The Nov. 6 election will feature contests for governor and lieutenant governor, as well as four other statewide offices-secretary of state, attorney general, treasurer and comptroller.
Secretary of state
State Treasurer Jerry Cosentino, 59, has served two terms as treasurer, and several years on the Metropolitan Sanitary District of Greater Chicago
(now the Water Reclamation District), where he was active in the effort to save Lockport Prairie, the state`s last natural prairie land. As treasurer, he fought to reduce bank credit card interest rates, and withdrew millions in state deposits from banks which refused to lower their rates.
He now is promising to bring his experience in government and his experience as a businessman to the office of secretary of state.
Among his plans: ”Cleaning up the bureacratic mess” in the secretary of state`s office, so that the public will receive more efficient and courteous service, an emphasis on road safety programs, and ”better standards” in the state libraries.
Cosentino`s campaign has been jarred by allegations that the trucking firm owned by Cosentino and his wife, Fast Motor Service Inc. of Brookfield, used an Indiana subsidiary to employ non-union drivers and avoid higher Illinois worker compensation premiums.
Costentino`s opponent, Lt. Gov. George Ryan, has also raised the issue of whether Cosentino improperly received a $250,000 business loan from Cosmopolitan National Bank after Costentino had placed $10 million in state funds in interest bearing accounts at the bank. Ryan has charged that the state is owed $1.3 million in interest on deposits that were imprudently made by Cosentino.
Cosentino insists that Cosmopolitan ”happened” to be his business bank, and that interest on the loan he received was 3.5 percent over the prime rate. ”Where`s the deal in that?” he said.
He also contends that his trucking company did nothing wrong in establishing the Indiana subsidiary; the only intent, Cosentino said, was to save money because the worker`s compensation policy was less expensive in Indiana than in Illinois.
”My record as treasurer puts me heads and shoulders over Ryan`s record as lieutenant governor,” Cosentino said. ”I have a record of accomplishment. He does not have any record at all. As state treasurer, I earned more money on our deposits than any state treasurer in the history of the state.”
Cosentino said he is particularly proud of having started programs on credit card reform, deposits linked to bringing industry to Illinois, loan programs for first-time home buyers and farm loans.
He and his wife, Charlotte, are the parents of five children. They live in Palos Heights in southwest suburban Cook County.
Kankakee resident George Ryan, James Thompson`s lieutenant governor for the past eight years, has worked to make the No. 2 job one of substance, especially in the economic arena.
As candidate for secretary of state, Ryan is pledging to further develop the office that he says has been well-run by fellow Republican Jim Edgar. Ryan, 56, said he would improve the library system, making it more accessible for 1.3 million rural residents. He also wants to provide more interpreters for minorities at motor vehicle offices, and to expand state literacy programs, with special attention to prisoners.
”I want to make literacy available to anyone who wants to read and write,” Ryan said. ”And 60 percent of prisoners go into prison illiterate, and 60 percent come out illiterate. It could be a major reform towards rehabilitation, to help them read and write and find work.”
Ryan`s experience in state government includes 10 years as a member of the House of Representatives, including two years as speaker. As lieutenant governor, where he was very loyal to Thompson, Ryan used his connections in the General Assembly and Thompson`s backing to concentrate on economic development, particularly exporting, international trade and small business.
He has also chaired the Rural Affairs Council, headed the efforts to reclaim abandoned mines and worked in substance abuse prevention.
Until its recent sale, Ryan was vice president of Ryan Pharmacies in Kankakee. He is married and the father of six children.
”I have a pretty good grasp of state government,” Ryan said in an interview. ”I know how to administer the office (of secretary of state), and that`s basically what it`s about. When I compare my record with my opponent`s, and some of the failings he`s had in his office, I feel that I`m more competent.”
Ryan says voters should question whether his opponent, State Treasurer Jerry Cosentino, showed he had the ”state`s interest at heart” when he moved his trucking business out of the state, therefore avoiding Illinois labor laws. Ryan also questioned Cosentino`s failure to collect $1.3 million in interest on state funds that were deposited in Cosmopolitan Bank, which later gave a loan to Cosentino`s business.
”It brought into question his ability to function in public office generally,” Ryan said.
