Today’s quotable
Wednesday, Nov 9, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From Gov. Pritzker’s presser today…
Reporter: What did Senator Bailey say during your call last night?
Pritzker: He said very few words. I got on the phone. I said ‘Senator Bailey.’ He said, ‘Governor, I want to congratulate you.’ And I said, ‘Well, thank you very much. That’s very kind of you’. And he said, ‘Okay then.’ That’s the entire call.
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* The governor’s speech last night got a lot of tongues wagging…
* And he was asked repeatedly about it today at a press conference…
Reporter: Was it cost-efficient to spend 150? million? And how much do you plan to spend on a presidential run?
Pritzker: Let’s put that last part aside for a moment and just say Illinois is worth it. As you know that we had two MAGA billionaires who were coming against us, attacking everything that we stand for. They spent over $100 million. And we’re not just going to sit and get pummeled by them, we’re going to defend ourselves and tell people what we stand for and fight back. And so that’s what we did. And we did so in a way that let everybody know what we stand for, and why Illinois needs to move in the direction that it will. And overwhelmingly Illinois agreed with us.
Reporter: You haven’t answered that presidential run. How much time do you have to think about it before you make that decision?
Pritzker: I am not focused on that at all. I am focused on serving as governor for the next four years, it’s really the most important thing to me is we have a lot of challenges that Illinois needs to overcome, we’ve got to work hard on it. And I’ll be doing that. […]
Reporter: …That was a national level speech. You were addressing national issues. You didn’t mention your opponent once, you referred to Trump twice, referred to MAGA a couple of times. I mean, this seemed to go down the contours of the Great River on one side and the Great Lake on the other side.
Pritzker: I was expressing my values, these are my values. You know that I helped to build a Holocaust museum here, you know that I have fought against hate really for my entire life. I really believe that the Republican Party and that especially includes the Illinois Republican Party, who nominated Darren Bailey, that they stand for the MAGA Republican ideas, Donald Trump. That party has been taken over entirely. Clearly. And so I wanted to make clear what I stand for. That’s all. Look, I’m an Illinoisan through and through. I want to be the governor of Illinois for the next four years. And I’m excited to make sure that we’re accomplishing things for the people of Illinois and expressing our values. I really think the majority of people in Illinois agree that we should be standing up against hate. […]
[Asked if he would commit to serving out his entire four-year term]: I commit to you that I’m planning to be the governor for the next four years. We have too many things that we need to accomplish for the state. I think we all know what that list is, or at least you all have a pretty good idea what that list is. And we’re going to continue to do it. And again, principal among them is we’ve got to stop being irresponsible about our fiscal situation in the state like my predecessor was, and like was proposed by my opponent during this latest campaign, and actually focus on solving the real fiscal challenges of Illinois. I know that sometimes sounds boring to people when you talk about budgets, paying debt, you know, dealing with those fiscal challenges. It’s not as exciting as you know, some other things, but I think it’s vitally important that all of us focus on that both parties, and I think that’s something in a bipartisan way we should continue to work on.
Reporter: So there’s no group behind the scenes. Because commit to you planning to be governor will be dissected.
Pritzker: [Laughs] I don’t know what…
Reporter: So there’s nobody behind the scenes of your campaign team that…
Pritzker: No. There was some story that I think appeared, I think you tweeted it, about, I guess Reuters put it out, saying there were some number of people on the national level who were talking to staff. That’s absolutely untrue. I was not talking, I have not talked to any staff outside of my own staff. And so no, there’s no, like I said, there’s no plan to do anything other than be governor for the next four years.
Please pardon all transcription errors.
* Meanwhile…
From the presser…
Reporter: What should we think about that photo of you yesterday, shaking hands alongside Chuy Garcia? Are you going to endorse anyone?
Pritzker: Well, you apparently didn’t see the pictures of me with Kam Buckner or with Alderman Eugene Sawyer
Reporter: They were big groups.
Pritzker: Well, I had a group of people together, and you’re making more of it than it is. Look, he’s the congressman from the area where I was shaking hands at the Orange Line stop. [Cross talk] And he’s a good man. I am not taking sides in the mayoral race. I am focused on the job that I have ahead of me, in my second term.
A couple of policy questions were asked. Pritzker repeated what he’s said before about tweaks to the SAFE-T Act (the legislature is working on it) and making tax cuts permanent (he said he’d like to if the budget can be balanced).
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Question of the day
Wednesday, Nov 9, 2022 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* WSIU…
Inflation and the war in Ukraine are packing a one-two wallop when it comes to prices paid for agricultural commodities and consumer goods — including alcohol. Together, Ukraine and Russia produce around 30% of the barley in the world, and Ukraine alone produces 16% of the world’s corn supply. With craft brewers reporting up to 100% price increases on barley, local artisans are struggling to keep prices low while retaining their niche in the local dining and entertainment market. […]
The reasons Illinois specialty farmers are slow to embrace hops production include a high risk for crop failure — no federal crop insurance is offered to cover hops production in Illinois — and an underdeveloped statewide market for their harvested crop. This is according to University of Illinois Extension’s David McCarty, a local food and small farm educator who acted as a point of contact for Midwest hops growers from 2015 until 2019.
