* Press releases, and other election-related news updates can be found on our live coverage post (click here). A declared winner page will be set up later, and I’ll post the elections results posts after 7 o’clock. As I told you earlier, Sun-Times Washington Bureau Chief Lynn Sweet is hosting a show tonight. You can watch it right here…
* I’ve also created a new Scribble Live feed that will contain my own thoughts as the night progresses. It’ll also include anything I tweet or retweet during the evening. So, as always, follow along with Scribble Live…
…Adding… This has been quite something to watch today…
.@ChicagoElection board’s Jim Allen, on the erroneous text message that went out to election judges this morning, instructing them to hand out pamphlets saying Andrea Raila was NOT a candidate for Cook County Assessor: “It was a mistake, and we regret the error.” pic.twitter.com/erKwxwdvKi
I’m not sure this is permitted— it was spotted INSIDE the booths at Ward 27 precincts. Taped inside the wall!
Heh…
I asked him if he ripped the sample ballot down, but he said it was a text from a friend.
* I don’t know if this is a shenanigan, but whatevs. It’s Wilmette…
Highcrest School, a public school in Wilmette, just called the police on me because I was being a “distraction to the students” while electioneering for Mary Rita for State Representative (My mother). The election judge incorrectly believes the law is that the 100 feet rule applies only in one direction. The judge told me I was an idiot and that he just took the test on it yesterday when I explained that it’s a 100 foot radius I have to be outside of in any direction from the entrance. He refused to measure 100 feet in the direction I was standing. The police ultimately forced me to leave a zone where i could actually talk to voters and forced me to stand in an area where no one passes by. Police, Republican election judges and public school administrators colluding to prevent students from understanding the democratic process. I told them the students should come out and ask questions about the election and our candidates.
* This is actually my live session coverage thingy, but I just decided I’d repurpose it for this as well. Plus, it’ll give you something to look at while we wait for the polls to close. Watch it all in real time with ScribbleLive…
* From Mallory Quigley at the pro-life Susan B. Anthony List…
Hi Rich,
As you know it is Election Day in IL-03. I just got back from the district where for the past 4 days a crew of 70+ college student volunteers and Susan B. Anthony List staff have been visiting the homes of Democratic primary voters urging them to get out and vote for pro-life Rep. Dan Lipinski.
Our team visited more 26,489 homes! Below is a short video of why we got involved and what it was like this weekend
Should the Democratic Party accept and support anti-abortion candidates?
The party apparatus is supporting Lipinski at both the national and local levels. Go to the machine’s 23rd Ward and these are the kinds of lawns you’ll see…
It’s not about the party’s acceptance and support, it’s about the people who actually vote.
“I’m just a true-blue Democrat, and he’s a far-right radical Republican,” Newman said in an interview on Monday at her headquarters, citing Lipinski’s opposition to abortion, his positions on gay rights, and his 2010 vote against the Democrats’ signature Affordable Care Act health law. […]
“Marie Newman is a ‘Tea Party of the Left’ extremist who … wants to make the Democratic Party smaller and less inclusive,” the Lipinski campaign said in a prepared statement
If, as this data suggests, the only prerequisite for being called a tea partier is to attack your Republican opponent from the right, then, sure, Newman is waging the mirror image of a tea party challenge. But that’s a fairly lazy conclusion; it lumps together all the primary challenges listed above when the data shows there are clear differences between them. […]
If you consider the district’s partisanship, then maybe Newman’s campaign is more like Richard Mourdock’s Republican primary challenge to incumbent Sen. Richard Lugar in Indiana’s 2012 U.S. Senate race: According to our partisan lean calculations, Indiana was as Republican then as the Illinois 3rd is Democratic now. Lugar was indeed moderate enough (a .304 DW-Nominate score) that a primary challenge made some sense on its own, but Mourdock infamously ended up losing that general election.
All things considered, it’s debatable whether Newman’s challenge of Lipinski is within reason, according to these ideological scores, or out of line. Lipinski is indeed a Democratic nonconformist who can’t reliably be counted on to vote against the Trump agenda — but he’s not wildly out of sync with his district either. The voters will have to decide how much heterodoxy they can tolerate on Tuesday.
