While the five Republican candidates tackled questions about education, abortion and government reform, two of the biggest names looming in the GOP primary race were missing from the event: former Illinois GOP chairman Andy McKenna and former Illinois Attorney General Jim Ryan.
Ryan's entry into the race could help overcome a potential weakness in the Republican field, said Chris Mooney, a political science professor at the University of Illinois at Springfield.
''There are no statewide-elected or former statewide-elected officials in the field,'' he said.
Mooney's comments were featured in an Associated Press article which appeared on the New York Times and Washington Post websites.
Download a PDF of the article.
20091021-NYT-GOP-Candidates-for-Illinois.pdf
