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2 Years Before Election, Illinois Governor Beefs Up His Campaign Chest

Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, nearly two years away from Election Day 2018, deposited $50 million into his campaign account this week in what party operatives billed as a "first installment" in the effort to win a second term for the wealthy former venture capitalist.

By Kim Geiger and Monique Garcia

Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, nearly two years away from Election Day 2018, deposited $50 million into his campaign account this week in what party operatives billed as a "first installment" in the effort to win a second term for the wealthy former venture capitalist.

The contribution -- nearly double what Rauner spent personally on his entire 2014 campaign -- is an early indication of the massive amount of money that's expected to be spent on the 2018 election, even as it remains unclear who will emerge on the Democratic side to challenge him.

Made Tuesday and disclosed Thursday, the contribution comes as the Illinois Republican Party has already launched pre-emptive strikes against two Democrats considered potential contenders -- J.B. Pritzker, an entrepreneur and investor from a well-known Chicago family, and Chris Kennedy, a former owner of the Merchandise Mart and son of Robert F. Kennedy.

Rauner spent a record $65.3 million -- or nearly $36 a vote -- in his 2014 campaign against then-Gov. Pat Quinn. Of that, nearly $28 million came from his own pocket. Since then, Rauner and his wife, Diana, have spent more than $32.5 million to support the Republican Party, GOP candidates and conservative groups in Illinois.

Because the Tuesday donation was made more than a year from the 2018 primary election, it will not lift limits on campaign contributions to candidates in the race for governor.

State government, meanwhile, appears headed for another showdown over the budget when a temporary spending measure expires Jan. 1. Tension between Rauner and Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan has only intensified since the most recent election, in which Rauner spent heavily to hammer home to voters a message that Madigan is the problem at the statehouse.

Rauner operatives would not publicly discuss the $50 million donation.

A spokesman for Madigan said the contribution only underscored that Rauner's primary focus is politics, not running the state.

"He's never been focused on governing," said spokesman Steve Brown, who added that the large amount of money raises questions about "whether he is running scared."

Also on Thursday, Rauner's administration filed an unfair labor practice complaint against the state's largest employee union, arguing it has taken improper steps to prevent the administration from implementing its final offer after the Illinois Labor Relations Board ruled the sides were at impasse during contract negotiations.

The administration is asking the labor board to award the state $2 million a day in damages, the amount it says taxpayers are spending because of a delay in implementing the new terms. That's a reduction from the "almost $3 million per day" estimate that Rauner floated to reporters earlier this month.

At issue is a temporary agreement both sides agreed to as negotiations continued that kept in place the terms of the old contract. Rauner's office says that agreement has now expired with the labor board's ruling.

Rauner's attorneys have taken issue with a temporary restraining order a St. Clair County judge issued earlier this month, after the union argued the administration took actions to impose its terms before the labor board's ruling was put into writing. An appellate court has since directed that the restraining order be reconsidered, but the lower court has yet to act.

"Continuing to stall, instead of working with us to implement our last, best and final offer that is substantially similar to the contracts agreed to by 18 other unions, only costs taxpayers more money -- approximately $2 million every day this drags on," Dennis Murashko, Rauner's general counsel, said in a statement.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31 dismissed the move as a "disgraceful attempt to intimidate union members from exercising their legal rights" and said Rauner should return to the bargaining table.

"The governor may wish to dictate not negotiate, but he is not above the law," spokesman Anders Lindall said in a statement. "The real waste of taxpayer money is Governor Rauner's stubborn refusal to negotiate with our union for nearly a year. All that time AFSCME members have been working hard to serve their communities."

(c)2016 the Chicago Tribune

Caroline Cournoyer is GOVERNING's senior web editor.
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