“One of the challenges with hops is finding your buyers and markets while recognizing that all of the breweries near you may not want to buy your cones,” McCarty said. “It’s also a crop that can be affected strongly by insect pests-diseases (and get hit hard) and also needs water (a drought year is tough) in which cone quality suffers. For inexperienced growers/individuals without growing experience, this can be hard to translate from learning about in a classroom to actually seeing in your field.” […]
Startup costs can also be a major hurdle for young or beginning farmers who want to invest in hops to overcome. A single acre of hops can require an investment of $10,000 to $12,000 per acre, according to some hops farmers.
* Virginia also lacks infrastructure for prospective barley farmers. WVTF…
The craft brewing industry is driving up demand for barley, which can be used to make malt, one of the main ingredients to make beer. A new effort is underway to help more farmers grow malt barley in southwest Virginia.
According to the Virginia Craft Brewers Guild Association, there are currently over 300 breweries in the state, but very few use grains that were grown locally. Most malt barley is grown in the Midwest. […]
In order to help more farmers scale up, they need more infrastructure to help them clean, market and ship their barley to local buyers, said Amy Byington, a Virginia Tech extension agent in Lee County. She’s working on a project to build a new storage facility in Wise County, funded by a grant from the Abandoned Mine Land Economic Revitalization Program.
“It will have grain cleaners, it will have storage. It will have the capability to handle grain, which is our problem right now, we don’t have any infrastructure. All of it was basically destroyed whenever flour mills left our area.”
* The Times-Call…
That’s emblematic of one of the many issues facing the craft-brewing industry today: a worldwide shortage and price inflation of CO2 that is limiting the ability of brewers to get an adequate supply of one of the most essential ingredients in the brewing process. Combine that with general supply-chain problems and commodity price inflation, and the craft beer industry is facing disruption on multiple fronts.
“Our business is, to some degree, under siege,” Left Hand co-founder and president Eric Wallace said.
CO2 is one of the most vital parts of the brewing process. It is used not only to add carbonation to the beer, but also to clean fermentation tanks and keep them free of oxygen before they’re refilled.
According to data from Bart Watson, chief economist for the Boulder-based Brewers Association, CO2 has seen steeper producer price index inflation than any other brewing input cost, including malt, paperboard, aluminum and shipping. This time of year usually has some kind of CO2 shortage, Watson said, but this year is far worse.
Support your local craft brewery! The Illinois Craft Brewers Guild has a handy list to track down a location from the over 200 breweries in Illinois.
* More…
* The Question: Do you have a favorite brewery? Explain.
My personal favorite is Scratch Brewing in Ava.
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* 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…
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* The Senate Republicans picked up one (Erica Conway Harris defeated appointed Sen. Kris Tharp), maybe two (Sen. Michael Hastings trails by a sliver) seats. So, the SDems’ super majority goes from 41 down to 40 40 or possibly 39. With that in mind…
Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie released the below statement following a productive night for the Senate Republican Caucus:
“Thousands of voters across the state have said ‘enough’ to the Democrats’ call for more power. Thanks to their resiliency, the Illinois Senate will be adding to the strength of the Caucus and will continue to serve as strong voices for the people of Illinois, who are dissatisfied with the failed policies that have come out of Springfield and want to see change.
“Unfortunately, the Democrats’ rigged system, which created some of the most gerrymandered districts we’ve ever seen, disproportionately benefits them and leaves thousands across the state without a real voice in their elections. To those people who were silenced, we will fight for you. We will be your voice when you weren’t given one. We haven’t given up, neither should you.
“The Senate Republican Caucus is ready to work on behalf of the people of this great state and will continue to advocate for policies that root out corruption, help families and businesses thrive, and keep our communities safe.”
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Somebody has some explaining to do
Wednesday, Nov 9, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Yesterday, we discussed the claim by Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons that “repeated D-DOS attacks” were to blame for slow voting issues in the county. Clerk Ammons said the attacks had been happening for a month and were part of a “strategic and coordinated effort to undermine and destabilize our democratic process.”
But was there an attack? Some commenters were initially skeptical. As it turns out, an official with CISA, the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the clerk’s own vendor say nothing had been reported. Sam Sabin is an Axios cybersecurity reporter…
That tweet was published more than 2 hours after the county clerk posted a statement on Facebook about the claimed attack.
Also, you endure a month-long, sustained DDoS attack and don’t report it and the vendor doesn’t know anything?
I say this every couple of years, but I truly believe we need to get all county clerks out of the business of running elections.
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Legislative leaders declare victory
Wednesday, Nov 9, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The House Democrats appear to be netting an increase to their super majority, possibly to 77-41. Here’s Speaker Welch…
Tonight, House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch and Democrats for the Illinois House maintained the Democratic supermajority in the Illinois State House and continued turning previously red districts blue.
This election cycle, Democrats for the Illinois House ran 67 contested House races, the most in its history. Yet, tonight’s results show that the battle has only strengthened House Democrats.
