CHICAGO (AP) — Scott Lee Cohen says his running mate in an independent bid for Illinois governor wasn’t his first choice.
Cohen says state Sen. James Meeks was his first choice but the South Side pastor turned him down. Cohen eventually settled on community organizer Baxter Swilley. Cohen introduced the 35-year-old Swilley on Wednesday and said that while he wasn’t his first choice he was the “best choice.”
Cohen says he also asked other legislators and leaders whom he described as “noncommital.” The Chicago pawnbroker needs to collect 25,000 signatures by next month if he wants to get on the November ballot.
He won the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor in February but quit the race amid questions about his personal life.
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