* ICYMI: On final campaign weekend, Illinois Democrats rally while top Republicans stay quiet. Tribune…

- In a sharp contrast to a busy last campaign weekend for Democrats Juliana Stratton and JB Pritzker, the top of the Republican ticket was largely quiet and out of sight.
- Bailey met with supporters and attended a worship service in Chicago on Saturday, campaign spokesman Travis Akin said. On Sunday, Akin said, Bailey stayed at his farm near rural Xenia, where he spent time with his grandchildren, did media interviews by phone and held last-minute talks with donors. He planned to return to Chicago for a final full day of campaigning Monday.
- Tracy did no public campaigning Saturday or Sunday and instead spent Halloween with family in Jacksonville, spokesperson Kathleen Murphy said. She said the “campaign’s still going full force” with ads running and campaigning planned for Monday and Tuesday.

* Related stories…

• Axios: Illinois candidates take different paths on final campaign day
• CBS Chicago: Pritzker rallies voters in Chicago with 2 days until midterms
• WGN: Illinois Democrats make final campaign push ahead of Election Day

* Gov. JB Pritzker has five GOTV events downstate today.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Crain’s | ComEd, a data center and a big fight over $1: The largest data center project ever proposed in Illinois is at risk of being scuttled over $1. That’s how much developer PowerHouse Hillwood offered to put up when Commonwealth Edison demanded a financial guarantee of more than half a billion dollars to protect other customers from the costs of supplying electricity to its proposed data center campus in Joliet.

* Evanston Roundtable | Northern Illinois Transit Authority prepares to release first regional transit budget: According to NITA spokesperson Melissa Meyer, the individual agencies still have input. But that input is more akin to the role city departments play in the Evanston budget process; they develop their own proposals, but it the city staff and city council (or, in this case, NITA staff and Board of Directors) that develop and approve the budget document that goes before the public. CTA, Metra and Pace submitted their budget proposals to NITA in early October. From there, the agencies worked with NITA to refine and develop the regional budget proposal.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Tribune | Gov. JB Pritzker spending millions in Texas and beyond to extend Democrats’ reach — and his 2028 network: He’s taking a similar approach in Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, Mississippi and Tennessee, states that have drawn less attention than traditional battlegrounds. Those aren’t places where Democrats have typically done well, Pritzker acknowledges. “But they are this time,” Pritzker told the Tribune in an interview at his Loop campaign headquarters about two weeks before Election Day.

* Daily Herald | ‘Yes, it’s crazy,’ but independent governor long-shot believes in the mainstream: Corbett acknowledged all signs point to a Pritzker third term but would consider securing 10% to15% of the returns a victory. “JB Pritzker is pretty well focused on Chicago and has a strong voter base in Chicago,” he said. “Darren Bailey is focused downstate, whereas we’ve been focused on the suburbs. Not only are the suburbs where our most likely voters reside, but it’s also an area of the state that feels ignored.” “I like to shoot for the stars,” he said. The path to that goal is through the suburbs, Corbett thinks.

*** Chicago ***

* Sun-Times | Lake View hospital kitchen reopens after license pulled for ‘cockroach infestation,’ other violations: Illinois Masonic Medical Center’s cafeteria and kitchen has reopened after it was shuttered earlier this month when a “cockroach infestation” contributed to a failed health inspection, according to the Chicago Department of Public Health. […] It’s the fifth time since 2010 that a kitchen at the hospital has failed a health inspection, per city records.

* Sun-Times | ‘Looking for something different:’ Chicago Public Media launches online community: Chicago Public Media, owner of the Chicago Sun-Times and WBEZ, soft-launched on Oct. 7 chicago.com, a new online platform focused on local communities. The nonprofit rolled out its pilot in Chicago neighborhoods Avondale, Bronzeville, Edgewater/Andersonville and South Shore, as well as the city of Evanston.

* Sun-Times | Two-thirds of 2026 Taste of Chicago food vendors were flagged with health code violations: At Taste of Chicago this year, 81 vendors served up regional and international dishes to thousands of people across five days. According to records obtained by WBEZ/Sun-Times from the Chicago Department of Public Health and the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, inspectors logged more than 160 health code violations during the festival. More than half of vendors listed received violations, our analysis shows. Some on-site infractions were minor, like slow-draining sinks, employees in tank tops and missing food safety licenses. Others were far more troubling, like food being prepared in bushes and stored at unsafe temperatures in the summer heat.

