By Illinois Review
Recent financial disclosures reveal that Illinois Democratic leaders enjoy a $33 million cash advantage headed into the November election while state Republican leaders – including embattled IL GOP chairman Don Tracy, are out promising voters major victories in a state dominated by the Democrats.
In a statement following Illinois’ March 19th primary election, Tracy excitedly wrote,
“Together, we can send President Trump back to the White House, reelect our brilliant Congressional delegation including Representative Mike Bost, and secure victories in the Statehouse to bring Governor Pritzker to the negotiating table to rework his radical agenda.”
However, state party leaders, including Tracy have yet to endorse President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for President of the United States. And just a few days ago, the IL GOP hosted a fundraiser in Naples, Florida featuring Gov. Ron DeSantis – their favored candidate during the presidential primary. And during the state party’s gala in February, no one mentioned Trump’s name on stage – a point that caught the attention of many Republicans in the audience.
The Illinois congressional delegation remains small as well, with Republicans controlling just three of the seventeen seats statewide. And in Springfield, Democrats maintain their super majority control in both the Illinois House and Senate – leaving Republicans voiceless and irrelevant on important state matters.
But recent financial disclosures reveal a more troubling fact: Illinois Democratic leaders have raised a staggering $37 million in preparation for November. By comparison, Illinois Republican leaders have only raised $4 million during the same time frame – leaving Illinois Republicans $33 million short with just eight months to go before the election.
As the financials reveal, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Don Harmon has over $12.9 million in his campaign account, while Republican Senate Minority Leader John Curran has just $1.5 million. Democrat House Speaker Chris Welch has a reported $8.1 million in his account and Republican House Minority Leader Toni McCombie is reporting just $1.1 million. Democrats for the Illinois House also report $1.5 million cash-on-hand while the House Republican Organization reports just $632,412. And the Illinois Senate Democratic Fund is reporting $2.7 million in cash while the Republican State Senate Campaign Committee has just $94,439.
In November of 2022, Tracy promised Republicans big wins, even coining the phrase, “Fire Pritzker,” but sadly, Republicans lost big time including every statewide office and winnable congressional and state Supreme Court races. The Democrats even expanded their super majority control in Springfield, leaving an embarrassed Jim Durkin, who was the Republican House Minority leader, to resign from his leadership post and later his seat.
The powerful grassroots base of the party, including this publication, have called on Tracy to resign, but party leaders continue to express confidence in his ability to raise money and win races. A $33 million fundraising deficit is a tough hill to climb, but Tracy and the ever-shrinking establishment wing of the party seem to think that the odds remain in their favor. And as Tracy wrote a week ago,
“Onward to November!”
