New chairman tries to unite fractured Illinois GOP heading into Milwaukee convention

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

61% : "Edgar said he believes it could be "a long time before the Republican Party can come around in Illinois" if Trump wins.
51% : The state GOP's rightward tilt was accelerated by the ascension of Trump, playing to feelings of victimization among voters and encouraging disruption of government institutions.
51% : It is among 56 state and territory delegations with a total of nearly 2,500 delegates who will formally nominate Trump and learn of his selection of a running mate.
51% : The Illinois GOP state platform also continues to oppose same-sex marriage, stating that "the ideal environment for children is within a two-parent family based on the principle of marriage between one man and one woman" and backing a constitutional amendment to that effect.
42% : But after that, the task for the new party chair is much harder -- trying to sell Trump in populous suburban areas where moderate women, a powerful election voting demographic, have shunned him.
36% : "Speaking July 8 on Fox News to Sean Hannity, Trump said he expected Biden to be the nominee at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and that post-July Fourth weekend shootings make the city "like a war zone.
35% : Trump has suffered back-to-back 17 percentage point defeats in Illinois in 2016 and 2020, pushing the state GOP into further irrelevancy down ballot as Democrats increased their dominance.
35% : Former Republican Gov. Jim Edgar, who served from 1991-1999, was blunt in his assessment of the state party's future if Trump regains the presidency in November.
33% : I have investments in Chicago," Trump said, "But when you look at the crime in Chicago, when you look at what's gone wrong with Chicago, it's not a very good thing to be displaying right now.
33% : The national party platform proclaims that it was "because of us" that the U.S. Supreme Court' overturned Roe v. Wade, returning the issue of legality of abortion to the states, in recognition of the conservative justices appointed by Trump.
32% : During a Daily Herald candidate forum for the 2022 GOP primary, Salvi also resisted saying whether the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Trump.
20% : Salvi now faces the task of trying to unify disparate groups of Illinois Republicans as the national party on Monday focuses on a united convention celebration behind Trump to defeat Democratic President Joe Biden, whose political fate was thrown into question after a stumbling debate showing against the former president.
9% : In addition, the Democratic National Committee has paid to wrap 57 Milwaukee County buses with signs supporting President Joe Biden and has purchased space on 10 billboards in Milwaukee featuring Trump and some of his incendiary statements, including his reference to Milwaukee as a "horrible city" in a June meeting with House Republicans.

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