State Rep. Dan Brady of Bloomington on Tuesday secured the Republican nomination for secretary of state, defeating John Milhiser.
Brady likely will face former Illinois Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, who held a strong lead late Tuesday in the Democratic primary, in the November contest to fill the post long held by Jesse White.
State Rep. Dan Brady poses before voting in the Illinois primary election, in which he is a Republican candidate for secretary of state.
Brady, 60, is a funeral director, serves as one of two deputy GOP leaders in the Illinois House of Representatives and was the McLean County coroner from 1992 to 2000. He said he would work to improve the nuts and bolts of an office that connects with citizens more than any other statewide agency in areas ranging from drivers’ services to libraries.
Milhiser
Milhiser, 52, a former U.S. attorney in the Central District of Illinois and former Sangamon County state’s attorney, ran as part of a slate of candidates promoted by billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin. He emphasized his background as a prosecutor and campaigned on a promise to restore people’s faith in government and in an office that he acknowledges has a history of corruption under both parties.
White, 87, a Democrat who has been secretary of state since 1999, is one of the state’s most popular politicians but decided not to run for a seventh term.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
Rating Illinois’ 2022 campaign mailers
Mary Miller
Aesthetic: 5
Message: 5
Accuracy: 3
Overall effectiveness: 4.33
Comments: Simple and straight to the point. The type of ad you run as a Trump-endorsed candidate in a district where the former president carried nearly 70% of the vote.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 4
Message: 5
Accuracy: 2
Overall effectiveness: 3.66
Comments: It’s a little busy, but the use of newspaper clippings on the front side effectively validates the Irvin campaign’s message about Democratic meddling in the GOP primary. However, some of the claims about Bailey and Sullivan on the backside are misleading.
Darren Bailey
Aesthetic: 5
Message: 5
Accuracy: 4
Overall effectiveness: 4.66
Comments: An issue-oriented mailer that keeps it simple. And that’s a good thing. It’s easy on the eye and makes good use of all-caps and the highlight tool to make sure that the reader sees “conservative” and “career politicians are what’s wrong with Springfield.” If that’s all they take from the mailer, it’s a win.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 5
Message: 4
Accuracy: 2
Overall effectiveness: 3.66
Comments: Nice design — talk show setup is original, even if those quotes were pulled out of context. But hey, that’s politics.
Darren Bailey
Aesthetic: 4
Message: 5
Accuracy: 2
Overall effectiveness: 3.66
Comments: A nice-looking ad that plays into the smoke-and-mirrors theme Bailey is trying to push about Irvin. But some of the claims made on the back side, such as Irvin’s alleged support for Joe Biden, are at the very least unproven.
Rodney Davis
Aesthetic: 4
Message: 4
Accuracy: 4
Overall effectiveness: 4
Comments: Just a solid mailer. Though slightly word-heavy, there is an effective use of bold font in all-caps to highlight words they would like to emphasize, such as “Stop out-of-control spending” and “Finish President Trump’s wall.” Clever.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 4
Message: 5
Accuracy: 3
Overall effectiveness: 4
Comments: One of Irvin’s best attack ads, both visually and content-wise. Though some of the talking points on the front side continue to mislead, the back is effective in using newspaper headlines to validate their message. On the front, the black-and-white photos of Bailey and Sullivan suggest a nefariousness.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 3
Message: 3
Accuracy: 2
Overall effectiveness: 2.66
Comments: The concept here is not necessarily a bad one, but the Irvin campaign tries to pack in too much information. It’s very wordy. Also, Bailey and Sullivan are smiling. It someone just picked it up and saw the visual without reading, it could be mistaken as a positive advertisement for the two.
Darren Bailey
Aesthetic: 5
Message: 5
Accuracy: 4
Overall effectiveness: 4.66
Comments: Sometimes less is more. This ad has very simple bullet points stating clearly what Bailey’s message is, but it’s not busy. Not a bad feel-good mailer to introduce yourself to voters.
Mary Miller
Aesthetic: 4
Message: 4
Accuracy: 5
Overall effectiveness: 4.33
Comments: This is an official House mailer from Rep. Mary Miller, R-Oakland. As such, it focuses on her record in Congress specifically on the issue of abortion. The picture of a baby adds an emotional appeal that will resonate with voters who hold anti-abortion views. It’s easy to understand.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 5
Message: 4
Accuracy: 2
Overall effectiveness: 3.66
Comments: This ad takes up Bailey on one side and Sullivan on the other. One of the more nice-looking ads with a very clear message on each. However, points dinged for some misleading statements.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 2
Message: 3
Accuracy: 2
Overall effectiveness: 2.33
Comments: Aesthetically, it’s cartoonish and tacky. But the message is in line with what the Irvin campaign has been trying to hammer home with voters, even if it is not all that accurate.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 2
Message: 2
Accuracy: 2
Overall effectiveness: 2
Comments: You see what they were going for in this ad, but they don’t quite stick the landing. Visually, it is difficult at first to discern the faces of Bailey and Sullivan. Also, despite his unpopularity, former House Speaker Mike Madigan is not a well-known face.
Rodney Davis
Aesthetic: 4
Message: 4
Accuracy: 3
Overall effectiveness: 3.66
Comments: Solid mailer that lands some punches against Rep. Mary Miller. One of your more conventional “taking a kernel of truth and spinning it” type of mailers. But it’s effectively visually.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 3
Message: 3
Accuracy: 1
Overall effectiveness: 2.33
Comments: The Irvin campaign has made a concerted effort to paint Bailey, a 2020 Trump delegate, as a liberal Obama-Biden supporter. It’s misleading at best, downright false at worst.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 4
Message: 4
Accuracy: 2
Overall effectiveness: 3.33
Comments: One of Irvin’s more creative ads portrays opponents Bailey and Sullivan as “wolves in sheep’s clothing,” alleging that the pair are secret Democrats. The message is clear. It’s just not very accurate.
Richard Irvin
Aesthetic: 2
Message: 4
Accuracy: 2
Overall effectiveness: 2.66
Comments: This ad plays to Irvin’s tough-on-crime message. But it contains inaccuracies, such as his claim that he “called in the National Guard” to stop looting. Only the Governor has that authority.
Jeremy Gorner of the Chicago Tribune contributed to this report.
