Will County Gazette

Republican Will County Board Member Raquel Mitchell is advocating that voters learn about candidates and vote for the individual over the party. 

Mitchell’s words come as other Black leaders have begun urging voters to consider GOP candidates.

“The GOP definitely has an opportunity to gain some ground, but the Black community will not be as forgiving if our candidates don't come through with their promises,” Mitchell told the Will County Gazette. “Minority voters should take into consideration their interests and their priorities and not the priorities of the Democratic party. For too long Blacks have watched other constituencies get their needs met by using their name, their struggle like BLM for example, and they haven't gotten anything in return.” 

The issues that matter to them most should be the voters' basis when considering who to elect, Mitchell noted.

“They should vote [on] the kitchen table issues like the skyrocketing cost of living, education for their children, their retirement accounts, and interest rates," she added. "The Black community is just as appalled about the price of gas or a dozen eggs or rising property taxes as any other community in Illinois. I suggest Black voters really learn about all the candidates and not be dissuaded by gross mischaracterizations and outright lies the other side told them.”

The gap between Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois Black community is becoming wider and more important as around a third of the Democrat vote comes from the Black community. Pritzker left the state’s Black entrepreneurs out of lucrative state licenses for recreational marijuana facilities. Former ABC 7 political news reporter Charles Thomas said Democrats have been disregarding the black community for years by providing repugnant public services and passing over local politicians and businessmen. Thomas, a paid spokesman with the People Who Play By the Rules PAC which opposes Pritzker, criticized those who voted for the governor solely because he is a Democrat. “(Pritzker) out of whole cloth created a brand new industry, this cannabis industry, and he said there would be equity. Those are his words, equity. In other words, we were going to get 15 to 20 percent of all this business, which is a multibillion-dollar business, now. We got nothing,” Thomas said on The Brunch Brunch On 1390. 

The matter at hand is one of many the Black politicians have brought up throughout the campaign season. The issue was central to the campaign of Pritzker's primary opponent Beverly Miles who said despite the toll the War on Drugs took on the Black community, the governor granted recreational marijuana licenses in those communities to “rich white people,” cutting out the black community from the coveted business licenses, creating rancor in the community, Prairie State Wire reported.

That sentiment was also observed by others including GOP gubernatorial candidate and State Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia) who at a debate retorted to his opponent: “Governor Pritzker for four years, 'equity, equity, equity.' And he finally had his opportunity with the recreational marijuana dispensaries and he failed again. I'm out in the black community – you probably saw me on Facebook a few weeks ago since you saw everything else – when I was walking with the black community up and down the streets of Chicago and they were screaming foul because they can't get the licenses.”

The comment came after Tahman Bradley, WGN news reporter and debate moderator asked Pritzker why the black community had been left out of the process. “Let's talk about equity and recreational use cannabis. The state's program went online in 2020. The first predominantly Black-owned craft grow house recently opened in the state. But Governor, since 2020, more than 340 licenses have been given out and only one has been given to a minority owner. Governor. When will you make good on your promise to diversify the lucrative cannabis industry?” Bradley asked. 

Pritzker was caught on tape by the FBI discussing with former Gov. Rod Blagojevich which Black candidates were “least offensive” before discussing then-Secretary of State Jesse White. The conversation was one of a series in which Pritzker schemed with Blagojevich on an appointment to public office. The two also joked about former President Barack Obama’s mixed-race background, WTTW reported. "You can argue he's, you know, he's got a lot in common with Obama, he's black and white. Ha. How stupid is that?" Blagojevich said. Pritzker can be heard chuckling on the audio. "That's good," Pritzker said praising Blagojevich for the racial joke. "That's good.” He also is heard reassuring Blagojevich, “You don’t have to put an African-American in that spot” if he were to appoint Jesse White. Blagojevich was later sentenced to 14 years in prison and Pritzker leveraged his massive personal fortune to become governor.