CHICAGO – In a major upset, the Central Committee of the Chicago Republican Party voted 17 to 3 with 2 abstentions to back conservative challenger State Rep. Jeanne Ives (R-Wheaton) over incumbent Governor Bruce Rauner. The vote took place Wednesday evening at a general meeting of the city's Republican ward committeemen.
"It's almost unheard of for a regular Republican organization to fail to endorse an incumbent governor," said Chicago GOP Chairman Chris Cleveland. "The people in the room felt that Rauner had betrayed them."
UPDATE: Rep. Ives has since issued a response to the Chicago GOP endorsement: “I am proud to have won the confidence of the Chicago GOP. They are warriors for transparency and small government reforms in a city run almost exclusively by the Chicago Machine. Their bold advocacy will be critical to stoking the revolt, so that we can deliver the conservative reforms Illinoisans were promised in 2014, before Governor Rauner’s wholesale betrayal of the GOP."
Ives spoke to the group for nearly an hour before the vote. Governor Rauner had been invited to speak, but declined to do so. Rauner has avoided large gatherings of Republicans since signing a bill to create taxpayer-funded abortions earlier in the year.
"Jeanne impressed everyone with her determination to hit the state's problems head-on. She also showed a command of policy details," Cleveland said.
Cleveland also serves as the Ives' campaign finance chairman.
The decision by the Chicago Republican Party to back Ives is significant because of the sheer number of votes produced by the City of Chicago, the group's statement said.
"Republicans in the city produce 5% of the Republican primary vote, and 7.5% of the Republican vote in a general election. The number of Republican votes in the city is larger than the number produced by any county except Cook and DuPage. Primary voters often look to local party organizations for guidance on candidate selection."
Rauner is so far removed from the party regulars that he could not even send in a few state employees to cast votes for him. He wants to govern us, but from a distance like Evita.
Those mocking the 11th Ward are strangely silent.
Extra extra: Organization run by Ives campaign manager endorses Ives. News at 11
Rauner declines invitation to address City Republicans. News at 11.
Yup. Ironic. Tone deaf.
Bruce Rauner apparently is the only one in Illinois politics who thought Mark Kirk’s 2016 campaign strategy (denying being a Republican while seeking votes and running as a Republican candidate) was golden. Having zero enthusiasm among the party base is not a winning formula.
I am supporting Jeanne Ives for Governor and I hope you will too.
Query: When was the last time the GOP delivered the City of Chicago for its candidate?
That’s what I thought.
As I have said before, Rauner is toast. Hopefully he will get ‘toasted’ in the primary before he loses in the general election.
There was no formal endorsement. This is very misleading. I’m impartial to the candidates, but I am not a fan of fake news. They appointed members to their club picked by Mr. Cleveland. Even after the appointments they still did not have enough members in attendance to formally endorse anyone. Sad.
God bless you.
The importance of Chicago in statewide elections is to generate sufficient votes to permit candidates to offset the city Democratic vote Downstate and in the collar counties. Get back to us after you complete Poli Sci 101.
@locus:
What is sad is that an incumbent Republican governor refused an invitation to address a group of Republican committeemen (the majority of whom had been elected by Republican primary voters). This is becoming something of a pattern for Mr. “I’m Not in Charge” Rauner who is doing his best to limit his appearances before groups where he may have answer questions or defend his record.
Sean Morrison – the HERO of the pop tax repeal and champion of the people – needs to fire Chris Cleveland!
We stand with our Governor! Let’s beat Madigan!
It wasn’t a private club meeting. It was a meeting of a municipal committee of an established political party as provided for in the Illinois Election Code
10 ILCS 5/7-8(h):
The municipal central committee of each political party shall be composed of the precinct, township or ward committeemen, as the case may be, of such party representing the precincts or wards, embraced in such city, incorporated town or village. The voting strength of each precinct, township or ward committeeman on the municipal central committee shall be the same as his voting strength on the county central committee.
True, this is hardly a formidable electoral force, but you have to applaud their ardor. And you know that if the RINOs controlled it, as they had in the past, they be trumpeting an endorsement of Rauner from the top of the Willis Tower.
NOOOO… What is sad, is that the head of the Ives campaign has to beg borrow and STEAL to manufacture endorsements…
Rauner support among republicans is disappearing fast. I’m hearing some GOP township organizations will either endorse Jeanne Ives or do no endorsements to stay neutral.
A sitting Reoublican Governor has no supporters, sad but true.,
I wish Illinois Review would only allow comments with names of real people. If somebody has a connect they should have the courage to leave their name otherwise they are just a troll., Capital Fax is that way with all the comments under fake names but everybody knows they are democrat trolls..
Take a look at my story today about Jeannie Ives in Illinois Review: http://illinoisreview.typepad.com/illinoisreview/2018/01/weyermuller-attending-jeannie-ives-for-governor-event-with-mike-gallagher.html
Morrison cannot fire someone like Cleveland who was duly elected to his position. Nice try.
Should Ives “buy” her endorsements like Rauner? The only people still in his camp are paid mercenaries.
In the 2014 election, Rauner carried the 42nd Ward over Quinn and came within 125 votes of winning the 43rd Ward (Cleveland’s ward).
Sean Morrison, the unelected Cook County Commissioner?
Morrison who disinvited Rauner from his Palos township picnic last summer?
Is that the same Morrison?
What is sad is that you people never show up on this site until your campaign commands that you do so.
Schaumburg Township endorsed Rauner with 86% supporting. Ives falls flat where it matters.
Oh, Mr. Anderson –
I see you claim to “manage” Hanover Township Republicans. And you’re a conservative hater. Why do you hangout on Illinois Review?
Inquiring minds want to know why Chairman Morrison promised a December meeting of the Cook County Republican Central Committee last September, but failed to issue a call for such a meeting? Could it be that he realized that an county organization endorsement of Rauner might not be a certainty?
So now he and his deputy (Del Mar), a Rauner hireling, fault the City committee for calling a meeting and conducting a straw poll that favored Ives.
His campaign told him to do so. We won’t hear from him after the primary.