* Illinois Election Data’s results server went down earlier and they can’t get it going again tonight. So, I’m not sure what I’m going to do right now.
…Adding…Click here and head to the live coverage post. I doubt I’ll be posting constant vote totals, but I will post some as well as other stuff.
* I’ll have live election results from our great friend Scott Kennedy at Illinois Election Data tonight. Meanwhile, the Saline County Clerk is also ejecting Republican poll watchers…
Saline Co. Republican Chairman Bob Holmes tells me some of his poll watchers have been thrown out of precincts too. He says he's never seen anything like this with an election.
* Some are uncharitably calling this party “the wake at the Drake”…
If Gov Bruce Rauner wins or finds himself shifting to lame duck tonight he’ll do so at The Drake - the name of the hotel hosting his party and the word for a male duck. I’ll be there for the Trib either way. #instantanalysis#ILgov#MidtermElections
Saw your post about the Rauner campaign bragging about how they’ve done 70,000 doors since last Saturday. I know Casten’s campaign has done 102,000 doors in IL-06 between Saturday and Monday night alone.
…Adding… The Rauner campaign says they actually knocked on 70,000 doors on Saturday alone.
A DuPage County Forest Preserve Commissioner candidate faced problems at the polls in Hinsdale, where he was told he was an inactive voter. Irfan Ibrahim, a Hinsdale resident and a candidate for District 3 Commissioner for the forest preserve, was first asked for two forms of ID and was then told he was not an active voter.
Ibrahim posted on his Facebook page, showing that he has voted in every general election since 2010.
“If you think that voter suppression is not real, it is real,” Ibrahim said in his Facebook video.
“I’m going back out there again to let them know that I am voting today, up and down the ballot,” Ibrahim said. “Voter suppression will not be accepted.”
* They’ve been busy today…
The Democratic Party is Illinois is here to fight for your right to vote
The city has seen [633,597 ballots cast as of 2:50 pm, which is 42 percent turnout], including ballots sent by mail and early voters, said Jim Allen, spokesman for the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners. That puts Chicago on track to reach 50 percent or higher turnout by the end of voting at 7 p.m., he said. […]
“If the pattern follows similar to the primary, we’ll see significant numbers like we did this morning and we could be crossing 50 percent,” Allen said. Chicago could “easily cross — after the evening rush — we should definitely, easily cross the 50 percent [mark]. So now it’s gonna be do we reach 53, 56, what?”
705,869 ballots were cast in the city in 2010 (when Pat Quinn won). 668,033 were cast in 2014 (when Quinn lost). 670,222 were cast in 2006 (when the Democrats swept the board).
It was bad yesterday, even worse today with several hours to go. Illini Union location lines span four floors of stairs, more than a hundred people at least… #twill#ElectionDaypic.twitter.com/zc8W0wI80u
As of 4:30, approximately 753,000 voters have turned out in this election — including Early, Grace & Mail ballots — which translates to a 47.4% turnout.
By comparison, 719,090 suburban Cook residents voted in 2010 and 696,403 voted in 2014. So, they’re already way over both of those totals.
…Adding… Wow…
Chicago election turnout update: At 5 p.m. 722,827 or 48.1 percent. Board projects final figure of 800,000 to 830,000, roughly 53% to 55%. That's numerically highest of an off-year vote since 1982, and likely the highest as a % of registration since 1986.
Turnout update: Suburban Cook County on track for 55% turnout, around 880,000, sez @DavidOrr's office. Chicago at 802,334 at 6:13p.m., 53.4 percent, and should finish around or north of 55%
* Background is here if you need it, but the Saline County Clerk is still behaving badly…
Saline Co. Dems tell me Buchanan's office denied them poll watcher credentials so they had to go through the Il Board of Elections. Poll watchers are appointed by parties & other groups to oversee elections to ensure fairness. They say they've never been denied credentials before
I’m hearing the same thing. She’s actually been going precinct to precinct to try and kick out the Democratic poll watchers. That’s really bizarre behavior.
Chicago officials said they were working to fix issues at precincts in the 42nd Ward and the 5th Ward.
The Chicago Board of Elections confirmed it was going to court to ask a judge to extend voting hours in five precincts in the city. Details on which precincts could be extended weren’t immediately clear.
All Sangamon County polling places opened on time Tuesday morning, and a steady flow of voters were casting ballots, according to County Clerk Don Gray. […]
Meanwhile, Gray said extra voting booths were being sent to at least three locations — St. Agnes Hall, Knights of Columbus No. 364 and Gardner Township Hall.
