* I told subscribers about this earlier today. Tribune…
A spokesperson for Justice Michael Burke, a Republican who has served on the court since 2020, said Wednesday that the justice has conceded his race to his Democratic challenger, Appellate Court Justice Mary Kay O’Brien
Justice O’Brien declared victory today. That means the Democrats (and pro-choicers) will have a 5-2 majority on the top court. A majority of justices will also be women for the first time.
* Dan Proft’s People Who Play by the Rules PAC didn’t just lose the governor’s race by a huge margin (after circulating at least one highly questionable poll). He also spent money on several down-ballot contests. I asked Isabel to do the math. Most of these were House candidates, but one (Nagel) was a Senate candidate and another (Moody) was a candidate for sheriff. Independent expenditures since the beginning of October...
* Speaking of the Proft/Bailey race, here’s the Huffington Post…
Throughout the late spring and into the summer, Democratic operatives made a series of risky choices to elevate Republican candidates who wholeheartedly embraced former President Donald Trump’s cornucopia of lies about the 2020 presidential election.
In Republican primary after Republican primary, Democrats aired ads serving two purposes: promoting seemingly unelectable candidates to the GOP base while attacking them for a general election audience. The ads noted how close the Republican candidates were to Trump, played up their support for strict restrictions or bans on abortion and other things the GOP base loved but general election voters hated.
On election night, those risky bets paid off. All six of the election-denying candidates on the ballot whom Democrats boosted ― three gubernatorial candidates, two House candidates and a Senate candidate ― lost, most of them resoundingly.
One of those was, of course, Darren Bailey.
* WQAD last night…
Illinois voters decided Tuesday to amend their state constitution to guarantee the right to bargain collectively.
Labor unions declared victory last night, but they haven’t yet provided the numbers to buttress their case. It’s short of the 60 percent required for outright passage and, by my quick count, also appears to be just shy of the majority of all persons voting. More votes will be counted, however, so stay tuned.
This thing is gonna get really complicated and involved. I’ve already been in one long back and forth today about how over/under votes will factor into the equation.
* Many naysayers believed the Democrats had gone too far when they drew their new congressional maps. No way could they win 14 districts out of 17. Well, Democrat Nikki Budzinski won yesterday and Republican Esther Joy King conceded today…
Democrat Eric Sorensen will be headed to Congress after Republican Esther Joy King called to concede the race Wednesday morning.
Sorensen is a longtime meteorologist while King is trained as a lawyer and JAG Officer in the Army Reserve.
The 17th Congressional District seat opened up ater U.S Rep. Cheri Bustos (D) retired. King previously ran against Bustos in 2020 but was narrowly defeated.
* Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie’s Democratic opponent refuses to concede…
As votes continue to come in, the Maria Peterson and Dan McConchie race is still not decided. The election results that have been reported so far are showing that Maria Peterson has 41,415 votes and Dan McConchie has 43,353 votes. However, this does not include votes that have been mailed in on or before Election Day and provisional ballots. Peterson said, “We are looking forward to the next few weeks and the arrival of the rest of the ballots to the clerks’ offices so that each and every vote can be counted and the voice of each voter heard. According to voter file information, there are possibly as many as 6,500 ballots that were requested and are outstanding.
* Greg Hinz…
Cook County Chief Judge Tim Evans kept his job despite a quiet effort by some in his party to deny him retention to the bench.
* Illinois Supreme Court candidate Mark Curran last month…
I’m Catholic, and I’m, I’m sort of pro-life.
WTTW last night…
[Republican Illinois Supreme Court candidate Mark Curran] gave a concession speech in front of his supporters late Tuesday night, in which he repeatedly pointed to his faith and said his opponent ran against him solely on the abortion issue.
“The bulk of Illinois voted on killing babies,” he said. “Now, if you asked me would I like to switch my position on that so that I could win (an) election and spend the rest of eternity in hell, I’d say no way.”
…Adding… Oops. Forgot to put this one in, but it’s noteworthy…
She also worked constantly.
Sharon Chung (D-Bloomington) also won a House seat last night, expanding the Asian American legislative caucus to 9. And according to Rep. Theresa Mah (D-Chicago), two Asian Americans won seats on the DuPage County Board and one won a seat on the Will County Board representing Bolingbrook.
It’s more than just a trend.
…Adding… Another big D win…
- vern - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:22 pm:
Uihlein’s other project, Common Sense Reforms NFP, also had a terrible night. They spent in one race that went their way (Sanalitro) and one that probably will (Greenwood). Everything else was just money down the drain.
Is this the year Uihlein finally realizes he’s a mark?
- low level - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:25 pm:
Speaking of hell, Currans TV ads showing the Sears Tower and other downtown skyscrapers made me laugh. I guess he didnt share Bailey’s opinion that Chicago is a “hellhole”.
