CHICAGO — Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin formally announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for governor Monday, stressing his background as a former county prosecutor to focus on a tough-on-crime message the GOP is hoping will play well against Democrats this year.
In a three-minute announcement video, Irvin says that after serving in the military, he went to law school and then to “become a hands-on prosecutor going on police raids, taking back one corner or apartment complex at a time. Putting gangbangers, drug dealers and wife beaters in prison.”
“I’ve seen it up close. Defund the police is dumb, dangerous and it costs lives. And I believe that all lives matter. Every family should be safe,” he says. “My city is now safe, stronger and full of opportunity. I want that for Illinois.”
