Pritzker gets his wish: Bailey in November

June 29, 2022 | By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS

Republican State Senator Darren Bailey — Capitol News Illinois

State Sen. Darren Bailey, who gained statewide notoriety challenging Gov. JB Pritzker’s pandemic executive order authority in court, will be the incumbent’s challenger in the Nov. 8 general election.

“Tonight our movement sent a clear message to the establishment and the political elites: We will not be ignored,” Bailey said in a victory speech just before 9 p.m.

Bailey, a farmer from downstate Xenia, gained the endorsement of former President Donald Trump over the weekend. He surged late in the race behind at least $17 million in funding – either directly to his campaign fund or to political action committees attacking his opponent – from Republican megadonor and shipping supply magnate Richard Uihlein.

Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin, the early frontrunner in the race who received $50 million from another GOP megadonor, Citadel founder Ken Griffin, conceded at about 8:25 p.m.

The battle of billionaire benefactors which ended in Bailey’s nomination drew national attention, largely because a campaign committee that has received funding from Pritzker – the Democratic Governors Association – spent approximately $26 million to influence the Republican primary, largely on ads attacking Irvin and emphasizing Bailey’s conservative record.

The Irvin campaign pegged the total anti-Irvin or pro-Bailey spending by Democrats at about $36 million, with Pritzker’s campaign spending $6.5 million and the Democratic Party of Illinois spending $3.6 million.

In a Tuesday night concession speech, Irvin wished Bailey well, later saying, “the Republican Party must be a party of policies, not personalities.”

“We’re all here because we know that Illinois is in trouble,” Bailey said Tuesday night. “Decade after decade of mismanagement in Springfield. Back-to-back billionaire governors who don’t understand the struggles of working people. And where has that gotten us? Nowhere.”

Bailey’s nomination sets up a general election contest pitting Pritzker’s progressive track record against a candidate who is far to the right of previous leaders of the state’s Republican party.

Pritzker, meanwhile, has touted Illinois’ firmer fiscal footing since he became governor, pointing to a $1 billion contribution to the state’s “rainy day” fund, an added $500 million pension payment beyond statutory levels and about $900 million spent to pay down other interest-accruing health insurance debts.

He also gave a window into the line of attack he’d employ in the coming months against the candidate that his dollars helped to propagate in the primary.

“A few days ago, Donald Trump came to our state and he did what he does best – spew bile on the ground and hope that it takes root in our soil. And proudly standing by his side was the Republican nominee for governor of Illinois, Darren Bailey,” Pritzker said. “Let me be clear, someone who seeks out and accepts the endorsement of a racist misogynistic, homophobic, xenophobic, twice impeached former president does not deserve to come anywhere near the state’s highest office.”