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:25 pm:
I will be taking serious, only serious inquires come next election cycle… certified check or EFTs… I’ll take half of Proft’s fee schedule by those means.
Whew.
That’s 11.
Can’t you make the 10 losses larger… but Proft goes to 11
- Nick - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:25 pm:
That’s interesting about amendment one. All the coverage I’ve seen has more or less said it’s for sure a done deal now.
- DS - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:27 pm:
Florida Man sets money on fire.
- Lurker - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:32 pm:
Play by the Rules has officially changed its name to Frolic by the Submissive.
I knew the strategy to elevate the cra cra would work in Illinois. I’m glad it worked in all these cases.
Speaking of cra cra, don’t worry Mark. I don’t think you needed to win, to get that final judgment assured.
- Rich Miller - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:33 pm:
===Is this the year Uihlein finally realizes he’s a mark? ===
People thought he learned his lesson four years ago. Nope.
- ArchPundit - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:33 pm:
—Democrat Sharon Chung declared victory late Tuesday in the hotly contested Illinois 91st House District race. She’ll be the first Democrat to represent Bloomington-Normal in the House since 1982. She’s also the first Korean American elected to the General Assembly.
Since the cutback amendment!
- Jerry - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:34 pm:
Regarding the U-Leeens. Remember to bring your reusable bags to the store.
- Socially DIstant watcher - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:36 pm:
==Florida man sets money on fire==
What’s remarkable is that it wasn’t his own money, but still he gets more and just keeps doing it.
- Here we go - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:37 pm:
It’s worth nothing that without gerrymandering there would be no Democrat wins in the 13th and 17th CD. Democrats still need to up their game in downstate Illinois, but that’s also a national challenge for the Dems.
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:37 pm:
===Is this the year Uihlein finally realizes he’s a mark?===
Professor Harold Hill will try again. He has nothing to lose.
Plus, Uihlein’s wife is a letter writer. Can’t write letters without cash in the game.
“Oh we got trouble…”
- MisterJayEm - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:39 pm:
“Democrats (and pro-choicers) will have a 5-2 majority on the top court. A majority of justices will also be women for the first time.”
A huge THANK YOU to everyone responsible.
– MrJM
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:40 pm:
===That means the Democrats (and pro-choicers) will have a 5-2 majority on the top court. A majority of justices will also be women for the first time.===
Jim Nowlan is the hero we don’t deserve.
- Emily - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:40 pm:
Dan Proft hasn’t won a significant race (yet again). Nonetheless, he’s still laughing all the way to his bank in Florida. Let’s hope the dumb money keeps flowing his way. The conservative billionaires get their angry time in the spotlight and Illinois keeps getting deeper and deeper blue.
- JS Mill - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:41 pm:
=“The bulk of Illinois voted on killing babies,”=
Nice tantrum, guy that wanted to be the highest judge in the state.
- Emily - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:43 pm:
==without gerrymandering there would be no Democrat wins in the 13th and 17th CD==
Federal law requires the lines to be redrawn every 10 years following the census. The 2010 13th and 17th don’t exist. Redistricting and reappaortionment are not gerrymanedering.
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:52 pm:
===* Many naysayers believed the Democrats had gone too far when they drew their new congressional maps. No way could they win 14 districts out of 17. Well, Democrat Nikki Budzinski won yesterday and Republican Esther Joy King conceded today…===
(Raises hand)
Guilty. I was wrong.
To tie a whole bunch of great stuff in this post, what a difference 2 years make.
Rodney Davis (remember him?)… welp, he won, touted as a huge GOP win… yeah, he’s ducking lame now, losing to Mary Miller
Jim Nowlan was touted as one who took down “Madigan’s Supreme Court Justice”… welp, no one factored in that a new map might erase things, only looking to the end of the nose… yeah, now Dems got that seat back, and another just for sport. That interim justice was also a Dem, that was fun too.
Here’s the fun one. The defeat of the Fair Tax was touted as a win for the GOP by saving the wealthy from leaving… welp, Griffin funds a mayor, turns him into something else… and the GOP lost their rich piggy bank… to Florida… “meanwhile”… Florida Man Proft burns it all down in the General Election, possibly alienating Uihlein for a cycle or two.
So… in the end, the GOP can’t help losing for winning.
So much winning.
- SaveDemocracy - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:54 pm:
Emily’s right. It’s simply reapportionment.
https://fivethirtyeight.com/videos/illinois-may-be-the-worst-democratic-gerrymander-in-the-country/
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 12:57 pm:
===It’s simply reapportionment.===
Now do FL (4 new GOP seats) or NY
Until it’s a national call with national, uniformed consistently…
It’s now 14-3
Look at the candidates that lost.
