Lake County Gazette

State Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia), now running for governor on a platform of less government, recently told a closed-door gathering of Republican voters he has not been vaccinated against COVID-19.

"I’m not vaccinated,” Bailey recently told the crowd during a gathering in Wheeling at the Chevy Chase Country Club. "I have no problem with anyone who wants to be vaccinated."

One of three announced candidates in the Republican field, Bailey also recently came out in opposition to vaccine passports, branding them “another form of government control.”

Vaccine passports could be used by individuals to show proof that they have been fully vaccinated against the deadly virus or as documentation that establishes that the cardholder has recently tested negative for the virus.

"Friends, Gov. Pritzker and the political elite support vaccine passports because they want to control you," Bailey said in a video posted to YouTube back in early April. "They want vaccine passports for people like us to be able to go into stores and attend events. They want the government to control many portions of our lives."

In contrast, Pritzker recently went on record in voicing his overall support for the passports, though he told Patch.com he doesn’t think they should be required for individuals to be able to have access to an event or a facility.

Data shows as of early April, 6.5 million doses of coronavirus vaccines had been distributed to residents across the state.

Former state Sen. Paul Schimpf and Bull Valley businessman Gary Rabine are also vying for the Republican nomination.