The Richard Irvin gubernatorial campaign is acknowledging a mailer blasting Republican rival State Senator Darren Bailey violated state election code.
The Chicago Tribune reports that the mailer failed to disclose in the fine print who paid for them to be sent out throughout the state. The mailers landed in Jacksonville mailboxes late last week.
The Tribune obtained a letter sent to the State Board of Elections on Sunday by Irvin’s campaign attorney, John Fogarty, that acknowledged the violation and blamed it on the printer who sent the mailing. Fogarty’s letter says the placement of the postal permit used on the piece covered up the required disclosure. Fogarty says in the letter that the campaign was informing the elections board “immediately” of the violation and said that a new version of the mailer with the legally required disclosure would be sent to voters at some point this week.
The mailer features Bailey between photos of President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama with the headline: “Bailey breaks with Trump.” It goes on to quote Bailey from a campaign event discussing his decision to pull a Democratic ballot in 2008.
In reaction to Irvin’s mailer, Bailey’s campaign retweeted a tweet from David Smith, executive director of the evangelical conservative Illinois Family Institute accusing Irvin of “lying like a rug.”
The Tribune reports says the State Board of Elections says a public complaint filing alleging a violation of the state election code would be required for the board to consider any action against the Irvin Campaign