J.B Pritzker, D-Chicago, rallied supporters as he presented
his case to be the next governor of Illinois on State Fair Democrat Day, held
at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Springfield on Aug. 16.
Pritzker was in the
midst of a four-day, 20-stop bus tour across Illinois, where he stumped for
statewide candidates alongside running mate Rep. Juliana Stratton, D-Chicago,
U.S. Senator Dick Durbin and Treasurer Michael Frerichs.
In a speech to over 1,000
people in attendance, Pritzker shared a quote by civil rights icon Ida B. Wells
to tie in problems plaguing Illinoisans. “A century ago, a black woman named
Ida B. Wells rose to the front lines of the movement for civil rights and
became a force in fighting the injustices of her time,” he said. “Wells wrote, ‘The
way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them.’ As Illinois
Democrats, we believe in shining the light of truth upon the wrongs of the
world and working to set them right.”
Pritzker went on the
offensive against his opponent, Gov. Bruce Rauner, criticizing the governor’s
management of the state’s affairs for the last three years. “It’s wrong when a
governor refuses to address or give voice to the challenges facing people
across the state of Illinois,” he said. “When he does speak up, however, it’s
not to stand up to President Donald Trump when he’s taking away health care
from millions, or equating white supremacists with civil rights marchers. No,
when Bruce Rauner speaks up, it’s an attack on the people of Illinois.”
Pritzker then asked
the crowd to continue their support as the campaign trail heats up in the
coming weeks and months. “Over the next 82 days, we have to work our hearts out
by getting every Democrat out to the polls,” he said. “We also have to invite
Independents and Republicans to join us in the battle to retake our state and
nation from an unhinged governor and his pals in the White House.”
Prizker is comfortably
ahead in the polls against the governor. According to a recent poll from
Victory Research, Pritzker leads Rauner by 11 points, 41-30. “Bruce Rauner
virtually called teachers illiterate, and managerially incompetent,” he said.
“Well let me tell you who’s managerially incompetent. It’s a governor who can’t
pass a budget and wastes a billion dollars of your taxpayer dollars.”
Pritzker talked about
his role in stabilizing the Democrat Party’s infrastructure heading into the
fall. “This is about what we ought to be doing right in the Democratic Party
and that’s making sure that we’re competing for voters all across this state
and across every single county,” he said. “Building an infrastructure for our
party means that we’re helping candidates running for local offices, that we’re
knocking on doors, gathering volunteers, and we’re going to double up on that
for the general election.”
According to Illinois
Board of Elections, going back to the 1976 General Election, no Democratic
gubernatorial challenger has won in Sangamon County. Despite the
disproportionate numbers, Pritzker said that Rauner’s rhetoric has caused so
much dissension within the Republican Party that he believes areas that are
generally in favor of the GOP are up in the air come November. “It’s not working
well for the governor dividing the state,” he said. “In fact, he’s so divisive
that he’s divided his own party. The truth is, Democrats are united, and people
feel like this is one Illinois, and you need a governor who is extolling the
virtues of that unity across the state.”
Alex Camp is a master’s degree graduate in Public Affairs Reporting
from University of Illinois Springfield. He is currently a freelance
journalist. Contact him at acamp4@uis.edu.
This article appears in Aug 23-29, 2018.
