Bruce Rauner has sustained his lead in the Republican primary to run for Illinois governor despite a barrage of attacks from both sides of the aisle and a lawsuit against him filed by a coalition of labor unions. With early voting starting Monday, the effects of the attacks don’t seem to be enough to keep Rauner from securing the nomination.
Rauner has managed to hang on to the support of 35 percent of likely voters in the Republican primary according to a Feb. 25 poll by We Ask America. While the poll shows Rauner took a hit from the attack, losing about five points, he still has double the support of any other candidate. State Sen. Kirk Dillard is second in the polls, receiving 17 percent of the support. Around 20 percent of those polled are still undecided.
The attacks attempt to tie Rauner to Stuart Levine, an appointee of disgraced former Gov. Rod Blagojevich who was also convicted on corruption charges. Rauner claims he did not know that Levine was being paid by a firm in which his company, GTCR, had an ownership stake. Rauner appeared in front of the Teacher Retirement System to seek more investments for educators’ pensions while Levine sat on the board.
“(Rauner) has a long history of pay-to-play activity in his personal, professional and political life,” Dillard said during last Thursday’s debate. The accusation is also the topic of an ad paid for by political action committees (PACs) supported by a coalition of unions from around the state.
To fight back against the accusations, Rauner spent millions of dollars on an ad campaign that depicts his opponents as “career fellas” who helped establish the status quo in the state. Collectively, his opponents including Gov. Pat Quinn have 80 years in office, one ad pointed out, drawing a sharp contrast to Rauner who has never held public office. Throughout the campaign, Rauner has tried to establish his image as an outsider who will come in and shake up Springfield.
One reason the effects of the attack ads might be muted is the sheer amount of money Rauner has been able to spend to combat their message. According to a release by the State board of elections, Rauner used an additional $1.3 million of his own money for his campaign last week, bringing his total contributions to about $5 million. Including his self-financing, Rauner’s campaign has cost a total of $13 million.
In an attempt to reduce the amount of money that Rauner can access, Illinois’ American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) filed a suit that aims to limit the amount of money that he would be able to contribute to his campaign because of his ties to GTCR. The group is attempting to use a provision in the state’s procurement code that forbids any company or company official holding contracts with state agencies from making donations to a candidate that would hold an office that is responsible for awarding those contracts.
The AFL-CIO is arguing this includes Rauner giving money to his own campaign because GTCR owns companies that receive state contracts.
The Illinois AFL-CIO’s suit is part of a concentrated effort by the group who has made it a priority to derail Rauner’s campaign.
“Rauner has repeatedly and publicly attacked unions, blamed them for the state’s woes and made clear his determination to weaken the role of the labor movement in Illinois,” an Illinois AFL-CIO resolution that commits the organization to do “everything possible” to oppose Rauner’s candidacy said. “In reality, Rauner has profited handsomely from public pension fund investments, business that he garnered through political connections and questionable contributions.”
“Of the Republicans running for governor, Pat Quinn’s special interest friends are only attacking one: Bruce Rauner,” Chip Englander, Rauner’s campaign manager, said in a press release. “They know Bruce is the only real threat to the failed status quo in Springfield and will say anything to try to stop him. The people of Illinois can see right through this desperate ploy.”