Thomas McCarty - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:09 am: Sam won because he stood up for downstate conservatives and he has exposed Rauner to everyone watching. - theq - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:12 am: I voted McCann mostly because he has given himself some free publicity through his attack on Rauner…. also because he almost made me spit my drink when he flat out called Rauner a liar - Henry Francis - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:12 am: I said Kash. I guess I am defining “won” by who gained the most in the debate. JB and the Guv were who we thought they were (rip Denny Green) and I don’t think either of their performances really moved the needle for them. Kash was an unknown kook before the debate. Yet there he was on the same stage with the Guv and JB. And considering how ugly the debate was, I don’t remember any shots he took. He came across (to me at least) as a non politician who is sick and tired of both Democrats and Republicans and their dysfunction - those types of cranks appeal to a growing group of voters these days. It was part of the Guv’s schtick 4 years ago. Does he have any chance of winning? Heck no. But I would guess he gained more voters based off of his performance than anyone else. McCann was good hitting the Guv though. - Grandson of Man - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:14 am: Last night reinforced Pritzker’s “I’m not in charge attacks” on Rauner. Does Rauner do anything but blame Madigan and others? Is this an attractive quality to conservatives who value personal responsibility and strength of character that helps manage hatred of opponents enough to put the job of governing and serving the state first and foremost? Rauner is crippled by his hatred. - Ole' Nelson - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:16 am: I have developed a secondary hope for the election results as a result of the debate. Kind of like how a first time marathon runner sets a primary goal to finish the race and a secondary goal of breaking a certain time. My primary hope is to see J.B. send Bruce and Diane packing to Italy, but my secondary hope is that McCann pulls enough votes away from the Governor that the vote totals leave no doubt that Bruce has failed. I want Bruce to hear the message loud and clear that he has no longer been a success at everything he has done. Last night’s debate gave me hope that Sam can pull the downstate votes away from Rauner significantly. - Anonymous - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:19 am: The poll currently shows 52/25/18/5. Not a bad prediction of the final outcome. - Anonymous - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:19 am: Rauner won. He has planted that threat of higher taxes on JB. People in Illinois hate higher and higher taxes. - walker - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:22 am: MCCann. He stays on the radar. As long as he pulls 5%, he determines the election. - ahem - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:23 am: Ole’ Nelson, schadenfreude much? Why don’t your run for governor? - NeverPoliticallyCorrect - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:24 am: Pritzker was better but big deal. We’ll be trading one bazzilionaire for another. Pritzker has never managed anything of substance in his life. It doesn’t mean he can’t, just means there’s no evidence he can. We just saw how badly Rauner did. No confidence that Pritzker will be any better. - Seats - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:25 am: McCann gained the most votes fron last night and bonus points for bringing up the Afscme contract. JB also a winner, didn’t gain anything but with such a large lead didn’t lose anything which is a win in itself with the lead. - Ole' Nelson - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:31 am: Ahem schadenfreude- pleasure derived by someone from another person’s misfortune Thanks for the vocabulary lesson. We could have used that word while watching Rauner’s callous destruction of social services, universities, and damage to public employees. Diane said she had never seen him happier. Would that be schadenfreude? - Arthur Andersen - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:33 am: I would say JB won “on points” by zinging Rauner, defending his positions again without offering up any specifics, and staying on topic and calm. McCann probably won the “crowd pleaser” award for severely rattling Rauner. Mr. Jackson should fold his tent. He’s got nothing. - RNUG - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:39 am: == You don’t think that will significantly hurt him? == Yeah, I know his baggage. It will hurt him with some people. But his financial problems with his business are something people can understand and relate to; we’ve all been close to there once or twice in our life. He can try to spin it as he knows the problem of too much spending and too little income to match and has