Kennedy urges Democratic leaders to not endorse in governor primary as candidates speak

Chris Kennedy on Thursday asked Cook County Democratic leaders not to endorse a candidate for the party's governor nomination, a plea made as J.B. Pritzker urged city ward and suburban township committeemen to side with him and against contenders who attack their rivals.

The requests came as five candidates for governor appeared before the Cook County Democratic organization ahead of a planned August endorsement in the primary race to take on Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner.

Kennedy, a businessman and an heir of the iconic political family, continued his efforts to portray himself as an outsider despite his famous name. He proposed conflict-of-interest and campaign finance laws that would curb the legal business of House Speaker Michael Madigan, the state Democratic chairman, and the political funding of county Assessor Joseph Berrios, the Cook County Democratic Party leader.

"We need to install in everyone that notion that government is a good thing. And in order to do that, we need to make sure that government is squeaky clean, that it is free from conflict, that elected officials do not have an incentive to use their office for personal gain. We need to reaffirm with the electorate that we work for them, that we are servant leaders and not leaders of servants," Kennedy said in a meeting at the county party's Loop headquarters.

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