The difference between Indiana’s election and this one is the Republican candidate is a bona fide Nazi…
Your cable news analysts will be pulling apart the returns from the 3rd to see if they signal a desire from voters for a more centrist Democrat — Lipinski, who has the same sort of appeal as centrist Democrat Conor Lamb, who won last week’s special congressional election in Pennsylvania — or a far more left-wing Democrat — Newman, who will excite the party’s base voters and donors.
The outcome is likely to have national implications for the sorts of candidates the party recruits in the coming months.
Conor Lamb was appealing because he promised to take a seat away from the Republicans, so the more liberal Dem voters looked the other way on some stuff for partisan reasons. It happens a lot. The 3rd is a solidly Democratic district. Liberals want it. We’ll see if they can take it.
Back in 2004, a Democrat from a safe district voting with the president as often as Lipinski might have been tolerated. Gallup found that moderate and conservative Democrats made up more than 60% of all Democrats in 2004. Liberals made up less than 35%.
Today, it’s an entirely different ball game. Liberal Democrats, at 50%, are a greater force than the combined 48% of moderate and conservative Democrats.
We can see the change in the Democratic electorate on the specific issue of abortion, as well. According to a Quinnipiac University survey in December 2004, 67% of self-identified Democrats said abortion should be legal in all or most cases. Still, a significant minority, 27%, said it should be illegal most or all of the time.
“It’s not about the direction of the party—it’s about the direction of the district,” Joe Trippi, the strategist who helped lead Jones to victory in Alabama, told Newsweek on Monday. “You often have incumbents who’ve been standing in the same place for a decade or more and don’t realize the electorate and the district are changing. That’s creating a lot of vulnerability for incumbents in both parties.”
And while Pelosi would take heat from outside for backing a losing candidate against a progressive challenger, the inside game is different. Pelosi’s loyalty to her own members remains a key reason that she remains in control of her caucus.
*** UPDATE *** NBC National Political Correspondent…
Anti-abortion Democrats in the House:
1978: 125 1996: 70 2007: 32 Now: 3 (will fall to 2 if Dan Lipinski loses tonight)
* What have you seen in the precincts? What’ve you heard? What do you know?
…Adding… From the Pritzker campaign…
Our statewide, grassroots operation:
· Since May, the Pritzker campaign has built a statewide, grassroots organization from the ground up in order to talk to voters about the upcoming election.
· The campaign has 18 offices statewide, over 100 staffers, and almost 10,000 volunteers across the state.
· The campaign has so far knocked on 591,576 doors and made 3,236,362 phone calls.
From the field today:
· This morning, the campaign launched almost 200 volunteers from 48 locations to knock on the doors of likely primary voters statewide.
· Volunteers educated voters on when, where, and how to vote and walked them through a vote plan to ensure they get out to the polls before they close.
· We’ve had great volunteer turnout in our morning shift! Many supporters we spoke with told us they have voted already.
· For example, we have a report from Wheatland where volunteers have knocked on every possible packet of doors, so they’re now driving to Joliet to finish up packets there.
* Rauner GOTV e-mail with subject line “Do you have lunch plans?”…
No mention of Madigan? They broke character. Somebody better reboot that guy. /s
Ms. Ives released a poll last week that showed her within striking distance of Mr. Rauner, who is down by 7 percentage points. Mr. Rauner’s internal polling shows the governor ahead by 12 percentage points but with his popularity among the state’s Republicans slipping.
“Governor Rauner is in strong shape, he should win easily tomorrow night,” Jon Thompson, the Communications Director for the Republican Governors Association (RGA) said
* As you will recall from yesterday, Gov. Rauner compared his current primary battle to Gov. Jim Edgar’s 1994 primary, which Edgar wound up winning by 50 points. Illinois Working together has since been gleefully trolling Rauner…
We need everybody in the Chicagoland area, your listeners, to know that this election is gonna be closer than anybody thought. This primary is gonna be tough. And Evelyn Sanguinetti and I have to win because we can be victorious. We’re the only ones who can be victorious against Pritzker and Madigan.
We need everybody to get out and vote in today’s primary. So, your listeners, if you haven’t already voted, vote today and take a Republican ballot, please, and on Republican ballot vote for Rauner and Sanguinetti. This primary is gonna be closer than many people originally thought. There’s a huge amount at stake here because Rauner and Sanguinetti, we as a team are the only team that can beat a Pritzker and Madigan in the fall in November. We’re the only ones that can do it.
