By Ben Calhoun, IL Public Radio
Chicago, Ill. – Republican Gubernatorial Challenger Judy Baar Topinka has been gaining some financial ground, but not that much. The latest campaign filings still show her at a significant disadvantage going into the last stretch of the race.
Topinka took in more money than the governor between July and the beginning of this month. She raised about $2.8 million, he raised about $2.6 million.
But Topinka still has not pulled in enough to put any serious dents in the $10 million-plus lead Blagojevich had as of the summer. That differential is all the more daunting for Topinka because polls have consistently shown her trailing.
There also are no more scheduled debates, so the race is largely playing out through expensive tv advertising.
Green Party Candidate Rich Whitney, who's been making incremental gains in the polls, raised just over $20,000 during the July to October reporting period.