Attorney general
Du Page County State`s Atty. James E. ”Jim” Ryan of Bensenville, a 44-year-old Republican prosecutor and a proven vote-getter in Du Page, is bidding against Democrat Roland Burris of Chicago to be the state`s chief legal officer.
Although both candidates have detailed positions and programs to address the problems of drug abuse, environmental protection, consumer fraud, domestic violence and child abuse, the race for state attorney general, in Ryan`s opinion, should hinge on one basic issue-legal experience.
Ryan charges that he has it and Burris doesn`t. The Burris campaign says that legal experience is ”maybe only 10 percent,” of the qualification mix needed.
Ryan acknowledges that he is trailing slightly in the race but says he is ”right where I want to be.”
Ryan has demanded that Burris disclose his personal financial position and return almost $40,000 in campaign contributions that he received from nursing home operators on grounds that the money came from an industry that the attorney general polices.
”The fundamental issue in the campaign is experience. Roland Burris wants to be the state`s chief legal officer and he`s never really practiced law on a full-time basis. He wants to be Illinois` top prosecutor and he`s never spent a single day in a prosecutor`s office.
Ryan cites his 18-year legal career and his 10 years as Du Page prosecutor as major advantages.
Ryan was born in Chicago and moved to Villa Park as a child. He has a bachelor`s degree from St. Procopius (now Illinois Benedictine) College in Lisle and a law degree from Kent College of Law in Chicago. Ryan and his wife, Marie, have six children.
Ryan was an assistant prosecutor in Du Page from 1971 to 1976 when, at age 29, he ran and lost the GOP primary for Du Page state`s attorney. After eight years in private practice, Ryan returned to the political arena at the urging of state Senate Minority Leader James ”Pate” Philip (R-Wood Dale) and defeated two-term incumbent State`s Atty. J. Michael Fitzsimmons, a Hinsdale Republican. Ryan was re-elected in 1988.
Ryan`s run for attorney general marks the first time since 1956 that a Du Page Republican has been a member of the GOP statewide ticket.
Ryan says that he is personally opposed to abortion. He said he has the ability to even-handedly interpret and enforce any laws, including abortion laws, as they exist. He says a lawyer has an obligation to represent his client, in this case, the state, and not supplant their desires with his.
State Comptroller Roland Burris, 53, of Chicago, was the first black candidate elected to statewide executive office and is one of only five blacks nationwide to hold state office. He is recognized as a top Illinois vote-getter, having won elections by as many as 1.1 million votes.
To his way of thinking, history shows that Illinois voters have already answered Ryan`s charge that prosecutorial experience is a primary credential for being Illinois attorney general.
”The last sitting state`s attorney to run for attorney general, from what our records reveal, was in 1904, and he lost,” said Burris. ”And the last ex-state`s attorney (Republican Bernard Carey) to run was in 1986 against Neil Hartigan and he lost.
”Only about 10 to 15 percent of the attorney general`s work is prosecutorial,” he said.
Burris has been state comptroller since 1978 and has been in state government since 1973.
Burris has a bachelor`s degree from Southern Illinois University and a law degree from Howard University Law School in Washington, D.C. After a stint as a federal bank examiner, Burris joined Continental Illinois Bank in 1964 and worked there until 1973, when he left as a second vice president to become the director of the Illinois Department of General Services. He is completing his third term as state comptroller and is a former vice chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
Burris and his wife, Burlean, have two children.
Burris has offered programs to improve environmental protection and to crack down on child, spousal and senior citizen abuse, and to wage war on drugs.
Where Burris hopes to draw a clear-cut demarcation with Ryan is on the issue of abortion.
”I`m pro-choice and he`s anti-choice,” said Burris. He said the abortion issue is very germane to the post of attorney general. ”It`s a crucial distinction to our two candidacies.
”There is a very clear distinction in that regard and we are certainly dealing with the issue of government involvement in the right of a woman to choose whether or not she wants to give birth,” he said.
Burris says he sees the role of attorney general not only as a defender of the Illinois Constitution and state law ”but he also has to show some leadership in molding those laws prior to their passage.” To that end, Burris said he would ”seek to lobby government against laws which try to regulate whether or not a woman will or will not have an abortion.” is very germane to the post of attorney general. ”It`s a crucial distinction to our two candidacies.