All of those moves suggest a suddenly nervous candidate. And while strategists in both parties think he’ll likely hang on to win on Tuesday, some aren’t completely foreclosing the possibility that Ives could pull off a shocker.
“It appears this election is going to be a lot closer than anyone thought it would be — especially the governor,” former Rauner adviser Lance Trover told TPM on Monday.
In the race for Illinois Attorney General, Pat Quinn’s campaign is running a radio ad touting an Obama endorsement as well — the catch being that former president endorsed Quinn in a different election for a different seat, during his failed gubernatorial re-election bid in 2014.
“You know, I’ve been attacked a lot this week by attack ads,” Pat Quinn told NBC 5. “President Obama stood up for me in 2014; he said I was a consumer advocate, a champion of working people.”
Quinn is using audio from President Obama’s 2014 endorsement in a black radio ad for Quinn’s 2018 attorney general race. Not cool at all.
* From Sen. Kwame Raoul’s spokesman Ron Holmes…
“Old dog, same tricks. Pat Quinn’s willingness to blatantly deceive the public is one of the reasons Bruce Rauner was victorious in 2014. Despite what Pat Quinn may think, black voters won’t be bamboozled by him again.”
@KwameRaoul No lie here. President Obama praised me before for doing what's right. In the Attorney General race, it's not right to rake in cash from utilities, tobacco firms and others directly dealing with the office. My loyalty is to the people and it's not for sale. #ilag
— Pat Quinn for Attorney General (@QuinnForIL) March 20, 2018
Willfully deceiving the electorate ain’t “what’s right” and I’m sure 44 ain’t praising the endless investigations you’ve been involved in. #twill#ilaghttps://t.co/cWeCAViAG0
Hi. This is Hillary Clinton. I’ve spent my life fighting for children and families, and so has my good friend JB Pritzker. For decades, JB has worked to expand and improve early childhood education for at-risk youth in Illinois. He’s also worked with non-profits to bring school breakfasts to 230,000 children in Illinois so they have a better chance to succeed in school. I know JB personally, I know his values and I know that JB Pritzker will make a great governor for Illinois. Election day is tomorrow. I hope you will join me in supporting JB Pritzker. Please vote. Thank you very much.
* From Gov. Rauner’s pep talk to supporters today in DeKalb…
Now, nobody likes a primary. I feel bad about it. We’ve got some disagreements. Jim Edgar had a primary opponent in his second election just like I got. It happens. I respect the process. I will work hard to unify us afterwards and find policies we can all agree on to bring us back together. We have got to come together. But we’ve gotta win tomorrow.
OK, but Jim Edgar won his primary race by 50 points: 75-25.
* Commenter Southside Markie received a robocall from Newt Gingrich today asking him to vote for Gov. Rauner. It takes a few seconds to get started…
I suppose the idea here is to help shore up Rauner’s conservative base. But is anyone even answering their phones in this state right now? Is Team Rauner worried or just being careful not to miss a trick? I suppose we’ll find out tomorrow.
Hi. This is Newt Gingrich. Calling to remind you to vote on Tuesday, March 20th in the Republican primary.
Bruce Rauner is leading a revolution against the corruption in Springfield. Mike Madigan has been in power for far too long and Bruce Rauner is the only one who can win the fight against the Madigan machine. That’s why it’s so important you vote for Bruce Rauner on Tuesday, March 20th.
When asked to account for his own spending against Democratic candidates in the midst of his own primary, Rauner replied that “meddling ain’t the word for what the DGA is doing.”
“You haven’t heard me say, ‘hey, Biss is too liberal,’ you haven’t seen me say “vote Kennedy,” Rauner told reporters. “You hear the Democratic Governors Association coming in and supporting my opponent.”
In the course of the press conference, Rauner also accused Pritzker several times of hiding his wealth in offshore accounts to avoid property taxes — something Rauner may also be guilty of, according to the Chicago Tribune, pointing out that Rauner’s name had been posted as an investor in a pool registered in the Cayman Islands through his private equity firm GTCR.
“We have got to fight back against Madigan, and she has specifically said she wouldn’t push back on his income tax hike that they passed over my veto last summer,” Rauner said. “And she specifically has voted against property tax relief.”
Ives said Rauner is telling desperate lies: “It is Rauner and the DGA who share the same policy positions on abortion, sanctuary state, Chicago bailouts and the like.”
