By Dave Dahl
SPRINGFIELD – The jockeying for ballot position – top, bottom, in between – is over, now that the 2024 candidates for office in Illinois have filed their petition signatures. Those in line at 8 a.m. the first day to file – in this case, Nov. 27 – enter a lottery to determine who’s on top. Those filing between 4 and 5 p.m. the final day – Monday – enter a lottery to see who gets to be on the bottom.
“Old campaign managers’ wives’ tales – you either want to be first or last,” said Geary Yonker.
“Whether we’re third, fourth, fifth, fiftieth – people are going to say, we know Dr. Dave, he puts people first, and we’re going to vote for him,” said Dr. Dave Nayak.
Nayak and Yonker filed in the final hour, and they are competitors – two of the four candidates for the Democratic nomination for a state senate seat.
They are first-time candidates, as is Krystal Dorey, who is savvy enough to know that the more signatures you can collect, the better – because now begins the process of challenging petition signatures to try to get your opponents kicked off the ballot. Dorey is a Republican who wants to unseat U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Naperville).
The lotteries – with real Illinois Lottery ping pong balls – to determine the ballot order are Dec. 13. The primary is March 19.
Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected]