”There is a very clear distinction in that regard and we are certainly dealing with the issue of government involvement in the right of a woman to choose whether or not she wants to give birth,” he said.
Burris says he sees the role of attorney general not only as a defender of the Illinois Constitution and state law ”but he also has to show some leadership in molding those laws prior to their passage.” To that end, Burris said he would ”seek to lobby government against laws which try to regulate whether or not a woman will or will not have an abortion.”
Treasurer
Patrick Quinn, well known as a political maverick and reformer, promises to use the treasurer`s office to act as a consumer advocate and to carry out the required duties of the treasurer`s office.
”We have an affordable housing crisis in Illinois,” Quinn said. ”My opponent`s position is that the state should not be a consumer advocate or a housing advocate, but I completely disagree. The state can continue to get excellent rates of return and also use taxpayer money to promote the Illinois economy, especially in the area of housing construction.”
Quinn, 41, a resident of Chicago`s West Side, served on the Cook County Board of (tax) Appeals from 1982 to 1986, where he instituted an ethics code and professional auditing standards. He resigned to run unsuccessfully for treasurer in 1986. He is a member of his local school council.
An attorney and economist, Quinn has served as director of the Chicago Department of Revenue and founded the Coalition for Political Honesty, a statewide citizens group which lobbies for fair taxes and efficient government. Quinn led a grass roots effort in 1980 that resulted in a reduction of the seats in the Illinois House by one-third.
He practices and teaches tax law. He is divorced and the father of two children.
Utilizing grass-roots organizing, petition drives and media attention, Quinn launched a petition drive to ban the practice of allowing state legislators to collect two years of pay in advance. He also organized a campaign to send thousands of tea bags to Springfield in protest of a 40 percent pay raise legislators voted for themselves in the lame-duck period after the 1978 election.
Quinn also successfully pushed for a Citizens Utility Board to represent consumer interests before the Illinois Commerce Commission.
Quinn says he is well prepared for the treasurer`s post through his education, training in tax law and experience. Quinn says he is the only candidate who refuses to accept donations from any financial institution or currency exchange that does business with the treasurer`s office.
”I have a 10-point plan to modernize the treasurer`s office for the 1990s,” Quinn said. His plan includes increasing the interest earned on state funds through faster collection and deposit of amounts owed to the state, increasing the investment yields on state deposits through improved cash forecasting, and competitive bidding, and expanding the use of electronic fund transfers.
”I think we need a strong, tough ethics code in the treasurer`s office,” said Quinn.
Gregory Baise, 38, a resident of Springfield, has served as a member of Gov. James Thompson`s staff for the past 14 years, working as Thompson`s personal assistant, deputy chief of staff and head of the Illinois Department of Transportation.
He resigned his position in the Department of Transportation last year to seek the office of treasurer. Baise got his start in government as the youngest Jacksonville City Council member in history. He has also managed statewide re-election campaigns for Thompson and former President Ronald Reagan.
”My message is one of conservatism, how to go about handling the state`s money prudently,” he said. ”It`s not as sexy and exciting as Quinn`s headline grabbing, talking about every issue that comes to his mind. That`s not the reality of what this office happens to be. Most of the ideas Quinn is talking about are recycled ideas, mostly headline grabbing ploys, with no results or accomplishments to back them up.”
Baise is married, the father of two children and owns several small businesses in Springfield.
Baise raised more than $61,000 last year from construction companies and engineering firms that worked for the Transportation Department. His total spending on the campaign is expected to be $1.2 million, topping GOP spending records for the treasurer`s office.
As treasurer, Baise is proposing to establish an outside investment advisory board of representatives from banking, investment firms, academia and economics to help guide the treasurer in the investment of state funds. He also is promoting a program to help middle-income families to save for their children`s education through linked-deposits between the treasurer`s office, local financial institutions and Illinois universities.
”Besides being a watchdog of taxpayers` dollars, the treasurer can also play an important part in economic development activities in the state,”
Baise said, ”utilizing state funds in a safe, prudent fashion to leverage economic growth, especially in areas of our state that are experiencing little or no growth right now.”