* And…
Outside of @JeanneIves Trump Tower newser, it appears @GovRauner Campaign sends someone outside but in view of Press holding enlarged check from DGA, drawing more attention to adds calling Ives the true conservative #ILGovpic.twitter.com/2GkgiOwVvx
* “Voter shaming” letters were a big thing two years ago. They appear to be back and even more blatant. From a subscriber…
Lots of folks in the neighborhood [are upset] about this today — we’re getting a ton of calls and visits to the [redacted] about it. It’s a letter from an outfit called the “Illinois State Voter Program” that looks suspiciously like the earlier mail sent out by that Lipinski front group, United for Progress. (Although there are no “paid for” disclaimers on this piece.)
Looks like a curious effort to guilt folks into voting tomorrow by implying they’ll be exposed to their neighbors as a non-voter if they don’t. The addresses listed and redacted in the attached letter are the mail recipient’s neighbors.
We did some checking and it turns out the letter is only being sent to “Leaners” — we know of no Hard D’s or Hard R’s who had it mailed to them. Looks like an attempt to get middle-of-the-road voters to show up tomorrow — assuming they’ll pull a Dem ballot and vote for Lipinski.
Like the earlier United for Progress piece, the “Illinois State Voter Program” uses a Lockport P.O. Box as its return address.
Just heard from a guy from [redacted] who got the letter. In addition to listing the neighbors on his block, they listed two of his Facebook friends — one who lives in Oak Lawn and another who lives in Garfield Ridge. Pretty sophisticated data dive.
…Adding… The “group” even has a website. Click here. It was created March 9th. But check out what happens once you input your info…
They need a spell-checker.
* Moving right along…
I received this very ominous (and very unsolicited) text with a link to the attached anti-Rauner video from what I assume is a @JeanneIves text-banking campaign. Worth noting that I'm a strong Dem voter. pic.twitter.com/kaRR3EHV8h
[The DGA’s new TV ads are] hardly the kind of thing that would turn off conservatives ahead of a primary. In a statement, Rauner’s campaign said the Democratic Governors Association launched it because it feared the incumbent.
“That’s why they’ve decided to overtly attempt to influence the outcome of the Republican primary in favor of a candidate who is simply unelectable in Illinois,” said Rauner communications director Will Allison.
The Democratic Governors Association denies engaging in any such shenanigans.
Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin, D-Oak Park, has called on the Illinois Board of Elections to investigate several hundred phony campaign signs that popped up across his district over the weekend, just days before the primary election.
The signs ask voters to “un-elect” Boykin and refer to the first-term commissioner as a Republican. Boykin’s 1st District covers much of Chicago’s West Side and the near western suburbs. […]
Boykin said he saw between 300 and 400 of the signs across the district over the weekend.
Tomorrow is Primary Day and a crucial day for the pro-family movement in Illinois.
We must elect Jeanne Ives to be the GOP candidate for Governor and defeat the modern day King Herod, Bruce Rauner, who has broken every promise he has made to the voters. […]
Thanks to David Smith, Illinois Family Action, Ralph Rivera, Illinois Citizens for Life Pac, Reverend Bob whose radio ads you have been hearing, and all the other pro-life and pro-family leaders. Family-Pac has been proud to fight by your side in this important campaign.
Herod also appears in the Christian Gospel of Matthew as the ruler of Judea who orders the Massacre of the Innocents at the time of the birth of Jesus.
And that radio ad mentioned above is a truly despicable move. I’m not gonna post it. Period. It’s not a shenanigan, it’s reprehensible.
* Meanwhile, the governor is still focusing attention on those devious DGA TV ads…
Today, at a campaign event in Hanover Park, Governor Rauner addressed the Democratic Governors Association running TV ads in support of his primary opponent. At the event, Governor Rauner made the following statement in response to Washington Democrats throwing their support behind an unelectable candidate like Jeanne Ives:
“The Democratic Governors Association, supported by JB Pritzker, are running ads trying to boost Ives in our primary. They know they can beat Ives and they want Ives to win. We need everybody to know it, and we need everybody to get to the polls. Don’t let the Democratic Governors Association and Washington Democrats influence the outcome of the Republican primary in the state of Illinois. Republicans: get to the polls and vote for Rauner and Sanguinetti.” – Governor Bruce Rauner
Ordering voters around in the third person is an interesting tactic.
