With barely 24 hours to go before Republican voters in Illinois choose a nominee for governor from four candidates, one thing they agree on is that he must be able to defeat two-term Democrat incumbent JB Pritzker.
So in the twilight days of the race, "electability" is the word most often used among supporters of the four contenders who hope to face billionaire Pritzker, a potential 2028 presidential candidate.
The last independent survey in the race was taken in January, when an Emerson poll showed 2022 nominee and former state Sen. Darren Bailey with 34% among likely GOP voters and none of his three opponents above 10%.
The same survey, however, showed 46% of GOP voters undecided and, Newsmax found, there are strong signs they want someone other than Bailey, a strong conservative and Trump supporter who managed only 42% against Pritzker in 2022.
"We want someone who can beat Pritzker and the candidate increasingly demonstrating that he can is Ted Dabrowski," conservative radio talk show host and former state Rep. Jeanne Ives told us, referring to the head of the conservative public policy group Wirepoints who is increasingly considered Bailey's leading opponent.
Of Polish and Ecuadorian heritage, Dabrowski, in Ives' words, "is running on major change — lower taxes, vouchers for education, capping property taxes at one percent, and barring DEI from classrooms. His agenda will appeal to the donor class as well as to the middle class."
Rounding out the race are DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick, a strong law-and-order proponent and backer of the SAVE America Act to require identification to vote, and multimillionaire Rick Heidner, whose campaign was seriously wounded after revelations that he had contributed to Democrats such as Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson.
Although there is no clear front-runner, it appears Prairie State Republicans will unite behind the eventual nominee to try to stop Pritzker before he becomes a presidential contender.
John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.
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