“We know that when we fight, we win — and tonight, that couldn’t be more true,” said Speaker of the Illinois House Emanuel “Chris” Welch. “House Democrats have fought tirelessly for working families and have secured important legislative wins to protect reproductive rights, rebuild our infrastructure, fund critical public safety initiatives, and so much more. With our supermajority stronger than ever, we’ll build on our incredible progress to keep our state moving forward and continue delivering for working families in communities across Illinois.”
“Our Democratic supermajority in the House has delivered real results for Illinoisans in communities across our state — from codifying reproductive rights to balancing the budget to investing in community safety. I’m thrilled that by maintaining this critical supermajority, we’ll continue to move Illinois forward,” said Lisa Hernandez, chair of the Democratic Party of Illinois. “This is a win for working families and communities in every corner of our state — and Democrats in the State House are just getting started.”
* Senate President Don Harmon…
Elections results appear to show the Illinois Senate Democrats will hold a super majority in the next General Assembly. Senate President Don Harmon issued the following statement.
“The people have spoken. Now it’s time to get to work governing.
Illinois Senate Democrats are committed to responsible state budgets that prioritize funding for schools, health care and public safety; meaningful ethics reforms; and equality of opportunity for all Illinoisans through job creation and community investment.
These principles guide our caucus through thick and thin. With the help of our allies throughout this great state we have produced balanced budgets, dynamic investment in public education, a record-setting string of credit rating improvements and newfound commitment to social justice.
I look forward to new opportunities to work together to find consensus on solving problems, righting wrongs and moving Illinois forward.”
Your thoughts on what they should do?
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Rep. Conroy declares victory in DuPage County
Wednesday, Nov 9, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Daily Herald…
State Rep. Deb Conroy is poised to become the first woman to lead the DuPage County Board, an office held only by Republican men for generations.
On a strong night for DuPage Democrats, Conroy jumped out ahead early and maintained a comfortable lead over Hinsdale Republican Greg Hart in a hard-fought and expensive race for county board chair.
Just before 11 p.m., Conroy had collected 165,668 votes, or 50.8% of the total, unofficial results show. Hart had 160,227, or 49%.
If the results hold, Conroy, 60, will replace outgoing county board Chairman Dan Cronin, an Elmhurst Republican, who did not seek a fourth term.
“We’re celebrating. We made history,” Conroy said late Tuesday.
Rep. Conroy said this morning that Hart “graciously conceded last night.” The mail-in ballots were 3-1 Democratic, she said.
Democratic DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek also won yesterday, defeating former GOP Lt. Gov. Evelyn Sanguinetti.
Any other local races you’d like to talk about?
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Morning briefing
Wednesday, Nov 9, 2022 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* Proft makes his move “Twitter official”…
* A roundup to start your day…
* Sun-Times | Pritzker scores double-digit win over Bailey — vowing MAGA right wingers ‘will never get an inch of Illinois’: In prewritten remarks sent to reporters, Gov. J.B. Pritzker was prepared to say Bailey had conceded, and it was a sign that democracy works. That appeared to be a rosy scenario. Bailey did not concede until nearly 90 minutes after the governor spoke.
* Tribune | Gov. J.B. Pritzker secures a second term with easy win over Republican Darren Bailey: With 95% of the state’s precincts counted, Pritzker had 54% of the vote to 43% for Bailey amid indications Democrats had more than overcome concerns at the statewide level of a potential surge of anti-incumbent attitudes fueling Republicans, according to unofficial results. Pritzker also had significant leads in the Chicago area and among suburban voters who are a key determinant in statewide elections.
* NBC 5 | Illinois Democrats Appear to Retain Supermajorities in State House, Senate: With all 118 seats in the House and 59 seats up in the Senate, Democrats say they have won enough competitive races to retain their supermajorities in both chambers, with their two-thirds majority allowing them to pass legislation in both regular session and in veto session.
* Sun-Times | Democrats hold on to majority on Illinois Supreme Court as Judge Elizabeth Rochford declares victory: Rochford thanked her supporters about 10:30 p.m. after her Republican opponent, Mark Curran, called to concede in the newly drawn suburban 2nd District.
* NBC 5 | Dan Brady Concedes to Alexi Giannoulias in Illinois Secretary of State Race: Brady conceded the race in a phone call to Giannoulias on Tuesday night, his campaign said in a press release.
* Patch | Mazzochi Vs. Douglass: Incumbent’s Lead Slim But Growing: The two candidates raised more than $600,000 in the contest. The district includes Elmhurst, Hinsdale and Clarendon Hills.
* Tribune | Rep. Sean Casten declares victory against GOP challenger Keith Pekau as Democrats sweep Chicago congressional districts: With votes still being tallied but with 96% of precincts reporting in the 6th Congressional District, Casten was holding onto a lead with about 54% of the vote, compared with about 46% for Pekau, who conceded the race to Casten late Thursday.
* Shaw Local | Davis, Yednock claim state rep victories: Davis announced his win in the election on Instagram on Tuesday night. He is a trustee of the village of Newark and board president of Parkview Christian Academy in Yorkville. According to unofficial results as of 10:55 p.m., Davis held a 21,690 to 14,046 vote lead.
