Billionaire Hyatt Hotel fortune heir J.B. Pritzker has defeated Republican incumbent Gov. Bruce Rauner, who called to concede the election at about 7:40 p.m. ET, Fox News 2 in Chicago reports after the Fox News network projected Pritzker as the winner.
The Democratic candidate defeated not only Rauner, but also Libertarian Grayson Jackson and Conservative Party candidate State Sen. Sam McCann.
Pritzker, who will become the nation's wealthiest governor, reportedly spent more than $171 million of his own fortune on the campaign, and had lead Rauner by double digits in polls in the last days of the race.
He made 15 stops in the Chicago area to rally the vote Tuesday.
According to The Associated Press, with just 13 percent of the vote in, Pritzker was ahead of Rauner by 67.4-28 percent.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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