Bruce Rauner, 30-year principal of GTCR, buyer of Cision, Vocus and Gorkana, is in a tight race for governor of Illinois vs. incumbent Pat Quinn.
Rauner, Quinn |
Rauner left GTCR in 2012 after 30 years with the $12 billion hedge fund but one of his biggest backers is GTCR principal Edgar Jannotta, according to the Huffington Post.
Although early polls gave Quinn a big lead in the race, the Chicago Tribune said today that Rauner has now pulled even with Quinn.
Predictions are that Republicans will pick up six seats in the Senate in the Nov. 4 election, giving them a 51-46 margin while the House will remain under GOP control by a 243-192 margin.
GTCR is paying an estimated $300 million to buy Gorkana after spending hundreds of millions to acquire Cision and Vocus which will now operate under the Cision name.
Florida Lawsuit Involves Rauner
Rauner, Jannotta and GTCR are involved in a lawsuit before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida.
The expected trial "will be center stage for what is likely to provide an unprecedented look at how GTCR under Rauner treated nursing home victims," said HuffPost
Rauner has "gone to great lengths to cloak the details of his business dealings, a task made easier by the privately held structure of GTCR," it added.
A 40-page opinion March 14, 2014 allowed claims for breach of fiduciary to proceed against Jannotta. Huffpost refers to the "Rauner nursing home scandal."
It says the case involves an alleged scheme “whereby business assets were purportedly fraudulently transferred in order to intentionally hide them from plaintiffs who had won massive judgments in nursing home wrongful death cases.”
Sun-Times Reporter Accuses Rauner Campaign
McKinney |
Dave McKinney, Chicago Sun-Times reporter, yesterday said he resigned after 19 years with the paper because a story about Rauner he co-wrote was subjected to pressure by the Rauner campaign. The story, he said, examined litigation involving GTCR and was backed by "our editors and supported by sworn testimony and interviews."
He charged that "the Rauner campaign used multiple tactics to block it" including "sending to my boss an opposition-research hit piece rife with errors about my wife, Ann Liston. The campaign falsely claimed she was working with a PAC to defeat Rauner and demanded a disclaimer be attached to our story and would have been untrue."
At issue is the Sun-Times/NBC5 report about LeapSource and its fired female CEO, a story for which McKinney said he proudly shared a byline with Carol Marin and Don Moseley. The piece focused on litigation involving the former executive, who alleged Rauner, while a director of the company, threatened her, her family and her future job prospects.
McKinney, 19 years with the paper and its Springfield bureau chief, said he felt the paper did not "back" him and even "penalized" him for doing his job. The story initially had the backing of the paper's editor, publisher, the company's lawyer and its NBC5 partner, he said. McKinney's resignation has been picked up by Reuters and other national media.
Harbinger Group Handles GTCR
Rochford |
GTCR's PR is handled by The Harbinger Group, Chicago, headed by Eileen Rochford, who was with Ketchum from 1997-2003. She built the firm's corporate practice into a multi-million dollar operation. She was previously at Golin/Harris Communications in brand communication and corporate including PA and issues management.
Previous posts were at the AP as Wisconsin election coordinator for the 1992 Presidential election and as assistant press secretary, Rep. Mary Rose Oakar (D-OH).
Clients include Ameritex prescription monitoring; Career Educational Corp.; Chicago Bancorp; Federal Savings Bank; Golden Apple Foundation; Healthways; Levenfeld Pearstein law firm; Springboard Foundation for children, and West Monroe Partners, management consultants.
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