The Latest Breaking News from Ken Griffin

The announcement came rather awkwardly just five days ahead of the June 28 primary — a primary in which Griffin has contributed $53 million to the campaign of Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin, who is dropping in the polls.

“Many of the major funders ... are checking out. And they’re in Florida. When they leave, their charitable dollars leave,” said a source close to the world of philanthropic and charitable giving in Chicago and Illinois.

Downstate attorney Tom DeVore is up against suburban lawyers Steve Kim and David Shestokas for the GOP nomination to take on Democratic Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul.

Bloomington state Rep. Dan Brady and former federal prosecutor John Milhiser each say they’ve demonstrated the ability to rack up bipartisan support during lengthy, distinguished careers in central Illinois political circles.

About two-thirds of likely Republican voters said they’re not sure who they’ll vote for in the U.S. Senate, attorney general and secretary of state races. Candidates backed by billionaire Ken Griffin were trailing, and the endorsement of former national security adviser Michael Flynn did little to…

Today’s update is a 5-minute read that will brief you on the day’s biggest stories.

If the numbers hold, it would represent a brutal repudiation by Illinois’ Republican voters of Irvin, his mainstream party endorsements and, pointedly, his $50 million benefactor, Chicago hedge fund tycoon Ken Griffin.

State Sen. Darren Bailey doubled down on his comments he considered Chicago a crime-ridden “hellhole” during a debate Thursday night of the Republican candidates for governor as he also sought to aggressively label rival Richard Irvin a “corrupt Democrat.”

Bailey frequently interrupted Irvin and the others as they spoke. At one point, during a question about COVID-19 mandates, Bailey told Irvin he shouldn’t be elected governor because he’s a “corrupt Democrat.” Irvin fired back, “I won’t be lectured by someone like Darren Bailey who had a mask…