Raoul Elected Illinois AG, Job He's 'Dreamed Of' Since Law School

CHICAGO — Democratic state Sen. Kwame Raoul defeated Urbana attorney Erika Harold in the race to replace Lisa Madigan as Illinois attorney general. It was expected to be one of the most competitive races at the statewide level, but with nearly all of the vote counted, Raoul led by a margin of more than 470,000 votes – 54 percent to 43 percent.

The race began when Madigan made a surprise announcement in September she would not be running for a fifth term in office to seek a new, unspecified "challenge." Harold, who had already declared her campaign at the time of Madigan's declaration, dispatched a DuPage County board member in her party's primary. Democrats crowded into the race after the announcement, and state Sen. Kwame Raoul, of Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood, emerged from a field of eight candidates to edge out former Gov. Pat Quinn in the Democratic Party primary with the backing of unions and party leaders.

Harold, 38, paid her way through Harvard Law School with her winnings from being crowned 2003 Miss America. She joined the Champaign County-based law firm of Meyer Capel after working at two Chicago-based law firms. The priorities of her campaign have been fighting corruption, strengthening ethics rules, enforcing the laws fairly and protecting crime victims. She argued she would function as a check on a Democratic-controlled General Assembly and governor's mansion after J.B. Pritzker's anticipated victory.

Raoul, 54, promises to be a check on federal overreach by the administration of President Donald Trump. Raoul is a former Cook County prosecutor and was appointed for the state Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama's election to the U.S. Senate in 2004 and has since become the chair of the judiciary committee. He has campaigned on his experience as the son of Haitian immigrants and a survivor of prostate cancer, as well as his work on behalf of bipartisan criminal justice reform.

“Ever since my first year of law school, I’ve dreamed of this job, where I could advocate for so many people whose voices weren’t being heard,” Raoul said in his victory speech. “I carried that dream through a 25-year legal career, my service in the legislature, and a long campaign. As I traveled the state, it became increasingly clear that there’s never been a more exciting or a more important time to take up this office.” Raoul thanked gathered supporters at a Chicago hotel, describing the moment as bittersweet.

“Fifteen years ago today, I lost my father. He never held public office, but his life was dedicated to public service. I have done my best to honor his legacy by advocating for the vulnerable and advancing justice for those who believe our legal system has forgotten them," the state senator said. "This campaign was just the audition for the work that is to come.”

Harold's campaign started the fourth quarter with less than $175,000 in the bank and received more than $2.5 million in October. Her largest contributors were Gov. Bruce Rauner's campaign with $1.8 million and Citadel CEO Ken Griffin with $1.7 million. Raoul began October with over $650,000 in the bank and tacked on more than $5.5 million in additional donations, including nearly $3 million from J.B. Pritzker's campaign and an Oct. 31 donation of $1 million from Speaker Mike Madigan. Raoul, who reported contributions from companies related to tobacco, gambling, red-light cameras and power companies, has said there has "never been a campaign contribution that has dictated how I act."

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Harold was endorsed by the Chicago Tribune, which cited her campaign's focus on fighting corruption, the News-Gazette, the Peoria Journal-Star, the Rockford Register Star and the Rock Island Dispatch-Argus. Raoul earned the endorsements of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Chicago Crusader, the Daily Chronicle, the St. Louis American, the State Journal-Register, the Northwest Herald, and the Daily Herald, which wrote that "Illinois needs an activist attorney general."

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Election results

Return to Patch Tuesday night for the latest vote tally. Subscribe to free News Alerts for election results. The polls open at 6 a.m. Tuesday and close at 7 p.m. NOTE: Tuesday's results are unofficial and do not include provisional and late absentee ballots.

Harold concedes, Raoul Camp joyous pic.twitter.com/umyJUGswdM
— Jackie Bange (@JackieBange) November 7, 2018

Raoul's campaign has run a series of advertisements suggesting Harold would undermine abortion rights, same-sex marriage and the Affordable Care Act. He has run TV spots saying Harold would "discriminate against a loving gay couple" that have been ruled "false" by Politifact. Meanwhile, Harold's suggestion that Raoul and Madigan "team up to raise property taxes" was ruled "mostly false." Neither candidate's messaging passed the "smell test," according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

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A third candidate on the ballot, Libertarian Bubba Harsay, 29, of DuQuoin, has identified public corruption as a major priority. He also promised to investigating clergy abuse and as a major priority.

"Granted, I have been practicing law for less than two years, but I have experience in various branches of government," he said in a candidate questionnaire, citing work in the Maryland Senate, the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Senate. His campaign advocated making "legitimate legal reforms" to encourage people to stop leaving and start returning to the state.

On Election Day, Harold cast voted at her Urbana polling place, while Raoul cast his vote in Hyde Park.

@ErikaHarold voting at her polling place in Urbana #midterms2018 #ElectionDay @cbschicago pic.twitter.com/581gvDxeTz
— Megan Hickey (@MeganHickeyCBS2) November 6, 2018

It’s been a long and incredible journey, and it’s hard to believe #ElectionDay is finally here. So proud to vote with my two wonderful kids this morning in our Hyde Park community. What's your plan to vote? pic.twitter.com/tQP3dScZWe
— Sen. Kwame Raoul (@KwameRaoul) November 6, 2018

Madigan joined Raoul and other Illinois and Cook County Democratic candidates Tuesday for lunch at Manny's Cafeteria and Delicatessen in Chicago, where she dined with U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza.

More About Harold, Harsy and Raoul

Read more about these candidates from their campaign websites:

• Erika Harold (R)
• Bubba Harsy (L)
• Kwame Raoul (D)

More Illinois voting info: Everything To Know About The Illinois 2018 Midterm Elections