June 13
DOWNSTATE DIVIDE
Today on my blog I discuss the resentment that's grown among downstate voters and lawmakers who believe Chicago runs state government while the rest of the state gets the shaft. The topic is so hot that it was the subject of a panel discussion featuring former Gov. Jim Edgar last week at the University of Illinois Springfield.
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Edgar believes that, if you remove the Blagojevich years from the equation, the whole issue derives largely from perception trumping reality. But he also makes the point that it's up to the governor to dispel this perception before it gets to the state it's reached now. To me, that's a state where perception becomes reality, which leads to a cynical and uninvolved electorate. I'm curious how the various candidates for governor will address the issue.
What a timely coincidence, then, that Chicago Sun-Times cartoonist Jack Higgins addresses this very downstate-Chicago divide in his cartoon today on the just-announced candidacy of Bill Daley (see image above).
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And on Huffington Post today, former Illinois State Democratic Party press secretary David Ormsby quotes several top political consultants who raise the question of how Daley (and perhaps more imporantly, the Daley name and its Chicago implications) will play among voters outside Chicago.
Writes Ormsby: "Public affairs strategist Thom Serafin also cast doubt on Daley's drawing power outside of Chicago, 'You'd have a hard time running statewide, getting votes out of downstate.'
"Long-time Daley family ally and political strategist David Axelrod, waxed slightly more enthusiastically about Daley, but envisioned no Daley juggernaut.
"'I think in the Chicago area, the Daley name is still a great asset with all the bumps and bruises along the way,' said Axelrod."
But it's not just Daley. Despite his folksy video and frequent references to his farm work as a kid, Bruce Rauner is an Ivy League-educated Chicago billionaire who will need to do more than pay lip service to downstate voters to gain their votes. Lisa Madigan, if she enters the race, likely will face questions about how much time she'll actually spend in Springfield. And as noted in today's blog post, Gov. Pat Quinn enters his reelection bid with virtually no support from downstate, at least judging by 2010's election results.