“We certainly had long lines,” Gray said. “People were anxious to get at it, and because of that, it would help to have a few more resources.” He said he expected the heavy morning turnout to “surface again after work.”
Arrived at my polling place at 5:50 a.m. to beat the rush, they were just starting to get organized and unpack stuff, and they did not start trying to check voters in until about 6:30 a.m.
Nothing but elderly poll workers with no tech skills, no experience with electoral process, and poor communications ability.
They started by demanding that already-registered voters register anew, claiming inaccurately that “that’s how they want us to do it,” then fell to arguing among themselves about how to process people as the line grew to 25+ people.
When they started trying again they immediately crashed or paralyzed all their tech — they had not rehearsed or anything and were entirely flummoxed by the check-in interfaces, etc. — and somehow destroyed my wife’s voter record in the process so she could only get a provisional ballot.
* From ISU…
THIS is voter suppression: offering ONE polling location to a campus of 21,000+ students (AND it’s also open to all of McLean County). Students should not have to wait an hour to cast a vote.
We’ve had students calling the McLean Co. Clerk’s office and Kathy Michael County Clerk said, “it’s an election. This just happens.” It does happen, but it shouldn’t.
Of the 1.5 million registered voters in the City of Chicago, 524,808 people had voted as of 12:50 p.m. That’s 34.9 percent of all registered voters hitting the polls before 1 p.m. on Election Day.
Chicago voter turnout numbers by age group reported before 12:50 p.m. on Election Day:
• Voters age 18 to 24: 25,576 of 139,138 registered voters (18.3 percent)
• Voters age 25 to 34: 100,231 of 352,583 registered voters (28.4 percent)
• Voters age 35 to 44: 85,477 of 272,865 registered voters (31.3 percent)
• Voters age 45 to 54: 82,028 of 232,071 registered voters (35.3 percent)
• Voters age 55 to 64: 94,295 of 228,211 registered voters (41.3 percent)
• Voters age 65 and up: 125,035 of 278,485 registered voters (44.9 percent).
…Adding… GOTV via presidential tweet…
Congressman Randy Hultgren (R) of Illinois is doing a great job. Get out and Vote for Randy - Total Endorsement!
Election Day 2018: Avowed Nazi and Congressional Nominee Art Jones delivers anti-Semitic rant at his polling place while Simon Wiesenthal Center Advisory Board Members Sean Tenner and Reverend Mitchell Johnson distribute materials about his Nazi background. Simon Wiesenthal was history’s most acclaimed Nazi hunter.
* Pic from a couple of pals who are doing GOTV today. “Do we knock on the door to ask?” one texted. I told them to go for it. “I gotta know the reason behind that”…
So one of them did…
Alas, there was no answer at the door.
* I’m thinking he may be exaggerating a bit here…
“We’ve got the biggest ground game underway in Illinois history.” -Gov. Rauner
Rauner camp says 9.35 million voter contacts since start of 2018
2.35 million doors (including 70,000 since last Saturday) 6 million phone calls 1 million texts
Before daylight there was a line of voters at a precinct at Naperville’s Safety Town, a miniaturized town with tiny buildings and street signs. Several dozen voters shuffled in and out within the first hour, including Elizabeth Dubiel.
“I’m trying to change the momentum of the way things are right now. This is the first midterm I’ve ever voted in. In my whole, I’ve probably voted like three times.”
Her first time voting was for former President Barack Obama. Since then, Dubiel said, she became uninspired with the lack of diversity on the ballot.
“In the past there wasn’t too many women on the ballot. I felt like my vote wasn’t heard, like my vote didn’t count.”
Despite the hope of Democrats for a “Blue Wave,” there were still ticket-splitters out there — even in Chicago.
Diana Brogan, 51, who works in account sales, was one of them. She calls herself a Democrat, but Rauner got her vote for governor.
She called herself a Democrat who voted Republican for governor.
“We need to change it up a little,” Brogan, 51, said after voting at John James Audubon Elementary School, 3500 N. Hoyne Ave. “Rauner is doing an OK job. Madigan needs to move on . . . I feel like the Democrats are controlling too much and not getting anything done.”
* What are you seeing out there? How’s the weather? How’s turnout? How was lunch?
…Adding… Rauner campaign…
This morning, Governor Bruce Rauner and First Lady Diana Rauner voted in Winnetka. After voting, Governor Rauner made the following remarks to the media:
“We just voted. One of the most important elections in Illinois history. Thanks for coming out. Everyone get out and vote, it’s our duty as Americans, it’s our duty as citizens to have our voices heard. We want everyone’s voices heard, let’s get out and vote.”
