Pritzker and Bailey Prepare to Go Head-to-Head in Only Debate
Gov. JB Pritzker and then-Sen. Darren Bailey make notes before a televised debate in 2022. (Photo: Chicago Tribune)
Governor JB Pritzker and his Republican opponent, former State Senator Darren Bailey, square off Tuesday night in their only televised appearance of the fall campaign.
The two will meet on Chicago public television station WTTW in what is being branded as a “forum” instead of a traditional debate.
It is the only appearance the Pritzker campaign agreed to. Sources say at least four televised Chicago debates were offered to the two campaigns.
Pritzker’s campaign wouldn’t say how much debate prep the Governor has been immersed in. We’re told Bailey spent much of Monday afternoon and the weekend in debate prep.
The campaigns did give a preview of what they expect in tonight’s showdown.
“Governor Pritzker will lay out his record of delivering for Illinois families, lowering costs on everything from healthcare to energy to groceries, protecting our rights and freedoms from Donald Trump and his MAGA allies, and providing steady fiscal leadership that has yielded 12 credit upgrades and eight balanced budgets,” said Pritzker campaign spokesperson Leah Hurwitz. “He’ll outline his vision to continue building on the progress made in the past eight years.”
Bailey campaign manager Jose Durbin suggested Bailey will go hard after Pritzker.
“We look forward to tomorrow night’s debate and the opportunity to hold JB Pritzker accountable for his record,” Durbin said. “For once, Governor Pritzker will have to answer tough questions about the decisions he’s made over the last eight years. Illinois families deserve answers, not political talking points.”
In a race where Pritzker is vastly outspending Bailey’s underfunded campaign and a poll last week showed the incumbent leading by 20 points, what should we expect from the candidates on stage?
“I don’t know what’s gonna change the broader narrative,” said former Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady.
He expects Pritzker to play it safe.
“Just play error-free ball and stay on the state issues,” Brady said. “It will air live in the Chicago market. Pritzker won Cook County by 720,000 votes, which was basically enough for him to overcome anything Bailey could do in the 101 other counties. So just stay calm, smile, and he’s going to catch a lot of incoming. Don’t let it get under your skin.”
Former Republican Rep. Mark Batinick said Bailey needs to come out swinging.
“Bailey has to make this debate a referendum on Pritzker’s record. After two terms with Democrats controlling the legislature, Illinois has some of the nation’s highest property and gas taxes, and more than half of voters say they would leave if they could,” he said. “When your residents want an exit, you shouldn’t get a promotion to a third term.”
Democrats appear slightly split on what to expect from Pritzker.
Longtime Democratic strategist Tom Bowen says the debate won’t change the outcome of the November 3 election.
“He’s going to win by twenty points no matter what happens,” Bowen said.
But Democratic strategist Thom Serafin says Pritzker needs to be more careful to avoid any major missteps.
“[This] forum rewards calm competence over combat,” he said. “PBS forums reward reward comfortable smiles and friendly chatter with the host and Bailey. With a large lead, [Pritzker] needs to protect it by answering tax, spending, and property tax attacks with results. [He can point to] credit upgrades and the shift from structural deficits rather than matching Bailey’s tone, while treating affordability frustration as real instead of dismissing it. Do not argue that Illinois is perfect. Argue that Illinois is making measurable progress and that voters should continue moving forward rather than change course based on promises that may not be achievable.”
Tom DeVore a southern Illinois attorney, 2024 GOP nominee for Attorney General, conservative activist, and staunch Bailey supporter said Bailey needs to motivate voters that don’t reliably vote Republican to turn out.
“A Bailey win is two things: walk out without giving Pritzker’s team a single clip they can turn into an ad, and give low-propensity Republican voters a reason to show up in November,” he said. Realistically, the debate is only about not giving them a clip. The low-propensity Republicans Bailey needs aren’t paying attention to a debate. And even if he had a great moment, the Republican Party doesn’t have the infrastructure to get it in front of those voters.”
The debate will not include Independent candidate Collin Corbett, who was excluded from the debate by WTTW last week after a poll was commissioned by a small, weekly, Pritzker-friendly outlet on Chicago’s southside.
Corbett alleged collusion between the Pritzker campaign and WTTW. The station’s debate criteria required 15% support in an independent poll. Corbett tallied 6%.
(Disclosure: Corbett is a personal friend and has been treated like every other candidate.)
“JB Pritzker doesn’t want me on the debate stage. He wants a one-on-one with Darren Bailey, because he knows he can handily beat Bailey,” Corbett wrote in an e-mail to supporters Monday. “Voters of Illinois are being denied an opportunity to hear mainstream, common sense solutions to the problems we face, all because our Governor is too weak to handle a real debate.”
WTTW’s Brandis Friedman will moderate the forum.
The station says the program will not follow a traditional debate structure. There are no opening or closing statements. Answers are not timed. The station said the moderator will use “fairness as their guide.” We’re told candidates won’t get the exact same questions but both will have an opportunity to speak about each subject.
