Pritzker Outspends Bailey 25:1 in Third Quarter as Dems Continue Money Tsunami
A screenshot of a Pritzker TV ad attacking GOP candidate Darren Bailey
Campaign finance reports filed Thursday show Democrats burying Republicans in a blizzard of spending in the fall campaign.
It was most notable in the race for governor, where Gov. JB Pritzker, who is seeking his third term, outspent his Republican challenger, former Sen. Darren Bailey, more than 25:1 in the third quarter.
Pritzker’s campaign spent $23.7 million in the third quarter of the year alone. $12.75 million of that spending went to media buys. Pritzker, as previously reported, gave his campaign $65 million during the third quarter.
Bailey, in contrast, raised about $1.2 million in the quarter, including a $50,000 loan from the candidate. Bailey’s largest individual contributor was downstate construction company owner Sheldon Schulte, who gave the campaign $24,000. Conservative megadonor Richard Uihlein, who gave Bailey $12 million in direct funding and spent $40 million on an outside group in 2022, contributed $6,900 in June.
Bailey’s campaign spent about $940,000 during the quarter. It appears his only direct voter contact expenses were $6,000 for digital billboards and $2,500 for text messages. No ads have run on television or digital.
“It’s an embarrassment,” said one top Republican operative, who asked to speak anonymously. “No Republican was going to outspend Pritzker, but if run a campaign for governor that doesn't even air a TV ad, you’re going to lose and you’re going to lose by a lot.”
Independent candidate Collin Corbett raised around $41,000 in the quarter and spent around $386,000. He closed September with around $35,000 in the bank.
The Democratic spending dominance extends to legislative races, too.
House Speaker Chris Welch raised $7.6 million in his personal account. His Democrats for the Illinois House committee raised $7.4 million in the quarter, which was boosted by $5 million from Welch’s personal account.
House Democrats spent $3.9 million in the third quarter and finished September with $4.8 million cash on hand.
It dwarfs the fundraising of their Republican counterparts.
House GOP Leader Tony McCombie (R-Savanna) raised around $1.3 million in the third quarter for her personal account. The House Republican campaign arm raised around $1.6 million for the quarter. $1 million of it came from McCombie.
The House GOP caucus spent around $1.3 million in the quarter. About $825,000 of it went to digital advertising.
The House GOP was left with around $240,000 cash for the final month-plus of the cycle.
The story was much the same in the Senate.
Senate President Don Harmon raised $5.1 million for his personal account. The Senate Democratic caucus raised $5.9 million for the quarter, including a $5 million transfer from Harmon’s personal campaign account.
Senate Dems spent $5.3 million in the quarter. More than half of that went directly to Senate campaigns or to the Democratic Party of Illinois for direct mail.
The caucus began October with around $2.3 million in the bank.
Senate Republican Leader John Curran (R-Downers Grove) raised around $1.5 million for the quarter. Of the $3,064,073.24 raised by the Senate Republican caucus account in the third quarter, $3 million of it came directly from Curran.
The Senate GOP spent $2.6 million for the quarter and were left with around $467,000 in the bank for the final stretch run.
