Lake Forest Billionaire Has Spent Over $50 Million To Oust JB Pritzker

LAKE FOREST, IL — The latest political donation to a conservative political action committee means a Lake Forest billionaire has given more than $50 million to efforts to unset the state's first-term Democratic governor.

Dick Uihlein's $42 million in funding to the People Who Play By The Rules political action committee, combined with $10 million to the campaign of Republican State Sen. Darren Bailey, exceeds the $50 million spent by Citadel CEO Ken Griffin on the abortive primary campaign of Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin.

But it pales in comparison with the amount that Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt Hotels fortune, has given to his own campaign. Since January, the governor has deposited $110 million in his campaign coffers, according to state campaign finance records.

Last month, in addition to his contribution to the People Who Play By The Rules PAC, which has spent significantly on television advertisements opposing the governor, Uihlein also gave $1 million to a new committee opposing Amendment 1, which enshrines collective bargaining rights in the state constitution and $1.5 million to a fund a new called Common Sense Reforms that has backed GOP candidates.

Such political committees cannot directly coordinate or support with candidates.

Uihlein also gave more than $2.3 million to the campaign committee of State Sen. Dan McConchie (R-Hawthorn Woods).

Following Bailey's victory over Irvin in the June primary, Uihlein reportedly questioned the Bailey campaign's spending priorities and asked for financial accountability. One top source told The Illinoize that Uihlein felt that continuing to give cash directly to Bailey was "like setting money on fire."

Starting in July, Uihlein has directed his funding to the anti-Pritzker PAC run by radio host Dan Proft. The People Who Play By The Rules PAC has generated headlines with its controversial television advertisements, some of which the governor's lawyers have claimed are "false and defamatory."

In federal races, Uihlein and his wife, Uline President Liz Uihlein, have given more than $6.4 million to Republican candidates who voted against certifying the results of — or have publicly doubted the legitimacy of — the 2020 presidential election, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

According to the Sun-Times, 92 percent of the couple's congressional contributions this cycle have gone to 59 candidates who doubted President Joe Biden's electoral win, with only about a half-million dollars going to the 46 who have not.