One of the newer entrants in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination is making a major investment in Illinois. Former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg plans to open 14 campaign offices in the state, with 80 staff members.
Will Dubbs is his Deputy States Director.
"We're going to make sure our presence is felt all across western Illinois and downstate Illinois too. And that's the sort of campaign we want to be running nationwide and we think that's the sort of campaign Democrats need to be running in order to win in November too. "
Between now and the Illinois primary on March 17th, campaign workers will focus on recruiting volunteers.
"It is simply a numbers game and it is how many voters we can talk to. So we're recruiting for phone banks, we're recruiting for canvasses, we're recruiting to go and talk to as many people as we can, encouraging them to vote early as well as encouraging them to vote on primary day."
And even though the Bloomberg campaign is intensifying its efforts now, supporters were organizing in Illinois early enough to get his name on the ballot by the filing deadline in December.
Five offices are located in Chicago, with others in Rock Island, Springfield, and Belleville. Others will open soon in Aurora, Rockford, and Waukegan.