“I’d like to build on the success we’ve had in our first term. More education funding, want to expand that. Job growth, had great success growing the economy, want to create even more jobs. Would like to bring down our property taxes by getting the mandates off from Springfield and free up our school districts and communities to run themselves as they see fit. And very importantly, I hope we can finally get term limits on our elected officials in my second term.
Investigators with the Illinois Attorney General’s office have been called to Saline County after county officials voiced concerns that the openness and transparency of this year’s election could be at risk.
Saline County State’s Attorney Jayson Clark said he received a number of complaints Monday morning that County Clerk Kim Buchanan was refusing to allow poll watchers to oversee the processing of early voting results.
“I came right over here and intervened this morning,” Clark said. […]
“This is America,” Clark said. “We have open elections that everyone gets to watch what happens.”
He says this morning was especially important, because due to an equipment malfunction, the county had to rerun all of the early voting ballots through a new machine.
Clark says after getting the poll watchers inside to oversee the processing, Buchanan kicked them out the moment he left.
“She didn’t just kick them out, she built a barricade where they couldn’t even see what was going on back there when they were running the ballots through the machine for the second time,” Clark said. “That’s pretty egregious.”
He says that’s when he got the attorney general’s office involved.
She barricaded herself in her office? What the heck?
* Text messages from Democrats involved with looking into precinct polling place problems…
Kendall County Clerk is now directing precinct judges not to vote any voter who comes to a polling place with mail ballot to vote in person (they bring the ballot to surrender and vote in person). Instead she says they must go to the Clerk’s Office. Under the law they can vote a regular ballot. The Attorney General and State Board were notified.
One of the heaviest D precincts in [Rep. Tom Morrison’s district] has “Road Closed” signs blocking all entrances. Voters are going around
…Adding… Here are pictures of what I am told are the barricades in front of all three entrances to those precinct polling places in Rep. Morrison’s district. Salt Creek Park District, 530 S Williams Ave, Palatine, IL…
There does look to be construction behind that first sign, but not the others.
Sources at the U of I say @ChampCtyClerk@GordyHulten gave in to public pressure and will open a larger space tomorrow. Chancellor Jones offered access to Room 407, a much larger space than Rm 404, to facilitate long voting lines tomorrow. Still awaiting confirmation from Hulten.
Early youth voting in Illinois is up 144 percent over the 2014 midterms. More than 70 percent of the 6,200 undergraduates at the University of Chicago registered to vote through the TurboVote app. At the university’s early voting site, students waited up to an hour to cast their ballots.
Keep in mind that early voting has become far more common in recent years. But it still does probably show voter intensity.
* From UIUC today…
It is taking 2 hrs to vote at the Illini Union! The line is running from the 4th floor all the way down to the 1st floor. @ChampCtyClerk refused to open more than one early voting location on campus. Please encourage UIUC student voters to STAY IN LINE and VOTE! #twillpic.twitter.com/VxTNBpq2gG
““The big question: Is all this surge in early voting, is it just just to get it out of the way? Or has it more to do with a bigger turnout?” Orr said during a news conference with city officials Monday. “The buzz clearly is we’re going to have a bigger turnout. We see so many signs, but they’re not necessarily provable at this point. We’ll see that tomorrow.
“It’s hard for us to say, but we clearly, I believe, will break the normal 49 to 52 (percent turnout),” he said.
Marisel Hernandez, chairwoman of the election board that supervises Chicago voting, was a bit more cautious in her turnout estimate.
“I don’t know if you can have an educated guess, but we definitely will see over 50 percent, but as far as anything more specific than that, I’m hesitant to say,” Hernandez said. “We think that this election has generated a lot of interest, so we’re hoping for a good turnout.”
At Honest Abe’s Tap & Grill in Morris, the governor spoke of an uphill battle back to a second term, while warning a victory by Democrat J.B. Pritzker will turn the state into a “nightmare.”
“People are counting us out now. They’re saying, ‘Oh the polls are showing this or that,’” Rauner said. “You know what? The polls are baloney. These polls don’t mean anything. The only poll that matters is on Election Day,” Rauner said. […]
“We had a supermajority against us and it was brutal,” Rauner said of the Democratic majority in both the Illinois House and Senate. “But you know what? Two years ago, thanks to your hard work, we picked up six seats in the General Assembly to knock Mike Madigan out of the supermajority. And you know what? what we’re going to do this time … we’re going to pick up nine seats in the House and knock Mike Madigan out. He’s not going to be the speaker of the House anymore.
“That’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to get him out,” Rauner said.