* Speaking of that presser, the Pritzker campaign says the governor had a melt-down today. I’m not kidding…
Manic Monday: Rauner Melts Down Before Election Day
Chicago, IL – In a bizarre press conference this morning, Rauner stumbled and laughed through questions as he closed out his flailing primary campaign with desperate attacks on Democrats.
After conservative media outlets have fueled Jeanne Ives’ rise, Rauner begged Republican primary voters not to support his insurgent challenger at the last-ditch presser. Rauner hypocritically railed on Democrats for running ads in another party’s primary, while dodging questions on his qualifications and accomplishments, nervously laughing nearly half a dozen times during Q&A.
“While Jeanne Ives continues to surge just hours ahead of Election Day, Bruce Rauner is manically melting down,” said Pritzker communications director Galia Slayen. “Rauner is sounding the alarm on his own sinking campaign as Illinoisans are preparing to vote in the primary he once took for granted.”
* A couple of people have sent me pics like this today. Dan Proft is mailing out the latest edition of one of his papers…
I received one, too, by the way. It’s basically just “Ives, Ives, Ives” for several pages.
* Democratic House candidate David Bonner has been getting big bucks from Statehouse interest types, but he’s also being hit in the mailboxes…
Ouch.
Debbie Meyers-Martin has only reported having about $21K in cash, so I’m not sure where she’s getting money for a 4-5 piece mail program unless it’s a limited list and/or she’s getting a bunch of small-dollar contributions.
House Deputy Majority Leader Lou Lang (D-Skokie) said Saturday a false mailer written by Sen. Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago) means he can no longer remain neutral in the 8th District Democratic senate primary. Lang said the campaign brochure claimed that he had endorsed Silverstein when he had not. In response, he endorsed Ram Villivalam. […]
Silverstein told Patch Lang had not previously indicated that he would remain neutral:
1) It never crossed my mind that after 18 plus years of my constant support for Rep Lang that he would not assist and support me. In fact, we passed his nominating petitions.
2) He mentioned a conversation with me. In terms of that conversation, I heard that Rep Lang must be neutral until my matter before his committee was adjudicated. I respected that need for objectivity and ability to consider the matter fully. In that matter he showed great integrity. But once I was cleared by the Inspector General of the charges, and his committee’s responsibilities correctly discharged and the matter no longer before him, I thought our relationship would revert to the usual. Mutual support.
* From a Proft paper, so no matter how deliciously possible it may seem, just keep in mind that it’s the day before an election…
Gov. Bruce Rauner says he’ll fight for Illinoisans. But only if he wins re-election.
If he loses, Rauner’s wife, Diana, says she and Bruce are out of here.
“Bruce and I are moving to Italy,” a source says she flippantly told a group of “mostly Democrat” women from DuPage County last Thursday.
* The DGA then used the Proft paper story to troll the Rauners in its latest press release, which ends…
The Rauners would fit right in – they’re already wine connoisseurs of the highest degree.
Diana Rauner’s response came from a question about Illinois’ out-migration problem. Under Bruce Rauner, the problem has only gotten worse.
Is Bruce next?
“Given his rock-bottom approval ratings, it’s not surprising that Bruce Rauner is already planning his escape,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “And frankly, Italy’s a great choice. Illinois is worse under Bruce Rauner, so it’s no wonder he’d want to escape the mess he created. This year, Illinois voters are going to be saying – Ciao, Bruce!”
And they helpfully included this pic…
Weird times.
*** UPDATE *** The governor was actually asked about the story today and he dodged the question…
Rauner was asked whether he would stick around Illinois should he lose. He laughed, then said, "That's a whole 'nother subject. Let me be clear. We aren't going to lose. I'm a fighter. I never give up and I have fought hard for six years. I've lost 20 pounds, most of my hair."
Not a bright thing to say. Also, there’s that laugh again.
