Former ABC 7 political reporter Charles Thomas is being featured in an ad endorsing Republican gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey.
In the ad, Thomas highlights Bailey as someone who is a hardworking person who can relate to Illinois workers who put effort and commit time to their jobs for their families. He said, "99% of Illinoisans have more in common with Darren Bailey than they would ever have in common with J.B. Pritzker."
“Darren Bailey?" Thomas asks in the ad by the People Who Play By The Rules PAC. "I met the man. He's a family farmer. Somebody who understands what it's like to go to work every day. Somebody who's fair-minded. I can trust this guy. I can trust this guy."
The ad features Thomas in a nondescript high-rise office with the cityscape of Chicago blurred behind him, a stark contrast to Bailey’s Xenia farm.
"Yeah, a farmer from southern Illinois? Yeah, yeah -- A farmer from southern Illinois,” Thomas says in the ad as it closes.
Thomas covered politics for ABC 7 where he had a storied career beginning in 1991 and ending in 2017. At his departure, Thomas said he was going to focus on helping his community and that he is not retired but is "refired."
“I'm going to begin working to change that narrative to show some of the great things that are happening for African Americans in this region, in this state. That's a mission for me moving forward. I have some fuel left in the tank, and I'm going to use it for that," Thomas told ABC 7.
During an interview, he told Dan Proft of AM560 Morning Answer that he wants to stop the notion of the "understated Democratic line 'you got to vote for Democrats or you ain't Black,' they've been saying that for decades and all the while they aren't producing anything that would improve the lives of the Black community but they would tell you that, and people have bought it for decades."
The fact is, according to Thomas, black homeowners in the south suburbs are paying high taxes and Democrats are doing this.
Thomas continues to write for a variety of publications.
"A farmer, family man, and fellow citizen from rural Illinois, Darren Bailey’s conservative roots run deep,' Bailey's website reads. "Darren was born and raised in Louisville and is a proud third-generation farmer. Growing up on Bailey Family Farm, Darren learned at a young age what it means to work hard and earn an honest living."
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