Discussing his opponent, Pritzker, Rauner said Pritzker could be indicted in the next few months because of a a tax scheme. The audience jeered at the mention of Pritzker, with one woman in the crowd shouting “Screw him,” and a man called him the Pillsbury Dough boy. Rauner said Pritzker could join his predecessors as an Illinois governor going to jail.
“And you know what ‘J.B.’ stands for then: Jail Bird,” Rauner said.
From the man who has repeatedly bemoaned the rhetoric in politics today.
“I was trailing in most polls four years ago … and I don’t think they are really accurate,” said the 62-year-old incumbent. “Everywhere I travel people say ‘Governor, you are on the right track.’” […]
“People say ‘Governor, stay strong, don’t give in. Madigan is the problem, he’s the one that has gotta go,’ ” Rauner said. “And a lot of times they will go on and say, ‘I am a Democrat, and I don’t normally support Republicans, but I love what you are trying to do.’ ” […]
In Decatur, Rauner already had convinced Shirley and Jim Cairns from Mount Zion, diehard fans who came to the cafe to see him and definitely plan on voting for him. They don’t believe in the polls, either.
“He’s going to get it, he’s going to win,” said Shirley Cairns as her husband nodded in agreement. “He deserves it because of all the changes he’s made and the fact he’s made Illinois a better state.”
During his visit, many tailgaters introduced themselves to Rauner and asked him to pose for a picture with them. Parents brought their children to meet the governor. One gentleman said the last governor he had seen up close was Dan Walker. […]
A few people declined offers to have their pictures taken with the governor, but they were polite about it. Some tailgaters ignored the governor as he walked by their tables and tents. Most partiers seemed pleasantly surprised by his visit.
“Everywhere we go, people will come up to us and say, ‘Governor, stay strong. Don’t back down. You’re on the right track. Madigan has got to go.’ And, a lot of times, they will go on and say, ‘I’m a Democrat. I don’t normally support Republicans, but I support you because we have got to stop that corruption and the tax hikes coming out of Chicago.’ So, it’s very exciting,” Rauner said.
* Gov. Bruce Rauner has a campaign stop scheduled in Spring Grove and an evening rally at Benedictine University in Lisle.
* J.B. Pritzker has campaign stops scheduled in Rockford, Moline, Belleville, Marion, Springfield and Peoria with other candidates on the Democratic ticket, including attorney general hopeful Kwame Raoul and Treasurer Mike Frerichs.
* The governor also did a round of morning show appearances…
Rauner appeared heartened by the ovation he got from the lunchtime crowd at the Country Kettle Restaurant on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Four years ago, Rauner got 76 percent of the vote in heavily Republican Ford County and 50.3 percent statewide as he upended Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn. […]
“Don’t believe those polls,” he told diners at the crowded restaurant Sunday in an impromptu campaign rally. “We need to get out the votes downstate to cancel those votes in Chicago.
“They’re trying to bring in the big guns,” Rauner said in reference to a late Sunday afternoon rally in Chicago featuring former President Barack Obama and the statewide Democratic ticket.
“All the trends are with us. We’ve got to fight these guys,” Rauner said.
State and local public health authorities have looked high and low for the sources of fatal Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks at the Quincy veterans’ home. Now, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner is offering a new theory.
“Massive floods and tornadoes” and “a lot of dirt.”
But Rauner offered no proof, and experts who spoke to WBEZ were skeptical.
…Adding… The Pritzker campaign compiled a long list of the governor’s excuses. Click here.
* WBEZ now reports that the Rauner administration released 132,700 pages of documents related to the Quincy veterans’ home on Friday. Here’s one bit…
Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner’s administration knew the Quincy veterans’ home had bungled a water-system repair in violation of state health codes but chose not to cite the facility for a mistake that likely contributed to a fatal Legionnaires’ outbreak in 2015, state records show. […]
One email has Rauner’s public health director explaining how a bacteria-laden “broth of legionella” was mistakenly released into the Illinois Veterans Home water system before a 2015 outbreak killed 12 residents.
That discharge had been previously highlighted in state and federal reports. But until now, it had not been known the release was serious enough to be a “citable offense” under state rules — an important detail that could weaken the state’s position in a dozen negligence lawsuits brought by victims’ families. […]
Shah outlined how a malfunctioning tank used to supply the home with hot water sat dormant for more than a month, filled with water that had cooled to 80 or 90 degrees — a level he described as the “optimal growing temperature” for Legionella, the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’.
When the tank was repaired on Aug. 6, 2015 and put back online, the facility failed to empty out the stagnant water, which wound up being warmed to a temperature in which Legionella can still flourish. Gallons upon gallons of that water were then distributed “for normal use throughout the facility,” Shah wrote.
