Dupage Policy Journal

Continuing her tour of Illinois, Rep. Jeanne Ives (R-Wheaton) is stopping in Downers Grove on Monday night to attend a private campaign fundraiser being hosted by several influential powerhouses. 

Ives has been campaigning rigorously for a run at the 2018 gubernatorial election, petitioning to challenge incumbent Gov. Bruce Rauner, whom she believed has failed as a Republican leader after he went against the party on important measures such as taxpayer funded abortions and property tax reform.

“He has basically discredited himself as a Republican,” Ives said in an interview on "Chicago Tonight" on WTTW. “He’s signed into law very extreme measures. The man who said he had no social agenda ended up having only a social agenda.”

The hosts of the Downers Grove fundraiser include Vince Kolber, Ed Bachrach, Virginia McCaskey and Gary Rabine. Kolber is an entrepreneur and civic leader and was a candidate for the 5th Congressional District in 2016. Bachrach is the former chairman and CEO of Bachrach Clothing Inc., a national retail chain of men’s clothing stores. McCaskey is the matriarch of the the Chicago Bears NFL team. Rabine is the CEO and founder of the Rabine Group, which is involved in asphalt and parking lot development.

The people of Illinois deserves another option for governor, Ives contended.

“We’re traveling the state to let people know that they have a real option in the governor’s race," Ives told Rock Island Today. "They feel betrayed by both Gov. Rauner and the longtime political ruling class in Springfield. Places like Rock Island and like Decatur have become the forgotten places in Illinois by the Chicago Democrats who have run this state into the ground. This campaign is committed to helping every Illinoisan and their family succeed.”

The campaign has previously visited Decatur, Rock Island County, the Quad Cities area, Troy, Glen Carbon and Springfield.