Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and his Republican challenger, downstate attorney Thomas DeVore, have already faced off in court over DeVore's lawsuits against the state's COVID-19 policies.
Republican Thomas DeVore, left, is challenging Illinois Attorney General Democrat Kwame Raoul.
A lawyer since 2011 who has the words “liberty” and “freedom” tattooed on his forearms, he’s counting on the grassroots following he’s established over the past two years through his COVID-19 lawsuits and tough-on-crime stances to carry him to victory over a better-funded opponent, as it did in the June GOP primary.
Raoul, 58, is a former Cook County prosecutor from Chicago who succeeded Barack Obama in the Illinois Senate before being elected four years ago to replace four-term Attorney General Lisa Madigan. He was admitted to the bar in 1993. “That suggests someone that would not be focused on trying to collaborate with law enforcement to fight gun violence, not be focused on trying to fight organized retail crime, not be focused on trying to protect consumers but settling personal scores,” Raoul said.
If elected, DeVore said he would file a lawsuit against the governor and General Assembly, which is likely to remain in Democratic control, alleging the law is unconstitutional. He finds issues with both the way the law was passed and its content, particularly the elimination of cash bail. Raoul said he agrees that access to cash should not decide whether someone’s kept in jail while awaiting trial.
What DeVore does have is the backing of the Illinois and Chicago chapters of the Fraternal Order of Police. He understands the consent decree’s initial purpose and sees “nothing wrong with what it was trying to accomplish,” he said, but added that the “interested parties” need to be brought together to see if it is still needed. He has not yet spoken with the FOP about the consent decree, he said.
including a $250,001 loan he made to his campaign that lifted contribution limits for both candidates. Raoul also has been promoting his efforts, in conjunction with the attorney general of Nevada, to have the Equal Rights Amendment adopted into the U.S. Constitution. The attorneys general argued their case before a federal appeals court in Washington late last month.DeVore, who has described himself as “a pro-life guy,” said he would continue to defend the state’s Reproductive Health Act because he isn’t aware of any constitutional problems with it.
DeVore said his approach to such social issues, which he said he would not actively litigate, mark “a fundamental difference” between him and Raoul.
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