[ *** End Of Update *** ]
* Congressman LaHood has said he is staying out of the Republican primary battle, so this was an interesting photo…
Dropped by the Sterling Family Diner in Peoria with Rep. Darin LaHood this morning! It was great to meet everyone! #twill#ILGovpic.twitter.com/jqTpCPc0qR
* She got the congressman’s name wrong (Ray is the father), but it’s Twitter and we’re all tired, so no big deal…
Ives campaign says Cong Ray Lahood told them he was at a public event of elected officials and not endorsing @GovRauner even tho Rauner spox said Gov & Lahood were campaigning together today in Peoria #ILGov@JeanneIves
* Pics of the alleged act (which could very well be someone throwing away a sign planted in the public way, making this a Tarver campaign shenanigan)…
They sent a third pic of the guy behind the wheel showing his license plate that I’m not going to post. But the plate of the alleged perp was a variation on the word “enchanting.” I told you that so you could understand the joke they texted: “Well, we’re definitely enchanted.”
After Rauner said he’d be moving back to the mansion in May, a reporter asked about a discrepancy in fundraising efforts. Money was raised to repair the mansion, but efforts to raise private money to repair buildings on the state fairgrounds haven’t been as successful since Rauner created a fair foundation in 2016.
“What we have found is that because Madigan and his legislators have resisted it and have fought against a fair foundation, there’s some reluctance among some donors to fund it, because they’re worried Madigan will somehow end-run it or block it in the future,” Rauner said. “His resistance to a fair foundation has inhibited donors and it’s frankly terrible.”
Yeah, that’s the only possible explanation.
*** UPDATE *** With a hat tip to a commenter, if you go to the Illinois State Fairgrounds Foundation’s website, you’ll see this…
* The governor is really focused on those wicked DGA TV ads…
Media Advisory: Governor Rauner to Hold Media Availability Tomorrow Morning in Hanover Park
On Monday, Governor Rauner will visit Round Ground Metals in Hanover Park, IL and hold a media availability to address the Democratic Governors Association’s interference in the GOP primary.
* A Kennedy dirty trick? Looks like it. Notice the date of the first tweet…
* You probably won’t be surprised that none of these statewide officials appear on Casten’s endorsements web-page. So, this is yet another candidate mailer designed to make it look like someone has endorsements that he doesn’t actually have…
* Press release…
Congressional candidate Chuy Garcia on Sunday called on Iris Millan and her campaign to cease and desist the unlawful use of his name and image in her campaign materials in the race for Illinois’ 4th House District. This letter was sent by Garcia’s campaign following a mailer misleading voters about Chuy Garcia’s endorsement in this race for State Representative.
Jesus “Chuy” Garcia endorsed Delia Ramirez for State Representative on December 17, 2017 because she has deeps roots in this district and is ready to transform Springfield.
Iris Millan, who according to Illinois Sunshine has received over 50% of her campaign donations from 1st Ward Alderman Proco ‘Joe’ Moreno, has sent misinformation to voters numerous times through an unknown organization called the Social Justice Fund. This is a continuation of the Millan campaign’s dishonesty and willingness to deceive voters for political gain. Ramirez called these tactics “shameful and not in the best interest of voters.”
This is the weirdest election ever. State Rep. Kelly Cassidy’s opponent is now pulling a Bruce Rauner and calling her a Machine Madigan candidiate. While he runs to her left. That’s right I said running to her left. #Twill Make it all stop. pic.twitter.com/bxX3W1Vmeb
* Security of state voter rolls a concern as primaries begin: “It’s not something where you ever feel completely safe,” Matt Dietrich, spokesman for the Illinois State Board of Elections. “It’s something where you feel like you’re doing your best to protect against what could happen in a cyberattack.”
* Wheeling Township GOP Chair slams Rauner attempt to subvert Ives endorsement: Rauner has sought to use his prodigious checkbook to boost lagging enthusiasm for him among local GOP organizations. Even his hometown, local New Trier Township GOP refused to endorse him over Ives. Of all 30 suburban Cook County townships, Rauner performed best in New Trier in a hotly-contested 2014 primary, carrying 77 percent of the vote in a four-way race against state senators Bill Brady and Kirk Dillard and then Illinois State Treasurer Dan Rutherford.
* Editorial: Voters should do the vetting in primaries: After her primary opponent Lance Yednock entered the race, Bernal said a Democratic state representative asked her to leave the contest. After the holidays, she received a series of calls with the same request. Her answer stayed the same. On Jan. 15, Bernal said she met with Yednock and a high-ranking state official at a Spring Valley attorney’s office. She again was asked to end her campaign. Bernal told The Times on Thursday she would vote against Madigan for speaker.
