Pritzker, Rauner spend a combined $100 per vote cast in primaries
Colin Boyle/Daily Senior Staffer
Democratic gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker speaks at a meet and greet. Pritzker spent a total of $76.3 million on the primary campaign.
April 17, 2018
Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democratic gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker combined spent the equivalent of $100 per vote cast in last month’s primaries, setting up a possible state record of campaign spending as the two billionaires prepare for the general election in the fall, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The two men poured a total of $105.2 million into the gubernatorial primaries.
Pritzker has largely self-financed his campaign, spending $76.3 million, more than the $65.3 million Rauner spent on the 2014 governor’s race, the Tribune reported. Pritzker has spent $44.3 million on television ads and other types of media, $8.4 million on consulting, $6.3 million on salaries, $3 million on direct mail and $1 million in contributions to local Democratic organizations.
The Tribune reported that Rauner spent more than $20 million on television and radio ads, which he heavily used to attack Pritzker.
At the end of March, Pritzker donated his 10th $7 million check to his own campaign since launching last year. The Tribune said Pritzker’s decision to self-finance his campaign — as opposed to his primary opponents state Sen. Daniel Biss (D-Evanston) and Chris Kennedy, who each raised campaign funds — was a major factor in his earning the support of labor unions and some other Democratic groups.
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