So, Bruce Rauner is the new governor of Illinois.
I love politics. Forget the circus, I think politics is the greatest show on Earth. If watching election coverage last Tuesday wasn’t enough, watching the analysis coverage after it was.
One of the most interesting things about last Tuesday’s election night was how long it took for Governor Pat Quinn to concede the race.
I can understand Quinn wanting to let all the votes be counted before he formally conceded.
For most of the night it was really close and I was thinking that there would be some sort of recount that would have to happen.
However, by the end of the night Bruce Rauner had a massive surge in votes and it became more and more apparent that Rauner was the likely winner of this contest.
NBC was among the first local television stations to call the race in favor of Rauner. I checked online and saw that CNN had called the race in favor of Rauner as well.
Rauner, knowing how close this race would be, did not come out and make a formal victory speech until the Associated Press called the race in his favor.
Shortly thereafter, the Associated Press did indeed call the race in favor of Rauner.
A speech was made we heard a lot of the same stuff we’d all heard in every single political ad over the weeks and months leading into the election.
Late in the day Wednesday, Quinn finally realized the numbers weren’t there and threw in the towel.
Quinn had every reason to be hesitant to wait. In 2010, Quinn beat his Republican challenger Bill Brady by less than %1. This race, however, never came down to those kinds of numbers.
This past election Tuesday was particularly important to Democrats all around the country as Republicans posed a serious threat in the Senate.
Losing the governorship in a state that is primarily Democratic is also a poor reflection on the Democratic Party.
Some wonder if Rauner’s election means that Illinois is less of a blue state and more of a purple state. I think not.
Dick Durbin creamed Jim Oberweis in the race for US Senate. Lisa Madigan was re-elected to the position of Attorney General and her father Mike Madigan still looms large over the state.
It will be interesting to see if Rauner will turn Springfield around, as he promised – get the state out of debt, out the career politicians, and lower the unemployment rate.
If he doesn’t, I think that Democrats won’t have a lot to worry about (though the people of Illinois will if this state doesn’t turn around in some capacity).
Rauner ran hard on the platform that he would change the state.
That’s a very definite platform and one that doesn’t allow for a lot of elbow room if he fails to accomplish any of the things that he had promised to.
People will remember the sound clips of him saying, “We’re going to shake up Springfield.”
Those clips could be the very same that will be thrown right back into his face if he falls prey to becoming that which he once fought against.
It’s a razors edge that Rauner is walking on.
He made big promises and bold statements. Not delivering on those promises could prove problematic for Rauner in the future.
I’m not trying to wish the guy any bad luck.
I think that no matter which party wins, even if you didn’t vote for them, you should still wish them a certain level of success. In a way, if they fail, America fails.
People are fickle and it’s hard to predict the future especially when it comes to politics, but Rauner has a lot on his plate and he put it there.
Brian Laughran
Editor-in-Chief
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