Money and manpower could decide Chicago's tight mayor's race

[brooklynite]

Chicago Tribune

Chicago’s mayoral race is careening into its home stretch, and a couple of well-worn political truths are in play: Bill Daley’s big fundraising edge could enable him to carpet the airwaves with ads pushing his message, and Toni Preckwinkle’s key union backing gives her a formidable ground game to try to lock in her support in the final days and get out the vote.

How the rest of the field counters those advantages could go a long way to determining who emerges from the tight scrum on Feb. 26.

For Daley, the path to making the one-on-one April runoff election is clear: leverage his more than $7.2 million war chest — recently topped off with $1 million from hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin — to outspend his opponents, particularly on television.

Daley already has spent $1.9 million on broadcast TV ads, plus at least another $115,672 on less expensive cable ads, according to reports filed by television stations and the cable industry as of Friday.

[pangaia]

1. "...... recently topped off with $1 million from hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin .."

One person, one vote.. YUP !!

[lunasun]

2. So pissed how this primary went down and i am not the only voter

Rahm announced very late in 18 to declare he would not run again and also waited til his biggest challenger (who assumed Rahm would remain) ran for Gutierrez district house seat .
A clear Chicago dem machine plan to make sure that a progressive and a reformer will not get in especially anyone left from
Harold Washington days

[frazzled]

3. It was 5 1/2 months ago, on September 4

Almost 6 months before the election. Lightfoot, Vallas, Enyia and several others were already in, though not actively campaigning yet. And they were not likely to get much fundraising leverage before that time. (We were invited to a Lightfoot meet and greet/fundraiser at a colleague’s house in late summer, but it was cancelled for unknown reasons.)

The main problem is that campaigning for mayor here never starts until after the November federal/state elections. And then the period from Thanksgiving to the New Year does not see much active campaigning at all. The real issue has always been holding the election in February, where people do not want to get out to vote in the cold. It’s ridiculous. There are only two months, in essence to go public with issues and campaigns. Low turnout is almost a given.