Illinois state House Rep. Dan Brady, the Republican secretary of state nominee, would not admit to a reporter if he would support or vote for Darren Bailey, the state’s GOP nominee for governor.
“I want the best choice of the people of Illinois to lead this state, and that’s up to the people of Illinois,” Brady said when KSDK News’ Mark Maxwell asked if he wanted Bailey to lead the state.
When explicitly asked if he would vote for Bailey, Brady stated, “I’m voting for Dan Brady for secretary of state,” referring to himself and adding that he would “vote for Republicans across the line.”
After not confirming he would support the Republican nominee for governor, the reporter asked again if Brady would vote for him, in which he stated that he “just answered [the] question” by not confirming he would vote for Bailey, but confirming he would vote for “Republicans across the line.”
“And whether or not I vote for, or, uh…I’m voting for me, for Dan Brady, and that’s the important thing for me. I’m running for secretary of state; I’m not running for governor,” he added.
“I think I’ve been probably more of a conduit of party unity than anybody else has been,” Brady explained, clearly trying to distance himself from the Republican nominee for governor. “But, I’m also an individual that can reach out and work with the Democrats, and I’m also an individual that can reach out and work with independents and others.”
When talking about giving his endorsement to anyone running for office, he claimed to have not given it to anyone, nor has he received an endorsement from anyone else running.
“I haven’t been asked to do that,” he added when confronted as to why he can not give an endorsement to the Republican nominee for governor. “I want to give one endorsement that’s really important to me, and that’s ‘Dan Brady works as hard as he possibly can to be the next secretary of state.'”
Watch:
I asked Dan Brady, “Do you want Darren Bailey to lead this state?”
He said, “I want the best choice of the people of Illinois to lead this state, and that’s up to the people of Illinois.”
“Are you voting for him?”
“I’m voting for Dan Brady for Secretary of State.” pic.twitter.com/bcZvcWStuK
— Mark Maxwell (@MarkMaxwellTV) August 18, 2022
However, this would not be the first time he has been caught not confirming he would vote for a specific Republican.
Last week, Brady also told a reporter that he does not remember if he voted for former President Donald Trump in 2020.
“I don’t know that I voted for President Trump in 2020,” Brady said to a reporter when asked if he voted for Trump in 2020. “I’m thinking right now that I probably did in 2020.”
“Yes. I would have voted for President Trump, probably in the general election,” Brady eventually conceded when the reporter stated again that he did not remember who he voted for in 2020 for president.
Watch:
Republican running for Secretary of State in Illinois: “I don’t know who I voted for.” pic.twitter.com/RxmIsRYWqO
— Really American 🇺🇸 (@ReallyAmerican1) August 19, 2022
In 2020 the state also had Rocky De La Fuente on the ballot for the Republican presidential primary, challenging Trump’s reelection campaign. Even though Trump won the state in the primary, De La Fuente garnered four percent of the vote.
Brady is running to be Illinois secretary of state in the general election against Democrat Alexi Giannoulias, who served as the Illinois state treasurer from 2007 to 2011.
Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jbliss@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter @JacobMBliss.
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