Start with Pekau and Lauf
Chances existed
- Rudy’s teeth - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:04 pm:
When will Mark Curran stop posing in his sheriff’s uniform? Curran lost that election in 2018. Then he loses a senate race to Durbin in 2020. Now, Curran loses the Illinois Supreme Court race in 2022.
Might be time to look in the mirror, Mark.
- Anon324 - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:05 pm:
==It’s short of the 60 percent required for outright passage and, by my quick count, also appears to be just shy of the majority of all persons voting.==
Not sure if Rich will see this, but is there somewhere to find the total ballots cast, or is it just a function of going to the various clerks’ websites and adding? I was using the governor totals as a proxy since they seemed to be the highest, and the amendment has about a 19,000 vote cushion at the moment, with a rather unkind trend that obviously may or may not hold.
- Big Dipper - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:05 pm:
==A majority of justices will also be women for the first time==
Also two of the five women are Black and there are now three Black Justices in total.
- Big Dipper - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:08 pm:
==The bulk of Illinois voted on killing babies==
The bulk of Illinois didn’t vote in those two races.
- Larry Bowa Jr. - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:08 pm:
“would I like to switch my position on that so that I could win (an) election and spend the rest of eternity in hell”
Keep talking like this, it definitely doesn’t make you sound insane to a huge majority of the US population.
- lake county democrat - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:22 pm:
Completely anecdotal but I know a couple of people who voted by mail Monday - straight Dem but voted against Amendment 1. Normally I’d presume the mail votes, if that’s what’s still not counted, would push it over the 60% threshhold but maybe there’s “cross voting” there.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:23 pm:
Did Curran also blame the Freemasons? I still have that open on my Curran conspiracy bingo card. (He called them out earlier in his campaign, but I didn’t know if they made the list last night.)
- lake county democrat - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:24 pm:
Nobody hates gerrymandering here more than me, but not going to get that worked up about it given the Democrats tried to end it nationwide and the GOP fought to preserve it. But-for gerrymandering nationwide, the Dems would likely have kept control of the House.
- Anon324 - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:24 pm:
==…push it over the 60% threshhold…==
It doesn’t need 60%. It can also pass if the “yes” votes amount to more than half of total votes cast.
- Oswego Willy - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:24 pm:
===Peterson said, “We are looking forward to the next few weeks and the arrival of the rest of the ballots to the clerks’ offices so that each and every vote can be counted and the voice of each voter heard.===
If I remember, I’ll “circle back” in a couple weeks to be not surprised Peterson still lost?
- Karen - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:31 pm:
==Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie’s Democratic opponent refuses to concede==
She shouldn’t - Vote by Mail will likely impact these vote totals significantly in her favor
- Jerry - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:38 pm:
Since Profet wants small government in his new adopted home state the Government tells parents how to raise their children. Curious what his stance is on that?
- DotheMatj - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 1:52 pm:
Come on Rich, don’t just say “by my calculation” te: the amendment, show us the numbers you’re working with.
- H-W - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 2:15 pm:
If Amendment 1 does not reach the “50% of all voters who voted” option, I guess we can conclude the Republican Party saved us each $2,100. I can’t wait to see how that Republican promise works out. /s
- Ron Burgundy - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 2:32 pm:
-She shouldn’t - Vote by Mail will likely impact these vote totals significantly in her favor-
You can say something short of conceding and be gracious - it looks like we may come up short, and if that’s the case after the results are fully in, I wish my opponent well and will congratulate them. Also the act of conceding has no legal effect at all - it’s just symbolic and good manners.
- The Velvet Frog - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 2:51 pm:
AP has called the amendment as passing. A number of news sources are still listing it as too close to call.
- Norseman - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 2:57 pm:
=== Nice tantrum, guy that wanted to be the highest judge in the state. ===
Noting the old saw, if he tells you who he is - believe him. For IL’s sake, the voters believed him.
- Old time Independent - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 3:57 pm:
Speaking of Profts report card don’t forget he single-handedly recruited and ran Pekau’s race behind the scenes.
- Amalia - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 4:01 pm:
when I see the Proft spending (nice list Rich and Isabel) I also think what was raised and spent on the Dem side. with this “arms race” comes consultant profit, no matter the result. that list would be interesting as well. As for Curran, his words are an absolute disgrace. No one voted to kill. they voted for women’s agency.
- Been There - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 4:12 pm:
==== Completely anecdotal but I know a couple of people who voted by mail Monday - straight Dem but voted against Amendment 1. ====
Ironically many of the areas that have a lot of trade people, like the 19th Ward and the SW burbs, in some of those precincts all the Dems lost. No surprise there but the amendment received 50-60%.
- The Velvet Frog - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 4:13 pm:
And now ABC 7 has withdrawn their call about Amendment 1 passing.
- DHS Drone - Wednesday, Nov 9, 22 @ 7:17 pm:
Council 31 just sent an email saying WRA will end up meeting the 50%+1 threshold of votes cast.