learned from it, so that makes Sam uniquely qualified to tackle the State’s budget problems. His questionable record keeping on mileage, etc. don’t look that good, but they can also be at least partially explained away. Nobody in his district doubts he racked up the miles, he is literally everywhere ever weekend. And you can even justify buying the vehicle instead of leaving it. But, as the old story goes, if you are explaining, you are losing … so he could be hurt among voters that don’t know him. But I figure, after 4 years of JB’s necessary and painful tax changes, people will be looking for something different, and Sam just might be it. He’s very personable, listens, and mostly sticks to his word. That’s a winning formula in politics. And if voters want a non-rich (perceived) outsider, Sam will fit the bill. His problem with be finding enough Cook and suburban votes. - Dutch3001 - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:47 am: Pritzker. At this stage in the campaign Rauner has to deliver a knockout blow or goad Pritzker into making a statement on taxes, etc., that he can use as a sound bite in an upcoming tv ad. He did neither, Pritzker wins simply by playing defense. - RNUG - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:48 am: == You don’t think that will significantly hurt him? == Adding … I think most voters don’t pay much, if any, serious attention to politics until 4 to 6 weeks before an election. Given that assumption, if Sam could position himself as the front runner in the 2022 election, those issues I cited above wouldn’t be enough of an October Surprise to knock him out … especially if they get used this time because it will be old news in 2022. - Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:49 am: McCann “won”… Pritzker was the “winner” “Why?” McCann reinforced that Rauner has no constituency within conservative circles, and by attacking McCann, it gives McCann street cred and builds McCann’s constituency. Not great for Rauner. Pritzker won, as the zingers, while painful, don’t help Rauner with building his likability, the real message of the debate, for me… “It was in spite of”… That helps a closing argument Pritzker is building upon with “Bruce Rauner failed.” It takes away the “good” Rauner wants to claim, while reinforcing “Bruce Rauner failed”… actually great work to the messaging. So, Pritzker builds to a closing argument, McCann claims his own constituency, Rauner gets loses on two fronts. - I Miss Bentohs - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:49 am: I refused to vote because the obvious answer was not a choice: The Browns (and free beer) dilly dilly - Arsenal - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:50 am: ==No confidence that Pritzker will be any better.== Pritzker will be better, if nothing else, because he won’t bet his entire administration on proving himself “tuffer” than Mike Madigan. - West Sider - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 10:51 am: Pritzker won. Why? Rauner lost, and lost badly. So- Pritzker won. Everything else is just noise. - AnonNice - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 11:08 am: Pritzker won. Rauner couldn’t hit him without being back or by one of the other two. No ground given up so JB wins. - Northsider (the original) - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 11:09 am: I voted McCann. JB succeeded, since his mission was to not drop & he didn’t. I’m not sure what McCann’s mission was, but he raised his profile, got all kinds of good attention, and drove Rauner nuts. - @misterjayem - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 11:18 am: Pritzker won the moment Rauner started legitimizing McCann’s candidacy. (The quiet loser was down-ballot Democrats in close races. Republicans who might have stayed home may now turn out to vote for McCann.) – MrJM - Lucky Pierre - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 11:19 am: You got to love Mike Madigan hedging his bets He has a hand picked candidate on the Democratic ballot as well as on the “Conservative” ballot Funny how the “Conservative” only criticizes the Republican candidate and not the Democratic one. - Osborne Smith III - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 11:39 am: Could we please stop pretending that Jackson is a legitimate candidate? Sam is a fringe player in this race, but ol’ Kash (what a dumb name) is even farther away from having a chance in hell. - Lucky Pierre - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 11:41 am: Quite a motley crew up on that stage trying to unseat the Governor A guy who is sued for child support lecturing us about civility and personal responsibility A guy who has filed bankruptcy and has IRS liens lectures about financial responsibility. A guy who is caught on tape asking to be be considered for an appointment to State Treasurer by a Governor he donated to and is currently in jail. Why are these better candidates for Governor than Rauner? - ILNurse - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 11:45 am: I think Pritzker won because of his popularity and McCann won with his sound ideas. I primarily think Pritzker won because he is the only one who had a solution to the pension problem being to “level out the amortization.” In my humble opinion the basis of what is due should be changed. The basis is based on if the state went belly up what would be owed. The state is not going belly up, there will always be money coming in, so why pay based on a false and higher premise? I may switch and vote for McCann but would hate to vote for him and take away a vote for JB and thus give support to Rauner. - Alex Ander - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 11:58 am: I guess when you have nothing positive to point out in your first term you just turn into a chirping bird.”Madigan! Madigan! Madigan!” - Ole' Nelson - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 11:59 am: Lucky The National Review says he is The Worst Republican Governor in America. You can read in the Tribune that by his own measures, Illinois is worse off after electing Rauner. And those reasons are just possible reasons from his political side. It might be more fun if you make the case as to why Rauner deserves another terms based upon his accomplishments. - peteypablo - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:00 pm: Based solely on audience laughs, Jackson took the night. I’m still not sure if they were laughing “in spite of him” or “because of him”. JB thoughts here? - Soccermom - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:02 pm: The real winner was Pritzker’s social media team. They did an incredible job. They came prepared and they got the job done. Nice, nice work. - Louis G. Atsaves - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:06 pm: Nobody won. No one spoke of anything regarding substance. Rauner repeatedly getting interrupted and tag-teamed between Pritzker and McCann caused a few i’m with today to actually express their sympathy for him, along the lines of “he was never given a chance to answer.” Marin’s was shockingly weak as a moderator. - Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:08 pm: ===Marin’s was shockingly weak as a moderator.=== “Because… the moderator” Oh boy. - Lucky Pierre - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:15 pm: Ole Nelson,if you read the National Review article they do not approve of Governor Rauner because he is not conservative enough for them with the social agenda he supported. Why would that be a negative in Illinois, a state that has not voted for a Republican for President since 1984? I will hang up and listen to your answer. - Ole' Nelson - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:17 pm: It might be more fun if you make the case as to why Rauner deserves another terms based upon his accomplishments. - wondering - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:26 pm: Ole’ you got it. The give away is that Rauner would rather talk about toilets then his record. The other two are just chaff and distraction. - Lester Holt’s Mustache - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:30 pm: ==Marin’s was shockingly weak as a moderator.== I don’t know if I’d go as far as Louis, but I’m highly disappointed in Carol Marin. Unless I completely missed it while going to the kitchen for a drink, she made no mention of Jackson not paying his child support and his bizarre conspiracy theories surrounding his reasons for not doing so. It’s a crime, one which he’s engaged in repeatedly (only doing so when he’s threatened with jail time) and he should be disqualified for this alone. I don’t care whether or not Rauner and Pritzker know how much bread and milk cost - this is a important issue and Marin should have asked about this. - Mike - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:40 pm: Kash is the only one that answered questions head on and behaved like a professional. He gets my vote. - Oswego Willy - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:41 pm: ===…because he is not conservative enough for them with the social agenda he supported.=== Rauner IS an uber-left, costal, limousine liberal. Even “Lucky Pierre” agrees. You want to vote Republican/Conservative, vote McCann. LOL - Tiger X in Waukegan - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:50 pm: While McCann, Rauner, and Pritzker took ugly potshots, Jackson was the one who kept himself the most dignified. Unlike others who’d ignore the question to make their talking points, the libertarian guy seemed to grasp the underlying reasons for the problems we face. Too bad the moderator kept cutting him off. She never did so with JB. McCann played to his base by name dropping Trump. basically, if he became governor, McCann would let trump do all the work. Plus, McCann is definitely a plant. He’s funded by the same union that funds JB. Kash had actual plans. I didn’t know about him before, but I do now. I look forward to future debates with that guy. - Texas Red - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 12:54 pm: Local 150 won - Rich Miller - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 1:04 pm: ===Local 150 won=== I wish the owner of this site would install a “like” button. Oh. Wait… - G'Kar - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 1:21 pm: McCann–the fact that Rauner attached him gave him needed face time. - Demoralized - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 1:29 pm: ==Why are these better candidates for Governor than Rauner?