* Tribune | Illinois Democrats say they’ve held onto big legislative majorities in first general election without ex-Speaker Madigan: The post-Madigan election represented a major test of the political skills of the rookie speaker and Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, because they led the once-a-decade overhaul of legislative district boundaries following the federal census and worked to hold or build on their lopsided numbers in both chambers.
* Tribune | Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s victory speech spurs presidential speculation: In a speech unsparing in its attacks on the GOP with contours that went far beyond Illinois’ parochial borders, the billionaire progressive Democrat and Hyatt Hotel heir called himself a “warrior” ready to take on former Republican President Donald Trump and Trump allies in the years ahead.
* Block Club | Some Voters Received Inaccurate Calls About Problems With Their Vote-By-Mail Ballots: There have been false-alarm phone calls to people about issues with vote-by-mail ballots when there weren’t any, an elections board spokesperson said.
* Post-Tribune | Highland poll worker charged with battery after allegedly hitting another worker with an extension cord in dispute: Officers were summoned to Southridge Elementary School at around 5:17 p.m. Monday to take a battery report, Highland Police spokesman Commander John Banasiak said in an email Tuesday. They first spoke to a woman who told them she was setting up election equipment in the school gym when she and other workers started arguing about the set-up, and a man holding an orange extension cord came up to her and started pointing in her face, he said.
* Naperville Sun | Small property tax increase included in Naperville Park District’s proposed budget for 2023: The proposed spending plan, which will be reviewed Thursday by the Naperville Park Board, calls for $47.1 million in expenditures. That’s $2.7 million more than the $44.5 million budgeted for 2022, or an increase of 6%.
* Tribune || Toni Preckwinkle declares victory in Cook County Board president race, while Forest Preserve celebrates yes vote on tax hike: Toni Preckwinkle declared victory in her bid for a fourth term as Cook County Board president in a race that landed voters in familiar territory: a rematch with Bob Fioretti. Other Democrats running for countywide seats similarly held strong leads Tuesday night, while the campaign pushing for a referendum raising property taxes to help bolster the Cook County Forest Preserve District’s budget hailed a “yes” vote.
* Sun-Times | Reserved tickets for next summer’s NASCAR races on Chicago streets go on sale this week — ranging from $465 to $4,30: The course covers 2.2 miles and is expected to tie up part of Grant Park for two weeks for preparation and related events — a prospect that has some alderpersons grumbling. NASCAR’s Xfinity Series race will be held on July 1 and its signature Cup Series will be on July 2.
* Chalkbeat | Nearly 3,700 migrants have been bused to Chicago from Texas. 425 are school-aged children.: State records indicate these students have enrolled in 12 different school districts, including Chicago Public Schools and several suburban districts. Data on children under age 5 was not provided, but a spokesperson for the Illinois governor’s office said they are being offered child care and access to early learning programs.
* Sun-Times | Kash Gustafson, 8, appears to have caught the Illinois and world record shovelnose sturgeon: Kash Gustafson gave a brief account of dinosaur-aged critters — from bugs to fish — and added: ‘‘T. rexes used to eat sturgeon. That’s why they have spikes on their backs.’’
The freshly re-elected governor will be at the Marriott Marquis at 11 a.m. to give post-election remarks.
* More to come!
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* Illinois House Republican Leader Jim Durkin press release…
“The House Republicans ran on the message of fighting for lower taxes and safer communities for families and businesses across the state, and I am proud of all our campaigns who fought hard over the last year. I congratulate all of the Republicans who will now represent these important voices in the General Assembly and fight against the Democratic Party of Illinois. While I am not pleased with the results, I will accept them.
It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve as Leader of the House Republican caucus, but it’s time for the Illinois Republican Party to rebuild with new leaders who can bring independents back to the party that are needed to bring change to the state. With that, I will not be seeking re-election as minority leader. I am proud of the work the House Republican caucus has accomplished under my tenure, and thank everyone who played a part along the way. I began this journey as a voice of moderation and conclude this journey the same way I started, a voice of moderation.
To the people of Illinois disappointed with these results, don’t give up hope. Tomorrow is a new day.”
*** UPDATE *** Gov. Pritzker was asked about Durkin’s decision today…
Q: Governor, Jim Durkin announced this morning that he will not seek another term as the House GOP Leader. What’s your reaction to that? And obviously, that’s someone that you’re used to working with. Are you concerned that someone who’s much more conservative, someone from the MAGA wing of the GOP might get that job?
A: I’m only concerned if someone takes the job who’s unwilling to sit down and actually talk about what we might do together. If they’re unwilling to talk, if they reject the idea of bipartisanship, that would not be good for the state of Illinois.
Q: Is Durkin a loss?
