Prairie State Wire

In an April 2 tweet, Senator and gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey accused his primary opponent, Richard Irvin, of "lying and trying to mislead people" about his political leanings.

"Irvin's campaign is lying & trying to mislead people because they despise conservatives like us. Don't be fooled by their lies and fake news. While he was supporting Hillary and Biden, I was voting for Trump in 2016 & 2020. I'm a lifelong Republican, he's a career Democrat. #twill," Bailey posted on Twitter.

This isn't the first time that Bailey has accused Irving of being "a career Democrat." In January, he tweeted, "I suspect career Democrat Richard Irvin will be very popular among the establishment and weak-kneed Republicans who voted with Madigan and Pritzker to raise your taxes. They will attempt to mislead you because the political elites fear you standing up. Don't be fooled."

He has also slammed his opponent for his views on criminal justice reform. "Democrat @RichardIrvin4IL plays a tough on crime conservative on TV, but behind the scenes he praised other Dems for passing radical anti-police legislation. We need a Governor who stands up & defends law enforcement and fights with them to keep families safe in real life. #twill," Bailey tweeted.

Bailey announced in late March that his name would be at the top of the Republican primary ballot. "GOOD NEWS: we're first on the Republican Primary ballot to fire JB Pritzker. Thank you so much to everyone who has helped fuel our movement to reform Springfield and restore Illinois!!! #twill," Bailey posted on Twitter.