He likened it all to a “broth of legionella” and said it likely contaminated shower heads in the home within a week of the repair.
A top Illinois public health official delivered a searing indictment of how Gov. Bruce Rauner’s office handled fallout from the Legionnaires’ disease crisis at the Quincy veterans’ home, alleging that secrecy, indecision and “never-ending conference calls” created a “mess,” state records show.
Emails sent earlier this year by state Public Health Director Nirav Shah’s chief of staff offer some of the most damaging evidence yet that Rauner’s office itself was responsible for withholding key information from state lawmakers and the media about successive Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks at the facility.
“The [governor’s office] should have followed our advice and just release [sic] the documents with no redactions. Now we have another mess created by them to deal with,” Shah’s underling, Erik Rayman, wrote on April 4.
Rayman’s note to Shah and others within their agency came in response to a WBEZ story about how Rauner administration lawyers were aggressively censoring public documents related to Legionnaires’ outbreaks at the home, which are now linked to 14 deaths.
*** UPDATE *** Press release…
U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today called for Illinois Public Health Director Nirav Shah to resign following reports that the Rauner Administration botched a water-system repair at Illinois Veterans Home (IVH) Quincy, which was in violation of state health codes, and then chose to deliberately withhold that information from the public and not cite the facility for a mistake. In newly released documents, Shah detailed the dangers present at the facility, noted that the violations warranted a citation, yet chose not to issue one. Additional reports indicate that Shah and other staff at the Illinois Department of Public Health found Governor Rauner’s office to be an obstacle in ensuring a prompt and comprehensive response to the deadly outbreaks and more focused on public perception.
“There was definitive evidence that a serious public health crisis was underway at the veterans’ home in Quincy in 2015, and the Rauner Administration and Director Shah chose to sit on their hands as veterans and staff at the home fell victim to these deadly bacteria. It’s an outrage that time after time the Governor and his team prioritized public relations over protecting vulnerable veterans, their spouses, and staff at IVH Quincy. Director Shah’s response to this tragedy reflects the height of irresponsibility and negligence, and it’s time for him to go,” said Durbin and Duckworth.
* The Siena College/New York Times poll of 428 likely voters has Democratic challenger Lauren Underwood leading incumbent Republican Congressman Randy Hultgren by 6 points, 49-43. MoE of +/-5 percent.
*** UPDATE 1 *** He should’ve dropped this oppo at least a month ago and followed it up with TV ads. Instead, he let Dan Proft release the information and is holding an election eve press conference. Political malpractice on Hultgren’s part…
Last minute news conference this afternoon from @RepHultgren as questions are raised about @LUnderwood630 experience as a nurse, #IL14 polling shows Underwood ahead #November6
“We have fewer than 24 hours before Election Day and I’m traveling across the seven counties of the 14th District, visiting with voters and my team’s dedicated volunteers. Randy Hultgren clearly saw polling numbers that made him nervous, so he is staging a last minute press conference to discredit my professional work. Our voters deserve better than desperate political stunts from a career politician. They deserve honesty and responsiveness from their representative in Congress; Randy Hultgren has failed on both counts.
“The facts are simple: I’m proud to be a licensed registered nurse in the state of Illinois and two other jurisdictions. I specialize in public health nursing. I have spent my career fighting for affordable, quality healthcare. Throughout my clinical training and decade of nursing experience, I have spent thousands of hours working with patients. I look forward to carrying the values of the 14th District with me to Washington to make real progress on issues like health care that are important to the families of this community.”
* It’s probably too late for Republican attorney general candidate Erika Harold campaign to run an ad about this, but it will likely dominate her fly-around on Monday…
If you click the link you’ll see Speaker Madigan made the contribution to Sen. Kwame Raoul’s campaign fund on Halloween. Kinda fitting. Not everyone is happy about this behind the scenes, I’m told, with one calling it “Clearly a power move.” Madigan could’ve washed that cash through the Democratic Party of Illinois, but for whatever reason chose to give directly to Raoul. Since Raoul could really use the money for late TV, he took it.
Harold, an Urbana attorney, bought limited broadcast TV advertising time in the Chicago market for the race’s final weekend. Her campaign late Friday also purchased cable advertising time in the Chicago market. […]
From Oct. 23 through Friday, Raoul has taken in more than $1.3 million in cash and assistance for his campaign. Oct. 23 marked two weeks out from the Nov. 6 election. The donations to Raoul included nearly $445,000 worth of phone banking assistance plus another $55,400 in cash from the Democratic Party of Illinois, $103,867 worth of mailings from the abortion-rights advocacy group Personal PAC, $200,000 from the Laborers’ union and $50,000 from the Teamsters union.