A: I obviously got to know the Minority Leader in my first year in office, when we worked together on so many issues, and again, passed a bipartisan budget together. I think someone who has served as many years as he has, admirably, honorably, is someone that is probably a loss for the Republicans because he’s decided not to run for leader again. And so, I look forward to whoever the new Minority Leader is sitting at the table and getting things done with them. I just remind you that everybody at that table has now changed since I’ve been in office. And so, you know, we’ve worked as best we could, together with the folks on the other side of the aisle. But we’ve gotten a whole lot done.
Please pardon all transcription errors.
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Live coverage
Wednesday, Nov 9, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Results open thread
Tuesday, Nov 8, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Sun-Times’ results are here. Daily Herald’s are here. Tribune’s are here. They all come from the same place (Associated Press), so pick your flavor. Another option is Ryan Keith’s spreadsheet, which will be updated as races are called. That is here. And the AP’s race calls for US Senate, Congress and governor can be found here.
* I’ll be adding tweets and other stuff into this app as the night progresses. Our daily live feed will also be helpful. Follow along with ScribbleLive…
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Evening thread
Tuesday, Nov 8, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Happy “What Have You Heard?” Day! Here’s a post where you can talk about the campaign behind us and what could be in front of us, make some predictions, vent, or whatever. But be nice to each other, please. We’ll be back at 7 with more.
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* Background is here and here if you need it. I just got off the phone with Comptroller Susana Mendoza who told me that Jimmy Kimmel flew Dick Bigger, Jr. out to Los Angeles this morning and he’ll be on tonight’s show. Kimmel put him up for two days and will take him around LA tomorrow to show him the sights and then will fly him back on Thursday.
Bigger, the Henderson County Democratic Chair, became a big hit almost as soon as Mendoza released a TV ad which contained a brief cameo. Both Kimmel and Stephen Colbert played the ad on their respective shows, and Colbert used some of the outtakes the campaign gave to us last month. Kimmel is apparently now upping the ante.
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* What are you seeing out there? Give us some details. Any shenanigans? Make sure to let us know where you are. Thanks!
* Meanwhile, here’s a particularly moronic and harmful Fox News story…
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was blasted Monday for saying that waiting a couple of days for results is how elections are “supposed to work.”
“We may not know all the winners of elections for a few days. It takes time to count all legitimate ballots in a legal and orderly manner,” Jean-Pierre told reporters at the White House press briefing. “That’s how this is supposed to work.”
Twitter exploded as commentators on the platform expressed their dismay that many states can no longer tally all the ballots they receive by the end of election day itself.
Scott Kennedy at Illinois Election Data has it right…
We will have some limited coverage tonight. But any race that’s even kinda close ain’t gonna be over until the ballots are counted or enough are counted to make an accurate prediction. Illinois counts mail-in ballots received up to two weeks after the polls close and since election authorities are not allowed to count early and mailed-in votes before election day, those are often counted after the election day votes are tabulated.
* Update from Chicago…
417,286 ballots cast
Citywide Turnout: 27.1%
Registered Voters in Chicago: 1,540,821
Turnout by Hour
6:00am – 16,105 ballots cast
7:00am – 22,228 ballots cast
8:00am – 26,264 ballots cast
9:00am – 26,487 ballots cast
10:00am – 27,992 ballots cast
11:00am – 28,478 ballots cast
Turnout by Age Group
18-24: 14,339 ballots cast
25-34: 65,439 ballots cast
35-44: 64,705 ballots cast
45-54: 62,782 ballots cast
55-64 : 79,372 ballots cast
65-74: 77,822 ballots cast
75+: 51,948 ballots cast
…Adding… Press release…
DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek announces that DuPage County voter turnout stood at 37.4% as of noon on Election Day, November 8, 2022, with 231,060 ballots cast out of 617,734 registered voters.
[Comments are closed. Go here for a fresh thread.]
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* From a buddy of mine in Champaign County…
My wife and I couldn’t vote where we usually do because internet issues had caused a massive line with lots of people leaving rather than wait what was at least an hour plus…She and I then drove to a country precinct to vote - only 3 people there. But the computer was broken there too. Finally got the internet back up. All in all, took about 5 minutes PER PERSON just to print a ballot!
* WICS TV has a statement from the Champaign County Clerk…
The Champaign County Clerk’s Office is aware of connectivity issues and computer server performance being impacted. The Clerk’s Office believes these are due to cyber-attacks on the network and servers. For the past month the Champaign County Clerk’s website has been the target of repeated D-DOS attacks, fortunately the reinforced security and response from the Clerk’s IT team has prevented these attacks from being successful and the Clerk’s website has remained secured. No data or information has been compromised and the election is secure.
These cyber-attacks are a strategic and coordinated effort to undermine and destabilize our democratic process. The intent is to discourage you from voting. Please do not fall victim to this. The Clerk’s Office is committed to ensuring every eligible voter in Champaign County has access to a fair, free, and accessible election. Please stay in line! Election judges and staff are doing everything they can to process voters according to the requirements of election law while navigating these attacks. We appreciate your patience and commitment to our democratic process. This is a developing situation, and we will have more information as it becomes available. Let me reiterate that we are committed to making sure every voter has a chance to cast their ballot so please stay in line.
