Free Republic

CHICAGO (CBS 2) Mayor Daley Thursday signed a historic executive order prohibiting city contractors from giving him any more campaign cash. And now Gov. Blagojevich is feeling the heat on the same issue after a potential candidate for governor issues an ethics challenge. DuPage County Republican Joe Birkett is calling on the governor to follow the mayor's lead. Birkett is accusing Blagojevich of collecting millions of dollars in campaign contributions from those who do business with the State of Illinois. The mayor said why he signed the ban on contractor contributions. “I want to make it clear that there is...

<p>SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Republican Jim Ryan has closed the gap with Democrat Rod Blagojevich, creating an apparent dead heat in the race for Illinois governor days before statewide elections, according to a new Post-Dispatch poll.</p> <p>The statewide poll of 802 likely voters found that 43.5 percent support Ryan, while 43.2 percent support Blagojevich.</p>

The scandal that cut short Gov. George Ryan's political career looms heavily over a wide-open race to succeed him, a new Tribune/WGN-TV poll shows. The survey shows Democrat Rod Blagojevich and Republican Jim Ryan locked in a neck-and-neck battle, with more than 9 in 10 voters saying the issue of government corruption will be an important factor to weigh in deciding between the two in the Nov. 5 general election. The poll results also indicated some confusion among voters between Jim Ryan and George Ryan, who share the same surname but are not related. In a close race, that means...