A crowded field in the Democratic race for president could gave Illinois a rare chance to influence the race for the White House, according to a political consultant who has been working on primary campaigns in the state for decades.
Kitty Kurth said on IPR's ‘The 21st Show,’ even though Illinois' March 17 primary comes after half of the nation has already voted, she believe the race will still be up for grabs.
“I don’t think there is going to be one clear answer coming out of Super Tuesday,” Kurth said.
Edward McClelland of Chicago Magazine wrote "Why Illinois will matter this primary season." He said Illinois' size and diversity make it a bellwether state that candidates will campaign hard to win.
“It’s traditionally been a state that goes for middle-of-the-road candidates, establishment candidates and it could be the state that breaks the deadlock between a progressive candidate and a moderate candidate if that’s what it comes down to,” McClelland said.
McClelland noted the only time in recent history when Illinois failed to pick the eventual party nominee was in 1988 when voters chose Illinoisan Paul Simon.
McClelland said the time and money Michael Bloomberg is spending on Illinois, even without have any delegates slated, is a sign of Illinois' potential impact.
Hillary Clinton narrowly beat Bernie Sanders in Illinois in the 2016 primary. Kurth said that should have been a warning sign about Clinton's vulnerability.
McClelland projects Sanders to be the early favorite in Illinois, citing what he calls an "unbreakable coalition" of between 25-30% of Democratic support. He said that might be enough in a seven-candidate race.
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