The frenzied final weekend of in-person campaigning supplements the nearly $65.7 million spent by candidates and interest groups on TV commercials in the governor race so far. The contest could become the most expensive race to be Illinois’ chief executive in state history.
That TV spending total — in just the primary — is more than the record $65.3 million Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner spent on his entire 2014 campaign.
* JB Pritzker was on Newsradio WJPF the other day and was asked about this now outdated graphic from the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform…
Interviewer: And they had it done in a pie chart and yours was all orange, and orange said ’self.’
Pritzker: [Three-second pause] Hehehehehe. Well, you want me to react to that?
Interviewer: Go big or go home, right?
Pritzker: Hehehehe. Well, remember that this whole campaign began in December of 2016 when Bruce Rauner wrote himself a $50 million check into his own campaign account. And then he accepted tens of millions of dollars from the Koch brothers’ right-wing network. And you know, they’re aiming at, uh, destroying labor unions and lower wages in the state, lowering workplace safety. So, I knew when I entered this race that we’d have to go fight fire with fire. Sen. Paul Simon, who is I think a hero to many of us who care about public service, once said, you know, that when you’re fighting for campaign finance reform, which I am, you can’t unilaterally disarm in the middle of it just because you’re in favor of campaign finance reform and the Republicans are spending so much money. So, I really believe that what I’ve tried to do throughout this campaign is to build the infrastructure of the Democratic Party, or at least of my campaign so that going into the general election we can win up and down the ticket for Democrats. So that’s what I’ve been doing and I’m excited about going into this Tuesday primary. I feel good about our chances. And most of all I feel good about our ability to beat Bruce Rauner in the general election.
* That’s not a bad (albeit far too-wordy explanation), but he’s also had to fend off well-funded attacks by Rauner and attacks by his opponents over stuff like this…
How can @JBPritzker say this now? "I haven't moved any money off shore and I don't invest offshore it's not apart of what I do." #ILGov
“I haven’t moved any money offshore” means “my accountant or brother-in-law did it for me” and “I don’t invest offshore” means “Well, my foundation does… and okay, trustees that I assigned also do it for me.” Translating JB’s non-denial denials is a full-time job these days. https://t.co/EWTmmSxuqG
* Meanwhile,not long ago, Chris Kennedy was bitterly complaining about all the money JB Pritzker was handing out to ward, township and county party organizations. On Friday, Kennedy’s campaign gave $2,500 to the 22nd Ward Independent Political Organization.
Ives, who once said she needed $10 million to run an effective race against Rauner, has raised nearly $4 million — including $2.5 million from conservative mega-donor Richard Uihlein of Lake Forest. In recent days, Vincent Kolber, a transportation asset manager from Chicago, loaned her $250,000 in addition to $410,000 he already had given.
Ives said Saturday she’ll have enough money to keep airing ads through Tuesday despite a fundraising email pitch from her campaign Saturday, seeking money for “our final chance to get on TV.”
* By the way, the Teamsters’ national DRIVE committee gave Speaker Madigan’s 13th Ward Organization a fat $55,400 check yesterday.
* Related…
* Pritzker Now at $70 Million, Rauner Feeling Pressure from Ives: Biss also commented on the matter and said, “JB Pritzker is trying to buy the election because Mike Madigan told him to.” … According to Rauner however, “she’s weak, weak on Madigan, weak on taxes.”
* Recognize these names? Meet the Macon County donors who gave $420,000 to political candidates
* Chicago celebrates St. Patrick’s Day: Democrat for governor Chris Kennedy said he is confident ahead of the vote. “All we have to do is reject big money and politics on Tuesday,” Kennedy said.
Love the responses people from #IL03 are sending back to these ridiculous texts. “Also, I am catholic and will be voting for Marie Newman.” ???????????????????????????????? pic.twitter.com/Tu4f6icEri
In a little neighborhood near Midway airport — with “Proud Union Home” signs scattered across tiny front yards — canvassers spread out to talk to voters about Dan Lipinski, a pro-life, Democratic congressman running in a close primary against progressive challenger Marie Newman. […]
Seventy canvassers — nearly all of whom are undergraduate students from the University of Notre Dame, Franciscan University in Steubenville, and Cedarville University — have knocked on about 23,000 doors in the district since Thursday, and they hope to reach another 5,000 before the weekend’s over. […]
Working off of SBA List models, the canvassers have reached out to moderate Democrats across the entire district — which spans much of Chicago’s southwest suburbs — targeting voters who have turned out in Democratic primaries and who are predicted to oppose taxpayer-funded abortion… But, as SBA List canvassers have discovered this weekend when talking to moderate voters, many Democrats don’t share Newman’s support for liberal abortion laws.
