WASHINGTON–Illinois GOP governor hopeful Bruce Rauner has poured $1.249 million of his own money into his primary bid, but he is not self-funding his campaign in the traditional sense because he is also collecting jumbo donations from wealthy supporters–about $3 million this last quarter, according to his campaign.
On Sunday, I wrote a column about Gov. Pat Quinn, Rauner, trade unions and mega contributions in the Illinois governor contest. I wrote that Rauner had kicked in $749,000–based on $249,000 on March 28 and $500,000 on Nov. 12. I overlooked another $500,000 Rauner put into his war chest on Nov. 18, to drive the total Rauner put into his bid to date at $1.249 million.
In addition, on Dec. 5 Rauner donated $250,000 into the Committee for Legislative Reform and Term Limits, a group formed to advance Rauner’s run for governor.
Rauner’s Nov. 12 $500,000 contribution triggered the Illinois “self-funding” provision for contenders in the Republican and Democratic governor’s primaries. The usual limits of $5,300 for individuals and $52,600 from political action committees per election were waived after Rauner put in more than $250,000. The self-funding rule was intended to help level the playing field. But the waiver also enormously helps a candidate in position to get super-sized donations–and Rauner, with his robust network, is doing just that.
