Travis DeNeal, Kirk Mottram, Sara Bean and Harold G. Downs

Daily Egyptian Politics Staff

As the gubernatorial and senate campaigns gear up for the final two weeks of battle, five other hotly contested statewide races scrap for attention.

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Included in the pack are the secretary of state, lieutenant governor, comptroller, treasurer and attorney general races.

Mike Lawrence, associate director of the Public Policy Institute, says, like the Democratic gubernatorial and Republican Senate primaries, fierce matchups exist in several races, primarily for secretary of state.

The secretary of state’s race offers two exciting primaries. On the Democratic side, Jesse White, Cook County Recorder of Deeds and director of the Jesse White Tumbling Team, faces Orland Park Police Chief Tim McCarthy, known best for being shot as a Secret Service agent in the 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan. In the GOP primary, former U.S. Senate candidate Al Salvi squares off against state Sen. Bob Churchill.

Lawrence contends both primaries are too close to call at this point, but have been closely watched on all sides and likely will come down to the wire.

I think there is much interest in both the Democratic and Republican primaries in the race for Secretary of State, he said. I say this because it is the second largest state office in regard to the number of employees. Many officials view the office as a stepping stone to higher offices.