Over that same home stretch of the campaign, Harold reported taking in $166,850. Of Harold’s overall haul of $5.4 million, $3.5 million — or 64 percent — has come from Rauner and Rauner ally Ken Griffin, the founder of Citadel. Rauner has contributed $1.8 million while Griffin has given $1.7 million. […]
Raoul allies acknowledged privately that the contest would likely be among the closest of statewide races on the ballot, though they dismissed concerns that their candidate could be in danger. Internal polling, though, has shown that Raoul has consistently trailed behind the larger leads held by other Democrats seeking statewide office, particularly Pritzker, party operatives said.
…Adding… Harold campaign spokesperson…
Mike Madigan wants an Attorney General he can control. That’s why he’s attempting to bail out @KwameRaoul’s failing campaign with a last-minute $1M personal check. Unlike Raoul, @ErikaHarold will hold Madigan accountable and will be the independent voice #IL needs. #twill#ILAGhttps://t.co/82WiF5aHzq
Just days before Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza is slated to be on the ballot for a second term, a new campaign ad surfaced Friday showing her announcing a run for Chicago mayor, but her team insisted the ad was only made in preparation for a potential run.
“I’m Susana Mendoza and I’m running for mayor of Chicago,” Mendoza says in the seconds-long clip obtained by NBC 5, adding, “and I ask you to join me on this journey together.”
The ad, which Mendoza claimed was stolen from her campaign, surfaced four days before she is slated to be on the ballot in the midterm elections, running against Republican Darlene Senger for a second term as Illinois comptroller.
Mendoza’s campaign said the ad was simply made in preparation for a possible run, as she is still considering her options.
Worst. Kept. Secret. Ever.
Either this was stolen or leaked from within. Either way, somebody needs to upgrade their security before making a formal announcement for mayor.
…Adding… If you click here and go to the 18-second mark of a Mendoza comptroller campaign ad, you’ll see that she’s wearing that same gray sweater and appears to be in the same room as in the above ad. It seems possible that she cut these at the same time.
Ald. Sandi Jackson (7th) hedged her bets, filing for both re-election to her aldermanic seat and for city clerk. She’ll have to drop one or the other by Monday, she said. She and her husband will talk about it over Thanksgiving dinner, she said.
State Rep. Susana Mendoza poked fun at Jackson’s double-filing as she filed her own candidacy for clerk.
“I filed for one office I’m really passionate about and that’s city clerk,” she said.
…Adding… ILGOP…
“Susana Mendoza is a liar. She said she would respect voters by focusing on the Comptroller’s race, but it’s clear that she only cares about her own ambition and climbing up the ladder. Mendoza has been misleading the people of Illinois, asking for their vote with no intention of serving her term. She should immediately drop off the ballot for Comptroller” - Illinois Republican Party Executive Director Travis Sterling
Eric Adelstein, Mendoza’s political consultant, stepped up to take the blame for the mayoral video.
“We were filming her comptroller ads and I suggested that, while she hasn’t made up her mind on the mayor’s race, she should record some lines so we had them and could move quickly if she decides ultimately to run. It’s a tight time-frame,” Adelstein said, noting the Nov. 28 mayoral filing deadline.
“She hasn’t made up her mind. One-hundred percent. l hope she runs … because the city could really use her energy, her drive and her vision. … But, maybe I jumped the gun by urging her to go out. … People should be focused on Tuesday.”
Asked if he had a mole in his firm, Adelstein said he didn’t know.
“There are a lot of people involved in these campaigns. Hopefully we get to the bottom of how that leaked out. It shouldn’t have,” he said. “But I don’t think it’s any surprise she’s been thinking about running, and said she’d make that decision after Tuesday, and a prudent candidate gets ready for any eventuality given how close the next one would be coming up … I know she has not made up her mind, but I had suggested she get prepared and get ready.”
After pouring a record-breaking $161.5 million into his own candidacy, Illinois Democrat J.B. Pritzker will close out his 18-month gubernatorial campaign with an ad that never even mentions his name.
In the final spot, first obtained by POLITICO, Pritzker doesn’t ask Illinois voters to go to the polls for him specifically. Instead, the ad urges “on Tuesday, vote Democratic.” […]
In a statement about the ad, Pritzker said he’s focusing on boosting Democrats up and down the ticket. Pritzker has already financed a massive statewide GOTV operation that is coordinating with Democrats across the state. While polls have consistently shown Pritzker holding a comfortable lead against Rauner, four Republican-held Illinois congressional districts remain toss-ups. The Democratic nominee for governor has also invested in the contest for attorney general, which pits Democrat Kwame Raoul against Republican Erika Harold.