Notice they wrote “knocked” on the doors. Those out-of-state students didn’t reach that many people. And, of course they’re going to hear what they want to hear at the doors because they’re specifically targeting voters who are on their side. I call shenanigans on that story.
Also, the SBA List folks said they was spending “six figures” on this GOTV effort. Its last FEC filing showed it had $110,222. It’s close to election day, paranoia is super high, so some are speculating that Rauner bucks may be involved there to divert support away from Jeanne Ives. But that would be a lot of work for a very small universe - traditional Democrats in one congressional district who vote pro-life.
* Speaking of the governor’s race, here’s a Rauner campaign e-mail…
Day 2: Has the DGA Filed an In-Kind Contribution for Ives Yet?
NO.
The State Board of Elections has stated that the DGA should report their ad buy on behalf of Ives as either an independent expenditure or an in-kind contribution.
The Hill: “Dems meddle against Illinois governor ahead of GOP primary”
Politico: “Democrats meddle in Illinois GOP Primary”
Chicago Sun-Times: “Ives also got back-door support last week in the form of a TV ad released Thursday by the Democratic Governors Association”
NBC5: “The Democratic Governors are running ads to help [Ives].”
* This Cook County Board race was destined to get nasty. From Friday…
Today residents across Chicago demanded Alma Anya, Cook County Commissioner Candidate in the 7th district immediately end her campaign following the arrest of her campaign staff member [redacted by me]. [Redacted], who is the boyfriend of Alma’s campaign [redacted], was arrested by the Chicago Police Department Wednesday morning at 1AM in the West Lawn neighborhood and charged with misdemeanor theft for stealing Cook County Commissioner candidate’s Angie Sandoval yard signs. […]
According to the Chicago Police Department report, [redacted] had wire cutters in his hand and his car had more than 50 yard signs for candidate Angie Sandoval inside.
* Same day, same race, different candidate’s press release…
The Cook County Board of Ethics has confirmed that Cook County Commissioner candidate Angie Sandoval repeatedly violated campaign finance laws regarding contribution limits from contractors doing business with the County, according to new information the campaign of Alma Anaya campaign has received via a Freedom of Information Act request.
* From today…
Latino Victory Fund today slammed Angie Sandoval, candidate for Cook County Commissioner, for her desperate attempts to mislead voters and smear her opponent, Alma Anaya. Sandoval has led a concerted effort to convince voters that Jesús “Chuy” García, the frontrunner for Illinois’ 4th congressional district, supports her campaign even though he has endorsed Anaya. In a shocking display of xenophobia, Sandoval has also aired English-language ads that cast Anaya, who immigrated to the United States as a child, as an outsider, saying “she’s not from here.”
U.S. Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky and Deputy Majority and Niles Township Democratic Committeeman Leader Lou Lang will campaign with 8th District Senate Candidate Ram Villivalam at Ram for Senate HQ. Schakowsky will talk about why she endorsed Progressive Democrat Ram to change Springfield, and replace incumbent Ira Silverstein. Leader Lang is publicly endorsing Ram for Senate following his announcement yesterday. In a statement posted yesterday, Lang wrote:
“Friends, In politics, all that matters is your word. So, let’s be clear. A new campaign brochure authored and mailed by Senator Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago) claiming that I have endorsed him in his primary election is: False…Today, I endorse Ram Villivalam for the Illinois State Senate as I believe he possesses the integrity becoming of a legislator.”
Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced today that 178 teams of assistant attorneys general and investigators from her office will be monitoring primary elections throughout Illinois on Tuesday, March 20, to ensure that voters’ rights are protected and polling places are accessible.
* Moving right along, a pro-life Republican legislator asked me if I wanted a “copy of the NARAL flyer showing Jeanne as against HB40 and the governor for it at this hard R household?” Seems a bit odd that NARAL would be mailing to such a person, but, sure, I replied, send it over…
Heh.
* If the field office is supposed to be so busy, why does one of his pics show campaign workers playing Uno? I call shenanigans!…
