By Illinois Review
Republican primary voters expect their candidates to be supported by fellow Republicans – especially those who share their values and fight against the radical left’s agenda. But in the case of Ted Dabrowski, a GOP candidate for governor, nearly half of his campaign cash tells a different story.
According to Illinois State Board of Elections records, close to 50 percent of Dabrowski’s campaign donations – totaling $725,000 – have come from individuals who not only lean Democrat but actively pull Democratic primary ballots in Illinois elections.
For grassroots Republican voters, that revelation is more than troubling. It raises serious questions about Dabrowski’s loyalties, his viability in a general election, and whether his candidacy is being propped up by Democrat donors at the request of Gov. JB Pritzker, who may see him as the weakest opponent in November.
The donor records are clear. Edgar Bachrach, who gave Dabrowski’s campaign $100,000, pulled a Democratic ballot in the 2024 primary election. He also voted Democrat in the 2018, 2020, and 2022 primary elections. The last time Bachrach pulled a Republican primary ballot was 2016 – nearly a decade ago.
John Canning, another $100,000 donor, voted in just one primary election in the last nine years. That was the 2020 Democratic primary.
Noel Moore contributed $125,000 to Dabrowski and, like others, their voting record shows a clear pattern. Moore pulled a Democratic primary ballot in 2024, raising doubts about their Republican credentials.
Megan O’Keefe, who donated $100,000, also pulled a Democratic primary ballot in 2024.
And then there is James Perry, perhaps the most significant donor with $250,000. Perry voted Democrat in the 2024 primary election. His political history, however, goes even further, with a long list of donations to Democrat politicians Republican voters oppose at every turn.
On September 2, Dabrowski’s campaign reported Perry’s $250,000 contribution. But public filings show Perry has consistently bankrolled Democrat power brokers. He gave $50,000 to Lori Lightfoot during her mayoral run in 2019, despite her radical anti-police and pro-sanctuary city policies that devastated Chicago’s neighborhoods. Perry has also written checks to Alderman Bill Conway, State Rep. Margaret Croke, and Dr. Rafael Yanez – all loyal allies of the Democrat Party.
Conway was a co-author of the 2025 ordinance banning anyone convicted in connection with the January 6 protest from holding city jobs, even if they had been pardoned. That measure was a direct shot at conservatives and Trump supporters.
Rep. Margaret Croke offers perhaps the clearest example of the Democratic values supported by Perry’s money. In July, the Cook County Democratic Central Committee endorsed her for state comptroller. Two months later, she stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Gov. JB Pritzker in opposing potential National Guard deployments to Chicago, specifically targeting President Donald Trump: “I stand with Governor Pritzker and the people of Illinois for rejecting President Trump’s threats to deploy military personnel in Chicago,” she said.
Croke is proudly pro-choice and has sponsored legislation shielding abortion providers from discipline. She has championed LGBTQ+ policies, opposed Trump’s order restricting transgender medical procedures on minors, and her husband, Patrick, once served as Barack Obama’s campaign lawyer.
Perry’s dollars also flowed to Rafael Yanez, a Chicago police officer turned political activist and an appointee of Mayor Brandon Johnson to the Chicago Board of Education. Yanez is a longtime ally of Johnson and enjoys the backing of the Chicago Teachers Union – one of the most radical left-wing forces in Illinois politics.
For conservative voters, this web of connections paints a disturbing picture. How can Dabrowski credibly run as a Republican candidate for governor when his campaign is being financed by individuals who openly vote Democrat, bankroll Democrat politicians, and embrace values entirely at odds with Republican principles?
The answer may lie in Democrat strategy. Gov. JB Pritzker has already made clear that he will pour millions into defending his radical agenda in 2026. The possibility that Democrat donors are deliberately propping up Dabrowski – knowing he would be the easiest Republican for Pritzker to defeat – is not far-fetched.
Hardcore Republican primary voters understand the stakes. They show up in primaries to nominate candidates who reflect their values: protecting the unborn, defending the Second Amendment, lowering taxes, and restoring law and order. The idea that their nominee could be someone whose campaign is bankrolled by Democrats should be cause for great concern.
In the end, voters must decide: is Ted Dabrowski truly a Republican fighter, or is he a convenient pawn in JB Pritzker’s re-election strategy?
