Biden Is 'Duly Elected President', Failing IL Along With Gov: Bailey

SPRINGFIELD, IL — Republican gubernatorial nominee Darren Bailey has conceded that President Joe Biden is the duly elected President but maintains that he — along with Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker — are "failing" Illinois residents.

Bailey’s campaign issued the statement on Tuesday, the same day when Bailey — who will face off against Pritzker in the November general election — appeared at a small rally in Springfield ahead of the Illinois State Fair.

The campaign issued the statement after it distanced itself from a former campaign worker who has been charged in connection with the Jan. 6 capitol riots. St. Louis television station KSDK reported Tuesday that the Bailey campaign is distancing itself from Lawrence Ligas, who has been charged with the insurrection that took place at the U.S. Capitol last year.

Ligas was charged with crimes connected to the capitol riot in December, months after the Bailey campaign referred to the downstate resident as “a good friend.” However, after he was charged in late 2021, the campaign pulled away from Ligas, who was not on the campaign’s payroll, the TV station reported.

However, Ligas appeared on camera with a Bailey campaign official at a stop in Aurora in May, which reopened questions about his connection to the Republican’s election efforts. On Tuesday, Joe DeBose, the spokesman for Bailey’s campaign, issued a statement saying that Ligas does not represent Bailey and said that anyone who commits crimes should be accountable for their actions.

Bailey’s campaign has also criticized the language used by others who have been charged in the Capitol insurrection. On Tuesday, when asked about the campaign’s stance on the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, DeBose said the following:

“Mike Pence followed the constitutional process,” he said of the former vice president’s actions in certifying the 2020 election results. “Joe Biden is the duly elected president and he and J.B. Pritzker are failing Illinois.”

Pritzker and other Democrats are scheduled to speak at Illinois Fair events on Wednesday before the Republicans take center stage on Thursday.