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 The gubernatorial race between Democratic
incumbent Pat Quinn and challenger state Sen. Bill Brady,
R-Bloomington, was still too close to call at 10:55 p.m.
Tuesday.
With 95 precincts reporting, the Chicago
Tribune reported Quinn with 46.6 percent and Brady with 46.1
percent. Neither candidate had made an appearance yet, although
Brady allowed photographers to take photos of him, his wife,
Nancy, and running mate Jason Plummer in a fifth-floor suite of
the hotel.
Chicago's Hotel Allegro was buzzing with
campaign workers, state lawmakers and Quinn voters as the crowd
waited for some indication of how the election will turn out.
"I'm hoping the results will be in within
the next hour, but we'll have to wait and see," said Dan Cain, a
currently unemployed Chicago native.
Early poll returns showed Quinn with a
lead, although ballots from Chicago, Cook County and the
surrounding areas were among the first counted. Brady
spokeswoman Patty Schuh said Brady
was holding his own in Cook and suburban counties and that
downstate precincts -- Brady's stronghold -- were slow in
reporting.
Voter turnout could be the key to the race,
but election officials were predicting the usual 50 percent
turnout of the state’s 7.4 million registered voters
historically found in Illinois' gubernatorial elections.
In the days leading up to Election Day,
President Barack Obama made appearances with Quinn and state
Treasurer Alexi
Giannoulias, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate.
Illinois Democrats were hoping for a carryover effect from the
2008 presidential election, when Democrats at both the federal
and state levels were overwhelming winners in the polls.
But Republicans are hoping to take
advantage of voter frustration with a struggling economy and
sustained one-party control over state government. Illinois
Democrats have had control of all six constitutional offices and
both chambers of the legislature since 2002.
House Democrats hold a 70-48 edge. For
Republicans to gain control of that chamber, they would need to
gain 12 seats. In the Senate, Democrats hold a 37-22 edge. It's
doubtful the Democrats will lose their majority, but they could
lose their veto-proof majority of 36 seats. Legislative seats
are crucial in this upcoming legislative session since the
state's legislative and congressional map will be drawn
according to what party is in control.
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About 250-300 supporters joined 30 news media
outlets at Brady's headquarters in a Bloomington hotel. A few of the
notables on hand to support Brady were state Sen. Tim
Bivens, R-Dixon; Rep. Mike
Bost, R-Murphysboro; Rep. Rich
Brauer, R-Petersburg; Rep. Dan Brady,
R-Bloomington; and Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady.
Early in the evening Pat Brady predicted a
Republican win, saying the new year would
see Bill Brady as governor and House Minority Leader Tom Cross,
R-Oswego, as speaker of the Illinois House.
Bivens said if
Brady wins, he will draw upon his background as a builder and real
estate agent.
"I expect him to run the state like a
business," Bivens said.
Hundreds of supporters gathered at Chicago's
Hotel Allegro, Quinn's campaign headquarters, awaiting news of the
results.
One of those supporters was Will
Attig of Carbondale.
Attig, a military veteran and Purple
Heart recipient, had served in Iraq and Afghanistan before returning
home without a job. Attig, now a welder,
said Quinn helped veterans like himself get a job.
"We came home, we had no future,
we have no jobs. He's decided to give us
a new pair of boots, work boots, so we could get to work here in
southern Illinois. He's the man for the job," he said.
Political veterans, such as U.S. Sen. Roland
Burris, D-Ill., former state Senate President Emil Jones Jr. and
several Chicago Democrat lawmakers, also made appearances in support
of the Democratic incumbent.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By KEVIN LEE and MARY MASSINGALE]
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