Last-minute spending picks up in state Senate 25 race
Democrat Corinne Pierog's bid to unseat Republican state Sen. Jim Oberweis received a good-sized boost Tuesday from a statewide fund dedicated to electing Democrats.
The Senate Democratic Victory Fund has paid $31,838 for "production and postage" to the Palladin Political Group, according to a financial disclosure statement the campaign filed Tuesday.
That brings to $42,754 the amount of aid the Victory Fund has supplied to Pierog. It has paid for a campaign manager and research, state records show.
State Sen. President John Cullerton is chairman of the Victory Fund.
Pierog, of St. Charles, is running for the second time against Oberweis, of Sugar Grove.
The Illinois Republican Party has also thrown some money into the fray in the last two weeks, paying $22,232 for printing and postage for Friends of Jim Oberweis.
At the end of the third reporting quarter Sept. 30, Oberweis had $99,950 available to spend, and Pierog had $10,319.
Besides spending on his campaign, Oberweis' committee gave $3,950 to other campaigns, and $15,000 to the Republican State Senate Campaign Committee.
The largest donation to the Oberweis committee in the quarter was $10,000 from Mercedes-Benz of St. Charles.
50th District House
In the race for representative in the 50th House District, Republican Rep. Keith Wheeler started the fourth quarter with more money than Democratic opponent Valerie Burd.
Burd began the quarter with $786 in her campaign account, and received $4,230. At the end of the period, she had $758 remaining.
One of her donations was $1,500 to Pierog's campaign.
Wheeler had $21,108 left at the end of the third quarter. His third-largest expense for the quarter was $897 for light bulbs.
No, he doesn't have that many lamps. The campaign bought blue light bulbs for people to put in their porch lights to show support for police officers.
About half of Wheeler's donations came from political action committees, including those of Realtors, manufacturers, the Illinois State Medical Society, the Illinois Hospital Association and the Defense Trials Counsel.