The fact that Pritzker can take an unusual step of not including his name in his closing spot is a testament to the onslaught of ads that have carpeted every media platform available for 18 months. Viewers will likely recognize the narrator’s voice: it’s Pritzker himself. He also makes an appearance in the spot.
* The spot, per state law, does say briefly on-screen that it’s paid for by JB for Governor…
Hard work, decency, looking out for our children’s future, creating opportunity. That’s what’s on the ballot on Tuesday. When you vote for Democrats, you can make clear health care is a right and pre-existing conditions should be protected. You can make sure that all kids get a quality education no matter where they live. You can send a message that it’s time for a change in Springfield and in Washington. On Tuesday, vote Democratic.
With Rauner at the helm, we believe the state stands a better chance of navigating the difficult financial straits ahead.
We understand Pritzker holds what appears to be an insurmountable lead in polls leading into the election and that if elected, Rauner would face the challenge of working with a Legislature he largely has alienated.
We take the governor at his word, though, with his mea culpa and think he would be an important, much-needed check on single-party rule in the General Assembly.
With that in mind, we endorse Gov. Bruce Rauner for a second term.
A campaign ad put out by Rauner’s campaign for governor this week showed his childhood home in suburban Deerfield, prompting CBS 2 to look into his past as a child growing up in the Chicago suburbs.
A Chicago Tribune article that ran in 1963 shows an 8-year-old Rauner with his family.
A check of Rauner’s birth certificate shows his birth year was actually 1956, a year earlier than the year widely-published.
Rauner’s campaign staff on Thursday acknowledged the mistake, and his Facebook page had been changed to the correct year on Thursday.
But it may take the rest of the internet some time to catch up, however. His Wikipedia page still cites his birth year as 1957.
* I haven’t received anything yet from the Republicans in these two races, but here’s Lauren Underwood…
* Script…
This is our community. We work every day to make it better for our children.
Our representative in Washington pledged to protect our health care, then voted to sabotage it. He told us he would stand up for our families, then he championed a tax break for the rich.
We were disappointed and we were emboldened. This is our community and our representative is not working for us.
Casten: “I’m Sean Casten, and I’ve spent my career building businesses that will leave a safer, cleaner planet to our children. But when Donald Trump was elected, I knew I had to do more.”
Narrator: “After 25 years, Peter Roskam can’t run on his record. He’s lost touch with the people who sent him to Washington.”
Casten: “In Congress, I’ll make decisions based on facts, not partisan politics. I’ll work with Republicans and Democrats to tackle our problems and I’ll be an independent check on Donald Trump.”
* In past years, the Democratic Party of Illinois opened a hotline on election day to take calls about voting issues. The effort was expanded to a month this year. From DPI…
(T)he Voter Protection Program has received more than 700 calls and helped resolve dozens of voting-related issues. While a majority of the calls relate to vote-by-mail or general election questions, the staff intervened and helped resolve dozens of issues often with the assistance of the State Board of Elections. These include:
Successfully intervening at a Will County early voting location, with the help of local officials, that was plagued by long wait times and even turned potential voters away;
Intervening on the first day of voting when a local election authority incorrectly advised voters that a Drivers’ License was required to vote, which is not the case;
Working with DuPage County election officials to ensure that ballots for disabled voters were made available at an early vote location.
* That Will County instance was interesting. I first heard of it from a legislator’s tweet…
Voters are having problems at the Crete Twp. early voting facility; 1367 Wood St. in Crete. They're being told they have to sign a list and to expect long waits. This is nonsense. Many people there feel as though this is an instance of voter suppression.
* This e-mail was sent by the Will County Clerk’s chief deputy that afternoon..
To: Kathie Holubek, Crete Township Clerk
Michael Liccar, Crete Township Supervisor
Today was the first day for Early Voting at Crete Township Office Building. Our office has received numerous calls complaining about the long lines and inappropriate procedures taking place at this location. The clerk is making up her own policies for voting that are unlawful and unacceptable and must cease immediately.
I personally trained the Clerk (and staff) and it was never communicated that you can do any of the following:
· No voters should ever be turned away if they have entered your building during the hours you have agreed to for Early Voting
· All voters in line must be allowed to vote
· No phone numbers or lists are to be written down for a call back when they can vote
· No signs should be posted that voting is closed, especially if it is still within the hours you agreed to
As elected officials it is your duty to provide this service to your residents per the guidelines of the agreement you signed (copy attached). The Will County Clerk is asking for you to provide us with a phone number so we can call you after all voting is finished today in Crete to further discuss this matter. We await your response.