Baise said his advisory board would ”open up” the treasurer`s office to outside advice and counsel.
He says his background as head of a multibillion dollar agency has prepared him for the treasurer`s office, through his experience implementing major programs such as the Dan Ryan reconstruction project. This experience and record of accomplishment far exceeds that of his opponent, Baise said.
Comptroller
State Sen. Dawn Clark Netsch (D-Chicago), regarded by fellow Democrats in the Illinois General Assembly as an authority on government finance, is vying for a post with the ultimate responsibility of ensuring that the funds raised by the state are spent properly.
Now chairman of the Senate Revenue Committee, she wants to take control of Illinois` $20 billion checkbook.
Netsch, 64, of Chicago, has been a member of the state Senate since 1973 and in addition to heading the Revenue Committee is a member of Appropriations II; Elementary and Secondary Education and Executive Committees. In addition to sponsoring some key legislation on revenue matters, Netsch, who first won election as an independent progressive, is a leader in sponsoring bills on women`s issues, health and the environment.
Netsch sees the comptroller`s job as one of a taxpayer`s advocate ”who knows and understands state finances and local government finances and has had experience in not only dealing with it and solving its problems but in knowing the problems that still have to be corrected.”
”My theory of campaigning has always been that I campaign in terms of what I can contribute to the office and I think that`s an important distinction,” says Netsch. ”I think I`ve got enough there to make it a positive set of qualifications-and that`s what I intend to do.”
Netsch says she also parts company with her Republican opponent, Susan S. Suter, on the notion that the comptroller`s office is purely
administrative.
”I think it would be unfortunate to be in that office and think of it as an absolutely routine administrative office. It is an opportunity because you are the chief elected fiscal officer of the state to be an advocate for the kinds of things that have to be done with our state finances.”
Netsch cites adequate school funding and reduced reliance on the property tax as the state`s major fiscal dilemma and says the comptroller can lend a strong voice ”to keep the pressure on to make sure that we face up to that dilemma. It is the major thing hanging over us, certainly in the finance area.”
She calls for the state to accept a greater responsibility for school funding.
Netsch, an attorney, is a professor at Northwestern University School of Law, specializing in state and local government. She is on leave. A native of Cincinnati, she is married to architect Walter A. Netsch.
For Susan S. ”Sue” Suter, the Republican candidate for state comptroller, money is a means to an end. And to Suter, state revenue is no different than personal funds.
”Government should give people the opportunity to be self-sufficient. Bigger government operating with ever-expanding resources is a service to no one-not to the taxpayer . . . nor to those who can become dependent on government assistance,” she says.
Suter, 40, has held three major administrative posts at both the state and federal levels. She has managed annual budgets ranging from nearly $200 million, as director of the Illinois Department of Rehabilitation Services and $3.7 billion as director of the Illinois Department of Public Aid.
”The business of government is to serve its citizens, and money is the medium for providing those services,” she says.
The state comptroller ”as a watchdog over the public purse, can and must ensure that expenditures for those goods and services are made in the best public interest. The protection of the public trust is a worthy goal to pursue.”
She accuses Netsch of having a ”history as a legislator (that)
demonstrates a heavy pro-tax-increase record without corresponding concern for expenditures.” Suter accuses Netsch of engaging in ”double speak” by opposing the Tax Accountability Amendment on grounds that it didn`t provide property tax relief and then leading the defeat by Democrats of a Republican- offered property tax measure.
”I do not believe in expanding the comptroller`s office. I do not believe in expanding the bureaucracy. I do not believe that bigger government is better government,” she says.
Suter supports extending the state income tax surcharge.
Among her campaign proposals is legislation requiring the comptroller`s office to publish a taxpayers accountability report-”a simplified, straightforward report in plain English telling them where their money comes from and where it goes.”
Suter, who contracted polio at the age of 2, has a bachelor`s degree in psychology from the University of Illinois and a master`s degree in psychology from Eastern Illinois University. Suter resigned her post as director of the Department of Public Aid in December to campaign. Suter also has been director of the state Department of Rehabilitation Services and commissioner of the U.S. Department of Education`s Rehabilitation Services Administration in the Reagan administration. A Rockford native, Suter lives in Springfield with her husband, Carl, and one son.
