Illinois Election: Attorney General Kwame Raoul declares victory over Republican challenger Tom DeVore
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul declared victory Tuesday night in his bid for a second term against Republican challenger Thomas DeVore.
With 73% of the votes counted, Raoul was leading with 55.3% over DeVore at 42.5%, with Libertarian candidate Daniel Robin a distant third at 2.2%
The contest was a rematch of sorts for Raoul and DeVore, although the two had faced off before only in the courtroom, not at the ballot box.
DeVore gained notoriety during the pandemic for his multiple legal challenges to Gov. JB Pritzker's coronavirus mandates.
DeVore, an attorney from downstate Sorento, about 60 miles south of Springfield, has filed multiple lawsuits since 2020, challenging Gov. JB Pritzker's authority to issue statewide stay-at-home orders, mask mandates, and other executive orders aimed at limiting the spread of COVID-19.
While largely unsuccessful, the legal battles with Raoul – who defended the governor's coronavirus orders in court – brought DeVore a level of celebrity that helped him win the Republican primary in June over two other candidates, including Steve Kim, who got $300,000 in campaign funds from billionaire Ken Griffin through then-GOP candidate for governor Richard Irvin.
DeVore has made his criticism of Pritzker's and Raoul's handling of the pandemic a centerpiece of his campaign, claiming voters are frustrated with elected officials making decisions they see as arbitrary.
But Raoul, a former Cook County prosecutor and state lawmaker, who succeeded Lisa Madigan as attorney general, has stood by the state's efforts to limit the spread of COVID-19 during the pandemic, arguing the governor was properly exercising his authority to protect public health.
Raoul also has argued the fact DeVore lost virtually all of his lawsuits challenging the state's coronavirus restrictions show he's unfit to serve as the state's top legal officer.
On Illinois' SAFE-T Act
Sweeping criminal justice reform legislation dubbed the SAFE-T Act also has become a prominent issue in the campaign for the attorney general's office. Starting Jan. 1, the legislation will eliminate cash bail in Illinois, requiring judges to keep defendants in jail before trial only if they are deemed a flight risk or a danger to the public.
The legislation also requires all police officers in Illinois to be equipped with body cameras by 2025, bans the use of chokeholds, requires officers to intervene when another officer is using excessive force, grants people who have been arrested three phone calls within three hours of their arrest, establishes new police training requirements, and more.
Raoul supports the law, but has said it might need some changes to clear up confusion about standards for when defendants can be kept in jail ahead of trial.
DeVore has said the law is unconstitutional, and should be repealed, arguing it violates a rule prohibiting laws from dealing with more than one issue. He also argues the elimination of cash bail violates the separation of powers clause of the Illinois Constitution.