For many Generation Z kids, the initials “J.B.” used to elicit very specific images. Jacob Black. Jonas Brothers, perhaps. But those were the good ol’ days, when life was simple. Those same kids, now living in Illinois for college or whatever reason, have been conditioned via Spotify ad to only conjure one image at the sound of those two letters:
One more day! Get ready for tomorrow - Get registered, make a plan to get to the polls, and bring a few friends! Don’t miss your chance to make a difference in Illinois: https://t.co/nzTnqb6RMApic.twitter.com/cuL1Hd6i2n
— JB Pritzker (@JBPritzker) November 5, 2018
But it seems the ubiquity of all those internet radio ads worked - billionaire Democrat J.B. Pritzker has defeated Republican incumbent Bruce Rauner in the Illinois gubernatorial race.
No more JB Pritzker ads y’all pic.twitter.com/8q3IVN8l1c
— taylorbabillis (@taybillis) November 7, 2018
the devil works hard but JB Pritzker ads on HULU work harder
— not a witch (@sarahpropp) November 7, 2018
Who can resist the dulcet tones of J.B.'s voice telling us, between songs, that there's no such thing as a vote that doesn't matter? https://t.co/PcjeFhdykr
— Chicago magazine (@ChicagoMag) November 5, 2018
Pritzker, whose real name is not J.B., was widely criticized after a Cook County watchdog concluded last month the entrepreneur and philanthropist received $330,000 in property tax breaks and refunds via a “scheme to defraud” by making one of his Gold Coast mansions “uninhabitable,” partially by removing toilets. Though he vowed to refund the money to Illinois taxpayers, the scandal was just another bump in the road for Pritzker, who many progressives decried as too establishment, donating $161.5 million to his own campaign and being a rich old white guy, generally. An FBI investigation into former Gov. Rod Blagojevich also revealed Pritzker made racially insensitive comments during a call with the governor in 2008. All in all, not a good look.
But at least he’s not Bruce Rauner?
Now it’s time to place bets on if/when Pritzker will join the distressingly long line of Illinois governors who have ended up in prison.