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* Rick Pearson…
A potential cloud over vote counting in Illinois’ election was lifted late Monday when a federal judge put off until December arguments over the validity of mail-in ballots postmarked on or before Election Day but received by election authorities within two weeks afterward.
U.S. District Judge John Kness set Dec. 5 for oral arguments over a motion to dismiss the suit, which was filed in May in U.S. District Court in Chicago by a downstate Republican congressman and two GOP officials. The timing of the argument is too late to affect the Nov. 8 general election’s vote count.
An adverse ruling on Election Day could have invalidated potentially tens of thousands of mailed general election ballots that are cast by Illinois voters, including military members serving overseas, and postmarked on or before this coming Election Day but received by election authorities afterward.
The lawsuit, led by four-term U.S. Rep. Mike Bost of Murphysboro, echoed former President Donald Trump’s rejected court challenges in other states in the lead-up to the 2020 presidential election that he falsely contends was stolen.
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* Hey, Cub fans…
That was Ricketts’ only state campaign contribution this year.
* Raja Krishnamoorthi is still fundraising this morning…
Rich, I know you are exhausted and bombarded by fundraising requests. But please understand: The polls close in just 9 hours, and I still need to raise another $2,175 to win re-election and secure this seat for Democrats. So can I count on your $14 right now?
Too much? Yes!
* Subscribers know more, but here’s Politico…
Republican state Rep. Tim Ozinga gave himself $1 million Monday, a sign he’s going to try to challenge Illinois House Republican leader Jim Durkin. Ozinga has been quietly talking to colleagues about the idea, according to members. Putting money in his account shows he has cash to help GOP colleagues.
A bit late.
* Rep. Wilhour lives 235 miles from the Chicago FOP’s headquarters…
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* WBEZ…
In Illinois, concrete threats about violence in polling places haven’t materialized, said Matt Dietrich, spokesman for the Illinois State Board of Elections.
“But we’re aware of what the atmosphere is,” Dietrich said, later adding: “We’re aware that we’re going to have a lot more poll watchers in polling places on Tuesday. And we know that a lot of those poll watchers are there because they have some degree of skepticism based on the allegations that came out after 2020, which were completely unfounded.”
Poll watchers are an integral part of the process by ensuring it’s proceeding as it’s supposed to, said Kevin Cullather, a spokesman for the Lake County clerk’s office.
* ABC 7…
Panic buttons are now in place in Boone County, just east of Rockford. County officials ordered them for the 2020 election, and have increased training for their potential use this year.
“We have a society that is very on edge with these elections,” Boone County Clerk and Recorder Julie Bliss told the I-Team. “We have a few located in strategic places about the office, just as a precautionary thing. You know, the, the rhetoric is, nationally, has had some consequences and, and certainly some implications that there could be, even though we don’t have any direct threats that we are aware of right now. But it’s always best to be prepared. So, these panic buttons, all we have to do if we do have an issue, we push a button and then it notifies our security company. If we don’t respond when they contact us back, they notify the authorities.”
Because of concerns of voter intimidation nationwide, the Justice Department is now planning on monitoring polls in 24 states to protect the rights of voters, including just over the border in Racine, Wisconsin.
* CBS Chicago…
Five small panic buttons that fit in the palm of your hand are hidden around the Boone County Clerk’s Offices in Belvidere.
“It’s just best for everybody to be vigilant,” said County Clerk Julie Bliss.
She told CBS 2 there haven’t been any security threats. The buttons and security locks are in place, just in case.
She said nine of her election judges dropped out of working on Election Day, partially out of fear of the tense national political environment. […]
At the state level, Illinois election leaders have said there are no known, specific security threats so far.
* The Tribune…
In Murphysboro in far southern Illinois, Jackson County Clerk and Recorder Frank L. Bryd, a Democrat, said he’s been insulted and received aggressive comments. Some residents have even made derogatory comments to his family members, he said.
In a county where Biden finished ahead of Trump by just 1%, Byrd said, the local Republican Party has organized requests for records from his office that he thinks are needlessly time-consuming, and that local GOP leaders have second-guessed mail-in ballot efforts by pressuring him to pull names from the voter rolls. […]
Jason Svanda, the chairman of the Jackson County GOP, said the records requests to Byrd’s office are legal and that the party’s efforts on the voter rolls is to ensure that elections are fair. […]
Still, Byrd said a pastor friend of his recently sat Byrd down and told him to be careful, adding that he has noticed some have become outraged since he installed ballot drop boxes at a police station and a courthouse that are monitored by video cameras.
* WLS…
Kane County spent nearly $60,000 on high tech equipment, including a massive machine that is part of the ballot validation process, this election cycle to ensure elections run smoothly and with integrity.
“We have tight control here,” said Kane County Clerk John Cunningham. “Nobody can intentionally interfere with the balance nor has that happened in any of our elections.”
Cameras capture all of the security protocols along the way.
“We’re following the law and we’re we put in all the safeguards we can. We try to be as transparent as we can,” Cunningham said. “We invite people come in and poll watch. We’re getting more poll watchers now than we’ve ever had before.”
* WICS…
Election day is Tuesday and Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray says the county is ready.