== Why? Because he’s demonstrated he cannot govern. Why in the world would I ever want to vote for a man who has spent 4 years being a victim? Of course given the advice you gave him on another post the other day in which you seemed to indicate he should keep doing what he is doing I guess he’s the guy for you. You fellow victims stick together. ==I will hang up and listen to your answer.== First of all I’m glad you’re hanging up. Don’t call back. Second, you may be right about the National Review. But that isn’t the reason he’s got a dismal approval rating in Illinois. - Demoralized - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 1:31 pm: Louis: So Rauner’s a victim in the debate now too? Apparently the man just can’t catch a break. Everyone is just being mean to him and he’s stuck in perpetual victimhood. - Archbishop Shizzle - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 1:31 pm: After you watch it it’s pretty obvious that Kash won the debate. He gained the most, from both the name recognition and the elevation. He humanized himself and came off down to earth and relatable. Bruce and Sam looked hateful and angry, and JB looked soft and weak. - Arsenal - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 1:41 pm: ==Why are these better candidates for Governor than Rauner?== Because Bruce Rauner failed. He’s had a term in office and he’s accomplished none of his goals. - Arsenal - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 1:43 pm: What, did the Kash Jackson Facebook page post a link or something? - Grandson of Man - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 2:22 pm: It was great of McCann to mention that AFSCME still has no new contract, four years later. That couldn’t be more of a reflection of Rauner’s absolute unwillingness to negotiate and compromise, and his hatred hijacking his job duty, just like with Madigan and the budget. Leaders know how to manage their personal feelings and not let them get in the way of their duties and responsibilities. Republicans really bailed out Rauner, because if they didn’t it’s not far-fetched to think we’d still not have a full budget and revenue. - Chicago Cynic - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 2:32 pm: Arsenal, exactly my question. Weird the sudden surge in pro-Kash Jackson posts. As to the debate, Sam McCann succeeded in his real goal - getting under Bruce Rauner’s skin. He’s had the same goal all along and boy has he been succeeding. The biggest loser in this debate was clearly Rauner. He looked like a deer in headlights. Unprepared. Unhappy. Unlikable. And by punching down to go after McCann, you can add undisciplined to the list. As for JB, by not losing and not making any major mistakes he won big time. Actually he did far better than that. His line about in spite of and not because of was perfect (and of course true). There were other good ones but that was the best. As for Mr. Winderweedle? Go home. Please go home. Your confession that you’ve been a political activist for “a couple of years” was a Kinseyan gaffe. Yea, you have. And you have no business on that stage. One last note about Carol Marin, can we please please please stop using our precious airtime to ask these inane questions. Colin Kapernick? Price of eggs? Toilets? We are a state on the brink of disaster and these are not the topics that voters care about. - Mama - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 2:41 pm: It looks like McCann won the most undecided Republican votes from this debate. - M - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 2:43 pm: Pritzker did a good job too, but I still think McCann came out on top for now. - VanillaMan - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 3:54 pm: McCann won Voters already know Rauner is gone. So this year they can waste their vote on a guy who won’t win, but also isn’t a proven loser and a proven failure. - Arthur Andersen - Friday, Sep 21, 18 @ 4:05 pm: Welcome, Kash Krew. Won’t you stay awhile? Not. - Trish H - Tuesday, Sep 25, 18 @ 8:10 pm: I am an idependent and vote for the person not the party. Kash Jackson was calm, collected and just made sense. I had been watching him a while with interest but this forum sealed my vote for him. It’s time to bring Illinois back to the people or the exodus will continue until nothing is left but the people who can’t get out. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.