A quick take on what's happening in local politics, delivered weekday afternoons.
Like the rest of the country, 2018 was a frenetic year for Illinois' political scene, with major news stories breaking almost as fast as the turnover in President Donald J. Trump's administration. Speaking of, the mid-term elections, which sucked the air out of the room for the better part of the year, were all about the Republican president. The electorate was deeply divided over Trump and the so-called Blue Wave in response washed over Illinois. Voters shoved out one-term Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, while opening the door to another wealthy politician who's never held office: J.B. Pritzker. Democrats also increased their control in Springfield while also booting longtime GOP congressmen Peter Roskam and Randy Hultgren in the burbs. What a year. |
 With a huge hat toss to political reporter Rick Pearson, a look at the highlights in the Illinois governor's race, in chronological order: Wiretaps: In February FBI wiretaps obtained by the Tribune showed Pritzker speaking in blunt terms to now-imprisoned former Gov. Rod Blagojevich about potential African-American candidates to replace then-President elect Barack Obama in the U.S. Senate. Pritzker then went on an apology tour. Read here. Pritzker vs. Rauner: In March, Pritzker won 45 percent of the vote in a five-way primary to win the Democratic nomination for governor. Rauner eked out a 3 percentage point victory over state Rep. Jeanne Ives to win renomination in the GOP primary. Pritzker and Rauner spent a combined $105.2 million to win their respective party nominations — the equivalent of more than $100 per vote cast. Read here. Trump factor: In July, after spending much of his term trying to avoid controversies surrounding President Donald Trump or even using Trump's name, Rauner appeared in Rosemont with Vice President Mike Pence and embraced the Trump White House. Rauner called Pence one of the "greatest leaders in American history" and credited Trump, Pence and GOP congressional leaders for an economy that is "roaring today." Read here. State's blue wave: In November, a Democratic blue wave hit Illinois and Pritzker defeated Rauner as the party swept all statewide offices. Democrats Sean Casten and Lauren Underwood defeated two GOP suburban congressional incumbents and the party won expanded majorities in the Illinois House and Senate. Read here. Rauner revelation: In a post-election exit interview with WLS-Ch.7, Rauner revealed that weeks after the primary he began soliciting people — including Trump ally and RNC finance chair Todd Ricketts, part of the Cubs-owning clan — to replace him as GOP candidate for governor, further roiling a state Republican Party that had been dependent upon his cash but now looking to an uncertain future. Read here. Post-election reality: J.B. Pritzker may have bashed Trump on the campaign trail, but after his victory Pritzker accepted an invitation from the White House to talk business with other freshman governors. Pritzker looked mighty pained in front of the cameras — which may have brought some comfort to the Democratic-voting electorate that put him in office. In his own way, he suggested that to get construction projects in the state done, Illinois will have to partner with the federal government. Scroll down and read more here. |   |
 A new genre of envelope-pushing controversial TV ads debut in Illinois politics — with no successful outcome. First, Ives' ad in February against Rauner featured an actor portraying a transgender woman thanking the governor for signing a law expanding trans rights, a young woman wearing a pink protest hat thanking the governor for making Illinois families "pay for my abortions" and a hoodie-wearing man with his face partially hidden by a bandanna thanking Rauner for making Illinois "a sanctuary state for illegal immigrant criminals." Read here. Then in late October, Rauner launched an ad in which an actor portraying an officiant at a wedding between actors representing Democrats Pritzker and House Speaker Michael Madigan declares, "I now pronounce Illinois f----d." The vulgarity was bleeped out, but his lips and pronunciation of the word were clearly visible. The ad, called "Unholy Union," also raised criticism for Rauner by groups supportive of same-sex marriage. Read here. (Rick Pearson) | |
 Rauner and Pritzker spent a record $200-plus million in their bids for the state's top office. That's little more the $100 per vote. Pritzker, a wealthy heir to the Hyatt hotels fortune, largely self-funded his campaign — pumping more the $145 million into the race, while Rauner relied largely on the $50 million he put into his bank account in December 2016 along with $22.5 million in donations from Citadel CEO Ken Griffin. Read more here. | |
 Longtime Democrat and Madigan-backed politician Joe Berrios, the chair of the Cook County Democratic Party, lost his bid for re-election as county assessor to Fritz Kaegi; a political unknown making his first bid for public office. Berrios' defeat followed Tribune reports on unfairness in the county's tax assessment system. Read here. After winning the March primary, Kaegi sailed though the November general election. That said, he didn't get even some symbolic love from the county's Democratic County Party, which was run by Berrios until his defeat and taken over by longtime pal and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. Kaegi was noticeably left off the party's political palm card; handed out to voters, the cards list all the Democrats on the ballot. After he was sworn in earlier this month, Kaegi wasted no time in replacing all but one of the top executives who worked for Berrios, including several relatives and friends. Read here. | |
 The Illinois House and Senate voted in the spring to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment more than 45 years after it was approved by Congress. The measure didn't need — or get — the governor's signature. But state approval 36 years after the ratification deadline.The deadline is subjected to legal debate, but Illinois' move put the ERA one state away from possible enshrinement in the U.S. Constitution. A refresher course, here. (Rick Pearson) **On the Sunday Spin: Tribune reporter Rick Pearson's guests are Brian Bernardoni, senior director of government affairs and public policy for the Chicago Association of Realtors, and Eric Elk, founder and president of Fulcrum Illinois, a subsidiary of the Illinois Manufacturers' Association. They'll conduct a year in review roundtable interspersed with holiday music. | |
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