Gray said although the safety and security of voters and poll workers are always a concern, he doesn’t anticipate any problems this year.
Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray said the county is prepared for any situation that may arise on Election Day. He said although he doesn’t anticipate any problems, they are still prepared.
[From Rich: I’m getting reports of Bailey poll watchers on Springfield’s East Side “with cameras and clipboards trying to talk to voters and challenging voters.”]
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Early voting by the numbers
Tuesday, Nov 8, 2022 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* In 2018, Illinois received 1,141,421 early votes and 427,495 mail-in ballots for a total of 1,568,916. Here are the updated voting totals so far, with more mail-in ballots yet to arrive, of course…
* Cook County early vote and mail (received to date) total: 219,865. In 2018, early voting/mail was 230,036.
* Chicago…
The most up-to-date Early Vote and Vote By Mail totals in Chicago, night of Monday, November 7, 2022.
The Early Vote total stands at 158,963 ballots cast.
Additionally, 110,822 Vote By Mail ballots have been returned to the Board – total VBM applications stands at 208,283.
The grand total is 269,785 ballots cast so far in Chicago for the November 8th General Election – with 1,540,821 current registered voters in Chicago, Early Voting/Vote By Mail has now accounted for a current 17.51% citywide turnout.
FOR COMPARISON:
As of June 27, 2022 (0 days out from the 6/28/22 Primary Election): 115,545 ballots cast
As of November 2, 2020 (0 days out from the 11/3/20 Presidential Election): 806,241 ballots cast
As of November 5, 2018 (0 days out from the 11/6/18 General Election): 311,986 ballots cast
Chicago is at 19 percent of statewide early vote/mail, about a point below 2018’s early/mail total.
* Here’s is the voter turnout as of 9 o’clock today in the City of Chicago…
* 325,750 ballots cast
* Citywide Turnout: 21.1%
* Registered Voters in Chicago: 1,540,821
Turnout by Hour:
6:00am - 16,010 ballots cast
7:00am – 22,013 ballots cast
8:00am – 25,830 ballots cast
Turnout by Age Group:
18-24: 10,328 ballots cast
25-34: 49,122 ballots cast
35-44: 49,262 ballots cast
45-54: 48,452 ballots cast
55-64 : 63,437 ballots cast
65-74: 62,775 ballots cast
75+: 42,290 ballots cast
Chicago totals will be updated at noon.
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Closing arguments
Tuesday, Nov 8, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
* ABC 7…
…Republican challenger Darren Bailey raised concerns about the possibility of a vaccine mandate for school children, hoping the talking point would mobilize suburban moms.
Bailey held a rally with dozens of suburban women who had previously protested against mask and vaccine mandates imposed by Pritzker during the pandemic.
“Now his minions are looking to impose vaccine mandates on our children,” Bailey said. “No absolutely not. That’s right.
* WSIL…
“We’ve got to get the job done but we’re going to have to fight for it,” Pritzker said. […]
After accusing Bailey of wanting to eliminate the state’s minimum wage, Gov. Pritzker went on the attack.
“The school that he founded teaches kids… that women are inferior to men… that slave masters were good to their slaves,” Pritzker said. “This man shouldn’t be anywhere near the governor’s office.”
* Horrible video editing and an audience that’s clearly ignoring him. Heckuva job, Tommy…
* Retweeted by the candidate…
* Giannoulias with Durbin…
* Brady by himself at a polling site…
* Demmer at his desk…
* Frerichs with the governor…
* Mendoza also toured with the governor, but let’s do one more featuring Bigger, Jr….
* Rare public sighting…
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* As always, do not listen to these people. Ever…
* Go ask the experts…
…Adding… This was a thing two years ago. But, of course, facts and history mean nothing to groups dedicated to spreading misinformation and disinformation…
If you used a Sharpie pen to cast your ballot in Illinois, it was counted.
The Illinois State Board of Elections said it wants all voters who used Sharpie pens to mark their ballots that their votes were counted.
The State Board of Elections said it received many calls from voters around the state concerned that their polling places provided them with Sharpie pens to mark their ballots and that this might cause problems with their votes being recorded.
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Morning briefing
Tuesday, Nov 8, 2022 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* Did you catch the lunar eclipse?…
* A roundup to start your day…
* Sun-Times | History and hostility: Heated campaign for Illinois governor short, but not so sweet: The 19-week tangle between Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Republican state Sen. Darren Bailey was shaped by fights over abortion, political extremism, crime and the economy. Insults flew from the onset.
* Shaw Local | On Election Day, next campaign season is well underway: It’s exactly 16 weeks until the consolidated primary election on Feb. 28. Not every jurisdiction requires a primary, so you might be waiting another five weeks for the actual election. But candidates should already be working on campaign infrastructure because Nov. 21 is the first day to file nomination papers (the last day is Nov. 28).
