Voter Revolt A Giant Killer In Illinois

Braun seems to have tapped two rich veins of voter rebellion: the anti-incumbent mood–superheated right now by the House bank scandal-and the still-simmering anger of many women over the Clarence Thomas/Anita Hill hearings. It was Dixon’s support for Thomas that prompted Braun to challenge him, Divorced and the mother of a 14-year-old son, Braun ran a disorganized campaign; several key officials quit in frustration. Partly because of the chaos, she raised enough money to run only two last-minute TV spots. Many of her natural allies weren’t much help: EMILY’s List, a national group that donates money to women candidates, didn’t chip in until this month. “Some of us behaved like women and underestimated our strength,” said Jane Danowitz, executive director of the Women’s Campaign Fund in Washington. It didn’t matter: Dixon and third candidate Al Hofeld attacked each other, leaving Braun relatively unscathed. With Gloria Steinem campaigning for her, Braun finally gained momentum; running strong among blacks and women, she beat Dixon by 38 to 35 percent.

Dixon, a fixture in Illinois politics for 43 years, may have lost the race the minute he voted for Thomas. Angry women’s groups in the state vowed to block his re-election. A December poll put Dixon ahead of Braun 2 to 1, but there was an ominous warning for the incumbent-almost 60 percent said Dixon had been in office long enough. Braun’s campaign officials predicted that white women would be the most important voting bloc in the election. Indeed, poll workers noticed last week that many Republican women in the Chicago suburbs asked for Democratic ballots, an option in Illinois primaries. According to exit polls, 62 percent of white women in Chicago suburbs who said they were against Thomas’s confirmation voted for Braun.

The U.S. Senate would be a large leap for Braun, but she does have a substantial resume. A graduate of the University of Chicago Law School, she was an assistant U.S. attorney. Elected to the state legislature in 1978, she served 10 years and became the first woman to serve as assistant majority leader in the Illinois General Assembly. In 1988 she left Springfield to run for the office of Cook County recorder of deeds, which oversees the filing of real-estate records. Hardly a glamour job-but it still made her the county’s highest-ranking black official, and she managed a staff of 300 on an $8 million budget.

Braun’s surprise victory may have unnerved other pro-Thomas senators-particularly Republican Arlen Specter, up for renomination in Pennsylvania next month. But Braun herself is still a very long way from Capitol Hill. Judging by the primary, she has an appealing campaign style. “She’s articulate,” says Northwestern University political-science professor Bill Crotty.“She’s nonthreatening to white people, to other women, to Republicans.” The state and national Democratic Party will provide funding (having Braun on the ballot may help the party’s presidential nominee, by bringing a large black turnout), but Braun’s GOP opponent, former Reagan and Bush White House official Richard Williamson, may still be able to outspend her. Williamson says he plans to portray Braun as a big-spending liberal. “She voted for tax increases 13 times in the legislature,” says Williamson. She’s also on the record as an opponent of a middle-class tax cut and a supporter of gay rights. Braun has already proven herself a formidable giant-killer, but in the months ahead, she’s going to find out what it’s like to be a target herself.

title: “Voter Revolt A Giant Killer In Illinois” ShowToc: true date: “2023-01-18” author: “Julie Grunden”

Braun seems to have tapped two rich veins of voter rebellion: the anti-incumbent mood–superheated right now by the House bank scandal-and the still-simmering anger of many women over the Clarence Thomas/Anita Hill hearings. It was Dixon’s support for Thomas that prompted Braun to challenge him, Divorced and the mother of a 14-year-old son, Braun ran a disorganized campaign; several key officials quit in frustration. Partly because of the chaos, she raised enough money to run only two last-minute TV spots. Many of her natural allies weren’t much help: EMILY’s List, a national group that donates money to women candidates, didn’t chip in until this month. “Some of us behaved like women and underestimated our strength,” said Jane Danowitz, executive director of the Women’s Campaign Fund in Washington. It didn’t matter: Dixon and third candidate Al Hofeld attacked each other, leaving Braun relatively unscathed. With Gloria Steinem campaigning for her, Braun finally gained momentum; running strong among blacks and women, she beat Dixon by 38 to 35 percent.

Dixon, a fixture in Illinois politics for 43 years, may have lost the race the minute he voted for Thomas. Angry women’s groups in the state vowed to block his re-election. A December poll put Dixon ahead of Braun 2 to 1, but there was an ominous warning for the incumbent-almost 60 percent said Dixon had been in office long enough. Braun’s campaign officials predicted that white women would be the most important voting bloc in the election. Indeed, poll workers noticed last week that many Republican women in the Chicago suburbs asked for Democratic ballots, an option in Illinois primaries. According to exit polls, 62 percent of white women in Chicago suburbs who said they were against Thomas’s confirmation voted for Braun.

The U.S. Senate would be a large leap for Braun, but she does have a substantial resume. A graduate of the University of Chicago Law School, she was an assistant U.S. attorney. Elected to the state legislature in 1978, she served 10 years and became the first woman to serve as assistant majority leader in the Illinois General Assembly. In 1988 she left Springfield to run for the office of Cook County recorder of deeds, which oversees the filing of real-estate records. Hardly a glamour job-but it still made her the county’s highest-ranking black official, and she managed a staff of 300 on an $8 million budget.

Braun’s surprise victory may have unnerved other pro-Thomas senators-particularly Republican Arlen Specter, up for renomination in Pennsylvania next month. But Braun herself is still a very long way from Capitol Hill. Judging by the primary, she has an appealing campaign style. “She’s articulate,” says Northwestern University political-science professor Bill Crotty.“She’s nonthreatening to white people, to other women, to Republicans.” The state and national Democratic Party will provide funding (having Braun on the ballot may help the party’s presidential nominee, by bringing a large black turnout), but Braun’s GOP opponent, former Reagan and Bush White House official Richard Williamson, may still be able to outspend her. Williamson says he plans to portray Braun as a big-spending liberal. “She voted for tax increases 13 times in the legislature,” says Williamson. She’s also on the record as an opponent of a middle-class tax cut and a supporter of gay rights. Braun has already proven herself a formidable giant-killer, but in the months ahead, she’s going to find out what it’s like to be a target herself.