2010 Gubernatorial Election Analysis

As we already know, Governor Pat Quinn won over State Senator Bill Brady, in the Governor's Race. This was surprising to many political pundits,because Senator Brady led in most of the polls. So what exactly happened? Why did Bill Brady lose this election?

Let's Break it down:

- Bill Brady's Conservative Values
- Can anyone remember the last time Illinois Residents sent a Conservative to Springfield? Former Governors Jim Edgar Jim Thompson and George Ryan were all moderates. Illinois is a moderate state that only elects moderate people. Brady's views on abortion and gay marriage negatively affected him. This was definitely the case in the Chicago Suburbs which tend to lean moderate.

-Support Within The Party
- Governor Quinn received enormous support from high-profile Democrats including President Obama. In fact, many Chicagoans received countless phone calls from Obama urging them to vote for Pat Quinn. Where was Brady's support? Obviously Illinois Republicans want to see change in their State's leadership, but there was no one to rev up the base. Brady depended too much on Tea Party support. Where were the Jim Edgar Commercials? Similar to the Edgar-Topinka Commercials in 2006. Where were the phone calls to the Republican base? The Illinois Republican Party Leaders did not show enough support.

If the Republicans chose a more moderate candidate for Governor, then they would have won the Governor's Mansion. If Judy Baar Topinka had chosen to run for Governor now instead of in 2006, she would have easily won this election.Speaking of Topinka,there's no surprise that Topinka won her State Comptroller's race. Do I smell another run at the Governor's Mansion in 2014?

State Senator Dan Rutherford finally won a statewide office. Robin Kelly ran a poor campaign against Rutherford. Kelly had zero commercials which could have benefited a no-name like herself. Plus, her being Alexi Giannoulias' Chief of Staff may not have helped her either.Rutherford's name recognition could have also played a big factor. Remember, he did run twice for Statewide Office.

There was no surprise that Lisa Madigan and Jesse White won their races in landslides. White was remembered for not signing Roland Burris' certification papers; after he was appointed as U.S. Senator by Gov. Blagojevich. Madigan was probably remembered for not endorsing Gov. Blagojevich in the last election. They have high favorable ratings among Democrats and Republicans.

Mark Kirk's win was somewhat of a surprise. With all of the Obama support ads that Giannoulias aired, many figured that democratic voters would flock to the polls for Giannoulias. However, the scandals at Broadway Bank, dominated Kirk's lies on his military record. Kirk has never been an ultra conservative and always more of a moderate.Illinois voters were familiar with Kirk and tired of Obama stepping foot in every race.Kirk was the type of candidate that would have won the Governor's mansion for the Republicans.

Overall this was a very exciting election, who knows what the next four years may bring the people of Illinois.

Hello Everyone,

As you undoubtedly know, Jake's Chicago Politics has been on hiatus for two years. I think that it is safe to say Jake's Chicago Politics is about to revive what it started in 2006. Please stay tuned for our new website that is currently under construction. There will also be a new podcast that people can download via itunes or other podcast hosting services. Until then, I will utilize this blog for political purposes.

Over the past two years, I have been focused on my school work. In fact, this past June I graduated from Lincoln Park High School and this September marked my first semester at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Since October of 2008, I have been working part-time at a local grocery store. Plus, during the last year, my Blues Career has blossomed and can be monitored at http://www.jacobschulz.com I have been very busy, but now I believe it is time to step back into the political arena!

Also, I have decided to stay out of the race for Alderman the 2011 elections. For a brief time, I mulled the possibility of declaring candidacy in the race. However, for the 2015 election, don't count me out ;)

It feels good to be back and I am ready to start working for the community again!

Sincerely,

Jacob Schulz