IL: Chicago Tribune Profiles Rich Whitney, Green Candidate for Governor

From an article in the Chicago Tribune:

As he emerged from a governor's debate at the downtown Union League Club, Green Party candidate Rich Whitney chided Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn and Republican rival Bill Brady for skirting the issue of the state's $13 billion budget deficit. "Let's get real," he said, using a favorite interjection. The electoral reality for candidate Whitney, however, is stark. Whitney was forced to watch that debate from the audience because he had not fared well enough in opinion polls to appear on stage.

Four years ago, Whitney scored a surprising 10.4 percent of the vote — good enough to qualify the Greens as an established party that made it easier for candidates to get on the ballot. Whitney thought he might fare even better this time around because the 2006 winner, Democrat Rod Blagojevich, faces retrial on political corruption charges.