* Bloomberg | ‘Free the Onions’ rally sparks debate on 68-year-old trading ban: Outside the Chicago Mercantile Exchange last week, a small group of university students staged an irreverent rally that sparked a serious debate among some of America’s financial elite about what can and can’t be traded. At first glance, the target of the protest group, called For Our Futures, appeared to be obscure: a 68-year-old ban on trading onion futures, a prohibition the students want to overturn.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Sun-Times | Controversial DOJ boss takes reins in tainted ‘Broadview 6’ case, stymies judge’s inquiry: Perry also seemed interested in Boutros’ claim that he only learned of certain alleged wrongdoing by his team in late April. He’s since acknowledged receiving a transcript in October 2025 that documented some of Mecklenburg’s alleged misconduct. Woodward didn’t mention Boutros in his filing, but he did mention the feds’ past claim that “there are no communications of any nature from, to, or with anyone outside of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.”

* Daily Herald | Will donations from the JB Pritzker’s campaign help local Democrats?: In recent weeks, Democratic candidates and party organizations statewide have seen an influx of cash from the governor’s campaign. The Democratic Party of DuPage County received $200,000 earlier this month. Kane County Democrats got $100,000. Lake County Democrats received $30,000. That money was set aside for key state and county races.

* WTTW | In-Person Early Voting in Chicago, Suburban Cook County Outpacing 2022 Early Vote Totals by More Than 30%: In suburban Cook County, more than 180,000 in-person early vote ballots were cast through Thursday, a more than 30% increase from the same time during the 2022 general election, according to a Cook County Clerk’s Office spokesperson. Also, 100,600 mail ballots were returned as of Friday morning.

*** Downstate ***

* Illinois Times | Judge weighs data center lawsuit’s future: Circuit Judge Adam Giganti, at the conclusion of an Oct. 30 hearing on motions to dismiss the suit, said he’s “going to take the matter under advisement and will render a decision as soon as possible.” The July 6 lawsuit was originally filed against Sangamon County and the County Board by residents who live approximately a mile or less from the site. They are seeking to overturn the county’s approval of the project, claiming procedural violations and unchecked environmental concerns. The Sangamon County Board approved a conditional use permit on April 7 that would allow a data center to be constructed on 280 acres of farmland by a vote of 17-10, with one board member abstaining.

* WCBU | Peoria eyes regulations for electric bicycles, scooters: The city staff has drafted an ordinance that would update Peoria’s city code to align with updated state law that’s set to go into effect next year. “The main point of emphasis for regulation is how fast these vehicles go, particularly for the e-bikes,” city attorney Patrick Hayes said this week before the Peoria City Council voted to receive and file the proposed changes.

* WPSD | New Americans celebrated at SIU naturalization ceremony: “They have to basically take a civics lesson to learn the Constitution. They have to go through background checks. They have to pass background checks,” Gilbert said. “It’s a rigorous, time-consuming process that sometimes takes a couple of years, several years before they can qualify to be naturalized.” Gherson Tovar moved to Illinois from Venezuela in 2011 and said he’s excited to start his own American dream.

* WGLT | Dale Township Fire Protection District asks voters to weigh property tax increase: Three ballot questions facing some McLean County voters would raise taxes in the Dale Township Fire Protection District to avoid staffing cuts, according to the fire chief. Chief Ryan Gibson said all three passing would equal about $133 more in taxes based on a $100,000 valuation. So, the owner of a $250,000 home, which is near the average value of a home in McLean County, would pay about $330 more a year.

*** National ***

* AP | Trump administration promises US farmers $15 billion in weeks before the midterms: Whether that will motivate more voters to turn out in agricultural states where traditionally Republican seats are now seen as competitive is unclear. It may explain his increased attention on rural areas, including visits Sunday to Iowa and Kansas, two days before the election. […] He said he expects these ad hoc payments to be a big help for farmers who otherwise would not make a profit this year, but they do not address the broader issues driving up prices. “It’s hard to go to your lender in the next spring and say, ‘OK, well, we’re looking pretty good this year, but it’s all because of these extra temporary government payments, so how much can you make me a loan (for) next year for my crop?’” he said.