We all know that former Gov. Bruce Rauner was outspent by our new Gov. J.B. Pritzker during the 2018 campaign. But the actual numbers are pretty darned eye-opening.
During the final three months of last year, Pritzker reported spending $37.2 million. Rauner, on the other hand, spent just $7.1 million — less than a fifth of his Democratic rival’s expenditures.
Overall, Pritzker’s campaign committee spent $173.1 million since its formation in March 2017.
Of that, Pritzker’s committee contributed $28.1 million to other candidates and spent $145 million on Pritzker’s campaign. Pritzker reported spending a grand total of $90 million on media buys.
Starting in March 2017, Rauner reported spending $78.6 million, about 45 percent of Pritzker’s amount.
Of that, Rauner’s campaign contributed $15.9 million to other campaigns and committees, a little over half of what Pritzker spent. Rauner spent $62.7 million on his own candidacy, 43 percent of what Pritzker spent. Rauner’s campaign reported spending a total of $41.1 million on media buys, which was less than half what Pritzker spent.
After last March’s primary (starting April 1), Pritzker’s campaign reported spending $104.7 million, including $27.1 million in transfers to other committees and $77.6 million on Pritzker’s own effort. Some $47.5 million of that was spent on media buys. He spent another $7.4 million on salaries and payroll costs, which gave him a veritable army.
During that same period, Rauner’s campaign spent $41.6 million (40 percent of Pritzker’s spending), including $8.4 million to other committees (31 percent of Pritzker’s spending) and $33.2 million on himself (43 percent of what Pritzker spent). Rauner’s campaign spent $20.8 million on media buys (44 percent of Pritzker’s spending) and $2.7 million on salaries and payroll costs (just 36 percent of Pritzker’s spending).
Rauner essentially got smothered in every possible way.
By the way, Rauner ended the year with $801,000 in the bank, far less than rumors suggested.
Looking forward, one of the biggest questions facing Republican legislators is where their campaign money will come from. Not only did their primary contributor depart the scene, but after losing so many seats last year combined with the possibility that President Trump will be at the top of the ballot in 2020, who’s gonna give them any cash?
And it’s not like they have a comfy money cushion built up, either.
The House Republican Organization ended the fourth quarter with just a bit over $76,000 in the bank. The Republican State Senate Campaign Committee had a mere $29,000 at the end of the year. Yes, you read that right.
House Republican Leader Jim Durkin ended the year with $826,000 in his personal campaign account and Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady ended with $315,000. So, they have more than crumbs, but it’s still not a pleasant situation.
On the other hand, House Speaker Michael Madigan ended the year with almost $7.9 million in his personal campaign account and about $3.4 million in his Democratic Majority account. He had expected the Republicans to spend more than they did, so he piled up as much cash as possible. He now begins the next election cycle with a gigantic advantage.
Things are quite a bit tighter for Senate President John Cullerton, whose personal account had about $261,000 in it while the Senate Democratic Victory Fund had about $447,000. But he’s in the majority so, unlike the Republicans, raising money should not be a problem.
The Democratic Party of Illinois ended the year with about $1.4 million in the bank. The Illinois Republican Party finished with $313,000. The Illinois GOP is going to have to be frugal until it can raise some dough.
Rauner has been the state GOP’s most reliable donor. The former governor contributed $36.9 million to the state party since June 13, 2014. The party raised another $20 million or so on top of that, but a large chunk was pass-through cash from the two legislative caucuses for direct mail costs.
The unofficial leader of the Republican Party’s wealthy Chicago-area “donor class” was Ron Gidwitz. He helped raise a ton of money for his party over the years. But Gidwitz is now the U.S. ambassador to Belgium, so he can’t do them any good.
Bottom line: The Republican Party in this state is in very dire straits.
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(2) comments
Oh no, now what are neoliberal Democrats and their supporters going to use as a boogeyman to keep people from voting Green in Illinois?
The majority of members of Congress are millionaires — 271 of the 533 members currently in office, or 50.8 percent. And seven of ten richest members of congress are democrats; yet in its aggregate, it’s a healthy mix of both parties. If you’re not a millionaire going into politics, there is a path to become one. Think community organizer Barack Obama but even he was educated at an elite university. We have a billionaire for a president too. Unfortunately, politics is dependent upon wealth.
More and more of the uberwealthy are running for political offices. In fact, it’s nearly impossible for an average Joe to afford to run. The political system is unfair and unjust. One has to be a part of the upper class or at minimum attended an elite university, be friends with influential business owners and suck up to wealthy donors. Economics drive the political process and given the lack of any measurable campaign finance reform, running for an office is a privileged generally reserved for the wealthy.
During the Republican heydays of Jim Thompson and Jim Edgar, funding was accomplished by squeezing state employees for campaign donations; often times during the workday with a wink and a nod. Political war chests at that time were nowhere near what are amassed these days. Sure some businesses contributed to their favorite politician but the amounts were minuscule compared to the funds hoarded by today’s political leaders.
Both political parties love millionaires. Just look at Rauner’s and Pritzker’s ascension to the governor’s office. They crushed and smothered their opponent with money. Blagojevich did the same to Topinka. Without adequate campaign reform, we will continue down the road of transitioning from a democracy to a corporatocracy.
I used to be concerned about the influence of labor’s money on politicians. Not so much anymore. In 2016 labor unions donated more than $132 million to super PACs and spent an additional $35 million on federal elections. This figure is dwarfed by that of corporations and billionaire money. This country’s richest individuals from both sides of the aisle wildly outspent labor. In fact, the top five donors to super PACs in the 2016 election are all billionaires or, at least, worth nine figures. These donors combined to give more than $210 million ― more than all reported election spending by labor unions. In total, super PAC donations by rich people giving more than $500,000 topped $757 million by Oct. 19, 2016. That’s nearly six times the amount donated by labor. Names like Steyer, Adelson and Sussman own and co-own many of our political leaders.
Yes, the Republican Party in Illinois is in very dire straits. But I’m confident they will find a buyer. Thirteen Illinois residents made the cut this year for the Forbes 400, a list of the country’s wealthiest people. Ken Griffin, CEO of the hedge fund Citadel, was number one in Illinois and ranked 45th nationwide. Griffin was up seven places from last year with a net worth of $10 billion. And there is Illinois billionaire businessman Richard Uihlein too. The party is at a low point right now not holding a single statewide office. Buy low, sale high as they say so I’m convinced a sale will eventually take place.
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