* Sun-Times | In-person early voting overtakes mail-in ballots for first time: Election official says snail mail isn’t a sure thing to get ballots postmarked by Election Day
* SJR | On election eve, Dems champion workers’ rights; GOP warns of COVID-19 vaccine mandates: In Springfield, nearly all top-of-the-ticket Democrats met at UAW Local 137 for a get-out-the-vote rally. While each candidate had their own talking points, a common thread was promoting voters to support Amendment 1 — commonly known as the Workers’ Rights Amendment.
* Tribune | Election Day arrives in Lake County with 100k votes already cast; ‘We expect it to be … very busy’: With more than 100,000 votes cast through early and mail-in voting before polls open on Election Day in Lake County Tuesday, Democratic and Republican leaders were expressing optimism and enthusiasm about the results they hope to see when votes are counted.
* Illinois Newsroom | IL13th Congressional District candidates both expect victory: Both candidates in Illinois’ redrawn 13th congressional district say their messages are connecting with voters. Republican Regan Deering and Democratic candidate Nikki Budzinski both expect victory in Tuesday’s election.
* NBC Chicago | Pritzker Hopes for Repeat of 2018 Blowout, But Bailey, Political Experts Predict Tighter Race: However, some say, after a pandemic, a spike in crime and inflation concerns, a 16-point win would be tough to recreate. “I’d be surprised,” said political strategist Thom Serafin. “I think the race is somewhere between four and eight points right now,”
* Crain’s | Give this part of the SAFE-T Act a chance to work: Changing the law ending cash bail in Illinois—before it has even gone into effect—would undo the most promising parts of the legislation, writes an attorney with Northwestern’s law school.
* KFVS | Ill. Democrats campaign in Marion: Most of the Democratic statewide officeholders, including Governor JB Pritzker, spoke to union members in Marion.
* Center Square | Democrats campaign to keep power that Republicans say isn’t good for ‘silent majority’: Alongside other statewide Democratic office holders at a campaign stop in Springfield, incumbent Gov. J.B. Pritzker said it’s imperative voters vote. “We have to elect pro-labor, pro-choice, pro-voting rights, pro-civil rights Democrats up and down the ticket, right,” Pritzker said to a crowd.
* CBS Chicago | Gov. Pritzker spends final day of campaign drumming up support downstate: Voters outside the Chicago and the collar counties may prove crucial for Pritzker.
* Sun-Times | City Council approves Lightfoot’s $16.4 billion budget by 32-18 vote: The vote was closer than many expected and tighter than last year’s 35-15 cakewalk, which included a $76.5 million increase in the city’s property tax levy.
* Sun-Times | Sims’ air pollution tests may be botched, EPA says: Residents want to know what hazardous metals are being spewed into the air near homes and schools. They’ll have to wait to find out.
* Politico | Trump: ‘Very big announcement’ coming Nov. 15: “I’m going to be making a very big announcement on Tuesday, Nov. 15,” Trump said at an evening rally in Ohio on behalf of Republican candidates. The announcement will come at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, Trump said.
* Politico | GOP activists and candidates set stage to claim elections they lose are stolen: The advice they’re giving their voters — to vote late on Election Day — would cause the counting delays they say are suspicious.
* Tribune | Routine childhood vaccinations in Illinois dropped during the pandemic, worrying pediatricians : About 89% of Illinois kindergartners were reported as vaccinated against measles, mumps, polio, rubella, chickenpox, diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis during the 2020-2021 school year, according to Illinois State Board of Education data obtained by the Tribune through Freedom of Information Act requests. That’s down from about 94% to 96% during each of the previous four school years.
* Politico | Pollsters sweat another Election Day reckoning: Independent polls are painting a very different picture of the midterm election than the Republican-aligned firms pointing to GOP victory.
It’ll be a busy day for Pritzker. He’ll bestarting off Election Day greeting voters at the Pulaski Orange Line stop at 7 am, the 95th Street Red Line stop at 7:55 am, the Canter Middle School at 8:30 am, the Roosevelt Orange/Green/Red Line stop at 9:15 am and Walter Payton College Prep at 9:55 am.
He and MK Pritzker will vote at The Chicago History Museum at 11:05 am.
He’ll stop at Manny’s Deli for lunch and finish at the Marriott Marquis on South Prairie Avenue at 7 p.m. to watch election returns.
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Morning precinct reports
Tuesday, Nov 8, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
* What are you seeing out there? Turnout? Mood? Line size? Anything different from previous elections, or about the same? Make sure to tell us at least your approximate location. Thanks.
…Adding… I’m also interested in any confusion caused by things like this…
With approximately half of Chicago voters heading to new voting locations for the midterm election, polling places opened before sunrise on a crisp Tuesday. […]
Election officials are aiming for a smoother day after a rocky June 28 primary. Election judge shortages caused 56 precincts in Chicago and six precincts in suburban Cook County to open late that day. […]
However, Chicago faces the potential for widespread confusion after nearly half of city voters were assigned new polling places in the three months leading up to the election. […]
For voters who show up at the wrong polling place, the Tribune has a guide on what to do. Voters with questions or issues also can call the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners at 312-269-7870.
[Comments are now closed. Click here for a fresh thread.]
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Live coverage
Tuesday, Nov 8, 2022 - Posted by Rich Miller
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