A Republican candidate for governor of Illinois has $25 million more in his coffers this week to support his bid to oust Democrat incumbent Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
Chicago billionaire Ken Griffin ponied up the extra cash to hopefully push Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin into the governor’s mansion and asserted he was “all in,” according to Fox Business.
In fact, the recent contribution reflects a doubling down by the founder and CEO of Citadel hedge fund after he initially gave $20 million to campaign efforts as part of his opposition to Pritzker’s support for a graduated rate tax system, the Chicago Tribune reported last fall.
As the most wealthy Illinois resident, Griffin said he’s ready to fight tooth and nail against the current governor’s policies.
“I’m going to make sure that if he runs again, that I am all-in to support the candidate who will beat him,” Griffin said in late 2021. “He doesn’t deserve to be the governor of our state.”
NEW campaign contribution filing in the Illinois Governor’$ race: Republican @IrvinBourne4IL banks another $25 million from Ken Griffin. pic.twitter.com/fW2arC6Gj2
— Amanda Vinicky (@AmandaVinicky) May 5, 2022
But dollars may not spell victory as the Prairie State’s voting record has been dyed blue for each and every presidential voting record since 1992.
The previous Republican Governor Bruce Rauner served a single term before Pritzker took over the governorship in 2018 with a 15.7 percent margin of victory.
To further aggravate the possibility of a conservative win, fellow billionaire Pritzker, worth an estimated $3.6 billion, isn’t shy about dropping his own funds to secure his seat, having spent $171 million the first time around and $125 so far on his second campaign.
Money aside, Irvin asserted in a recent campaign ad that he is the left’s “worst nightmare.”
(Video Credit: Irvin & Bourne For Illinois)
“There is nothing that the left fears more than Republicans who look like me, and think like us,” he said.
“That all lives matter, that cops should be defended, not defunded,” he continued. “That handouts keep people down, but maybe that’s what liberal politicians want.”
“I’m Richard Irvin, and I’m their worst nightmare,” he said.
But not everyone saw it the same way as Irvin with many laughing off the latest campaign contribution as a “waste of money” while others predicted it may just land a conservative victory in the predicted red wave that is set to sweep the country in this year’s elections.
Ha! Talk about wasting money!
— H.J. (@Hamilton_Jonson) May 5, 2022
the Incumbent Governor of NJ had a 55% approval rating (higher than what Pritzker has had) and came within 3% of losing to an underfunded candidate in a Biden +16 state
if R turnout is sky high, can overcome almost anything.
— Chris (@ctsfumo) May 6, 2022
in very good R environments (when swing voters don’t like the incumbent Dem president and R base voters are crazy fired up to vote) it takes lots of money and ground game to beat well funded candidates (Irvin’s gonna have more than almost any Gov candidate in history)
— Chris (@ctsfumo) May 6, 2022
Clearly he’s made his bet. Too early in my opinion but it is his money.
— RLD Jr (@rldesmondjr) May 5, 2022
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