GOP candidates for Illinois governor hold final debate before Tuesday's
primary
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[June 24, 2022]
By Andrew Hensel | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Four of the six
candidates vying for the Illinois Republican nomination for governor met
for the final time to debate before Tuesday's primary election.
Former state Sen. Paul Schimpf, self-proclaimed outsider Jesse Sullivan,
state Sen. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, and businessman Gary Rabine all met
to answer questions about their candidacies.
Hazel Crest attorney Max Solomon and Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin were the
candidates not in attendance.
The debate featured questions about COVID-19, school policy, and how
each candidate would approach bipartisanship.
The winner of the primary election is likely to face incumbent Gov. J.B.
Pritzker in the November election. Pritzker, the billionaire heir to the
Hyatt hotel fortune, faces a relatively unknown challenger in the
Democratic primary.
Pritzker defeated one-term Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner in 2018.
While in office, Rauner faced significant obstacles pushing his agenda
in the Democratic-controlled General Assembly.
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The GOP candidates on Thursday were asked what they would do to avoid
similar obstacles as Rauner while working with Democrats on the state's
spending priorities and other legislative actions.
Bailey leaned on his experience as a lawmaker in the General Assembly
and the relationships he has formed.
"After serving two years in the House, and two years in the Senate, I am
familiar with the workings of both of the chambers, and I'm familiar
with all of the people," Bailey said. "Communication is a big part of
this."
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Entrepreneur Jesse Sullivan during a
Republican forum - BlueRoomStream
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Sullivan, a venture capitalist, said if elected he will use the
governor's executive authority to veto any legislation he feels hurts
Illinoians.
"We need to work with the legislature and that's why veto power matters
so much, that's why I will veto any new tax increase that comes across
my desk," Sullivan said. "Then we need to prioritize what actually is
important."
Schimpf said the best way to overcome that issue is by defeating
Democrats in November.
"We need a candidate that can unite the Republican Party," Schimpf said.
"We need to run on issues that are going to bring our state together and
we need to put a thumping to the Democrats at the ballot box this
November."
Rabine said he will take the same leadership approach he has taken with
his own companies.
"In my opinion, we need someone who can inspire people to go somewhere
they have never gone before, I call that a moonshot," Rabine said. "In
my business, we continuously have moonshots that take us all to places
we've never been before, when we do this we don't ask if you're a
Republican or a Democrat because we do not care."
Thursday's was the final debate before Tuesday's primary election.
Recent polling shows Bailey with a slight lead over Irvin and Sullivan,
though nearly 30% remained undecided.
Andrew Hensel has years of experience as a reporter and
pre-game host for the Joliet Slammers, and as a producer for the Windy
City Bulls. A graduate of Iowa Wesleyan University and Illinois Media
School, Andrew lives in the south suburbs of Chicago.
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