State Senator Kirk Dillard says there’s only one reason he didn’t win the Republican nomination for governor of Illinois last night -- Money. Illinois Public Radio's RobertWildeboer reports.
Just this week pollsters had Dillard 17 points behind the uber wealthy businessman Bruce Rauner but Dillard exceeded expectations getting 300,000 votes. That was about 20,000 short.
DILLARD: There’s no doubt that money was the absolute factor in this election. If Bruce Rauner and I had the same amount of money I would have beat him three to one.
Rauner spent more than 6 million of his own money on the race. Dillard was measured in his speech to supporters but his frustration was more evident talking to reporters after.
DILLARD: Television. Money money money, its television commercials. Bruce had a very good message that was out there. You can’t do anything as term limits as governor, you don’t have executive order power like he said, but you know, it was all about money.
Dillard was very tepid in his support for his party’s nominee saying simply that he would quote, “talk to Bruce.” Dillard says he’ll finish his term as a Senator but he won’t run for public office again. He says he does worry about middle class candidates like him being locked out of politics because of big money. He notes the two major Republican winners last night are both millionaires many times over.
DILLARD: I don’t know what kind of message that sends to men and women that take a lunch pail and work on a pick-up truck day in and day out.
Several Dillard supporters at his election night party who were long-time republicans said they weren’t sure they could vote for Rauner in the general election. Some said they might vote for Quinn and others said they might just stay home in November.
I'm Robert Wildeboer.
And I’m Tony Arnold - with some people who DO strongly support Bruce Rauner. Like John Staab - who winced when I assumed he’s a Republican
STAAB: I’m a moderate.
Staab - in a suit jacket with no tie - was slowly making his way out of the downtown Chicago hotel that hosted Rauner’s victory party. He calls it ‘refreshing’ to see someone who’s not a politician running for public office.
Rauner’s Republican opponents had called him a government insider who worked behind the scenes in Springfield without holding office. But Staab says it’s Rauner’s work experience that makes him a good fit for governor.
STAAB: He brings a business acumen to the government and I think that that business acumen will be something that’s beneficial.
And that’s something that I heard over and over again from Rauner supporters….Equating his personal wealth - to what he could do as governor of Illinois. Here’s Nora Lucas.
LUCAS: I think you should reward someone for being a success. I mean, he worked hard and I understand he’s made a lot of money, but, you know, he worked hard at it. So you gotta respect a guy that does that.
Lucas repeated another sentiment that many Rauner supporters shared about Illinois.
LUCAS: Everything’s terrible.
She points to the underfunded pensions systems...the income tax rate...and the overcrowded prisons for why everything’s terrible. She says even in a state with such a strong Democratic base - she doesn’t see how Democratic incumbent Pat Quinn could be re-elected.