CARY, Ill. — From Danville to Des Plaines, it’s the final lap Monday for GOP primary candidates for governor.
State Senator Darren Bailey, who over the weekend won former President Trump’s endorsement, is closing out the campaign expected to cruise to victory on Tuesday.
Public and private polls show Bailey with a commanding lead over his rivals for the GOP nomination.
“Many times there’s this question that’s being asked can a conservative, Republican, downstate farmer really win? Friends, the answer is absolutely because then we need to follow that up with another question,” Bailey said. “When is the last time that Illinois had a true conservative Republican governor?”
In recent weeks, as his campaign seemed to run out of gas, Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin sharpened his attacks on Bailey, warning the downstate farmer is going to have a difficult time against J.B. Pritzker in November.
Irvin, a moderate whose backers believe he could win over independents and some Democrats in the general election, began the race with funding from billionaire Ken Griffin and an air of inevitability.
“J.B. Pritzker is most fearful of me. I’m his worst nightmare. He knows it,” Irvin said.
But an onslaught of negative ads by GOP rivals, the Pritzker campaign and allies knocked Irvin off course.
Last week, Griffin announced he’s moving his family and his hedge fund to Miami. When asked if Irvin has any regrets, he said he does not.
“Oh, absolutely not. Reaching out and talking to people throughout the state of Illinois that I’ve never met in my life, going to places and talking about what their issues are and how we can work together and how I can address their issues that has been an amazing experience,” he said.
In the meantime, venture capitalist Jesse Sullivan appears to be closing strong spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on TV ads over the last few days.
“People want a true conservative who can win and Richard Irvin, even with all the money in the world, cannot convince people he’s a real conservative,” Sullivan said.
Also in the race are businessman Gary Rabine, former state senator Paul Schimpf and attorney Max Solomon.
Polls open beginning at 6 a.m. on Tuesday.