According to a poll commissioned by political action committee (PAC) People Who Play by the Rules, whose head, Dan Proft, supports Sen. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, Aurora mayor Richard Irvin has fallen to second place in the GOP gubernatorial primary.
The poll shows Bailey taking the lead at 27%, with Irvin at 20% and venture capitalist Jesse Sullivan at 13%. 24% remain undecided.
The result comes after Irvin has taken fire for alleged pay-to-play schemes during his term as mayor of Aurora, as well as unprecedented spending by the Democratic Governors Association, a Pritzker-backed PAC, attacking Irvin during the GOP primary.
In a WGN poll taken in May, Irvin garnered 24.1% support, followed by Bailey at 19.8%, with the other candidates well below 10%. That poll showed fully 37% of voters remained undecided.
The fact that the most recent poll was commissioned by Bailey supporters, and that almost a quarter of the voters remain undecided, raises questions about the true state of the race. Still, it would appear that the steady drumbeat of media scrutiny and millions in negative ads against him have taken their toll on Irvin’s standing.
The Illinois primary takes place on June 28, although early voting has already commenced.