*** UPDATE *** That sign requiring a driver’s license to vote was in Cumberland County…
Today, the Pritzker campaign released a new TV ad, “One Illinois,” highlighting how JB has spent the campaign listening to and sharing his vision with Illinoisans across the state.
The ad features JB on one of his three statewide bus tours talking about his priorities for Illinois and how he’ll fight for working families as governor. Footage from campaign stops in 10 cities and towns across the state are represented throughout the one-minute ad.
Pritzker: I think the only way you can represent a state as diverse as this is to spend real time with people in every region.
Bloomington resident: It’s good to see you again here!
Pritzker: Thank you.
Peoria resident: It is so good to see you!
Pritzker: Governor Rauner wants to pit one area of the state against another. I think we’re one Illinois.
Belleville resident: I’m so glad to meet you!
Pritzker: The values that people have are the same. People are decent. They’re dedicated. They’re hardworking.
Pritzker, to Rockford Veteran: Thanks again for your service.
Pritzker: They want to get past all of the challenges and actually get something done.
Belvidere resident: I can’t tell you how much help we need.
* Raoul campaign…
Today, Democratic candidate Kwame Raoul released a new Chicago radio ad - “Every Voice Matters” - in which President Barack Obama explains why electing Raoul to be Illinois’ next attorney general is so important. When Obama was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004, Raoul was appointed to fill his seat in the Illinois Senate, where he has served for the past 14 years. Obama has endorsed Raoul for attorney general.
“This is Barack Obama. When I was elected to the U.S. Senate, I was proud to see Kwame Raoul chosen to fill my seat in the state Senate. I couldn’t be more impressed with the work he’s done since, fighting for the issues we care about and the values we share.
“That’s why I support Kwame Raoul to be Illinois’ next attorney general. Kwame knows that healthcare isn’t a privilege; it’s a right. While I was in Washington fighting for the Affordable Care Act, he led the effort to expand healthcare coverage to every Illinoisan. He stood up for working families, for criminal justice reform, and for common-sense gun laws.
“Now that our progress is at stake, Kwame Raoul is precisely the attorney general we need. He’ll protect our healthcare, protect a woman’s right to choose, protect our environment, and protect our right to vote, because he believes that every voice matters.
“So let’s prove that our voices matter. This is Barack Obama, and I’m asking you to vote for Kwame Raoul for attorney general, November 6.”
…Adding… Rauner campaign…
This week, Governor Rauner has been travelling around the state on his “Our Home Our Fight” bus tour. Media has covered the tour as the governor has been “pushing hard for votes” and “focusing on his accomplishments” like record school funding and expanding the U of I.
“Women” in the context of this movement does not include all women. Its leaders and participants should at least be upfront about it.
The environment in Illinois politics is telling. Among the least-represented voices in Springfield is that of conservative women. The House and Senate, made up of 177 members, include 61 women of both parties. That number should be higher, but it’s not abysmal. Of those women, the majority are Democrats and mostly lean left. The House right now has only 13 Republican women. The Senate has two.
Let me repeat that data point for emphasis: Of the House’s 118 members, 13 are GOP women. Of the Senate’s 59 members, only two are Republican women. If the movement is truly about lifting women, shouldn’t it be focused on raising those numbers? Bringing more capable, opinion-diverse women into the pink-hat pavilion?
As I reminded subscribers earlier today, three Republicans have resigned from the Illinois Senate since the summer of 2017. All three were women and all three women were replaced by men. One of the women who stepped down was Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno. The Senate Republicans elected a man, Sen. Bill Brady, to replace her.
The #MeToo movement is not some top-down political action committee. The Republican Party, particularly in the Illinois Senate, is the entity truly in need of a dressing-down here. After all, they’re the ones who recruit the candidates and they’re the ones who exert influence on local retiree replacement decisions.
…Adding… I was reminded that women in the SGOP caucus, including Sen. Radogno, supported Brady’s election.
I’m out here canvassing door to door talking to voters directly about their biggest concerns. And one of their concerns is how partisan this campaign is and how partisan politics is overall. My opponent recently sent out a piece of mail that compared me to a piece of meat, and being the candidate that’s in this for positive reasons and trying to set a good example for young girls and children everywhere, I want to go on the record and say I don’t think it was right to compare me to a piece of meat, photoshop my head on somebody else’s body, and I can only hope that this will be the end of this type of communication the more we speak out about it. Please don’t compare people to meat. Thank you.
