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Top and Bottom of State Primary Ballot Decided
The primary election is not until Feb. 2, but there are already winners -- in the drawing to see who is first on the ballot in each respective race.

Democrats William "Dock" Walls and Dr. Robert Marshall were selected to be first on the list in, respectively, the gubernatorial and U. S. Senate races. For the Republicans, it's State Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale) and Don Lowery. The drawing was held in Springfield Thursday.

Candidates have six full business days to file, but the chance to be first brought a line two blocks long when the State Board of Elections office opened the morning of the first day.

Does it really matter? Ron Michaelson, a political studies professor at the University of Illinois at Springfield who used to be executive director of the elections office, says there are no studies that say conclusively it makes a difference. But those in line last month didn’t want to take a chance: Some voters really may choose the first name they see.

Others, says Michaelson, may go for a familiar name. He recalls the 1986 Democratic primary in Illinois, in which candidates named Mark Fairchild and Janice Hart -- backed by radical Lyndon LaRouche -- beat George Sangmeister and Aurelia Pucinski, more mainstream Democrats who were running for lieutenant governor and secretary of state, respectively.

(Illinois Radio Network)
11 13 09 by Newsroom
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