By Illinois Review
Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin faced an upset as he was defeated in his bid for a third term, losing to Alderman John Laesch 52-47.
“We fought hard. Unfortunately, we came up short,” Irvin told a group of gloomy supporters at his election night party headquarters.
Irvin, who was the Illinois Republican establishment’s choice for governor during the 2022 primary election, is a revered figure within state party ranks. Former IL GOP chairman Don Tracy, who resigned in disgrace after overseeing a series of widespread and humiliating election losses, often referred to Irvin as the “future” of the Illinois Republican Party.
State party officials have even floated Irvin’s name as a potential U.S. Senate candidate in 2026.
Irvin infamously lost the Republican primary election by 43 points to the Trump-endorsed candidate, despite billionaire Ken Griffin dumping $50 million into his race. Irvin enjoyed the support of every rank and file Republican leader in the state – but that support turned out to be a curse and doomed his campaign from the start.
Despite Gov. JB Pritzker and the Democratic Party’s support for his opponent, Irvin has had a friendly relationship with the Democratic governor over the years.
Prior to running for governor in 2022, Irvin spent years praising Pritzker, referring to him as a, “great friend and a great leader.”
In 2020, Irvin spoke at a Black Lives Matter rally yelling, “I can’t breathe!”
It was also discovered that he pulled Democratic primary ballots in 2014, 2016 and 2020 before running in the Republican primary in 2022. And it was reported by WTTW’s Paris Schutz that in 2018, Irvin sent text messages calling Trump an “idiot” and a “bigoted racist.” Irvin also texted the friend, “I hate Trump too!”
During Irvin’s concession speech, he said this “wasn’t the end, but the beginning.”
Irvin then concluded his speech by borrowing a phrase used repeatedly by civil rights activist Rev. Jesse Jackson during a speech in 1963 – shouting into the microphone,
“I am somebody. I am somebody. I am somebody. Aurora! Aurora! Aurora! I love you all. Good night.”
And goodbye.
