“Conventional wisdom,” Merriam Webster says, is “the generally accepted belief, opinion, judgment, or prediction about a particular matter.”

Conventional wisdom can be the mother of politics and campaigns. However, what is “generally accepted” can also be perilously wrong. 

As the fall political campaigns heat up, here’s a dose of how our politics is defying conventional wisdom.

Take the notion that, particularly in these times when super political action committees and special interests reign, money is king. The candidate who brings in the big bucks, so it goes, has the early and huge advantage. Elections are being bought and sold by the monied classes, “they” say.   

Alexi Giannoulias has beaucoup bucks. Last week, the Illinois secretary of state rolled out a flashy announcement that he is running for mayor of Chicago in 2027. 

That’s no surprise, since Giannoulias has been fiendishly raising campaign cash and is sitting on a $22 million campaign fund. He is a shoo-in for reelection to his current job in November, so he can preserve his stockpile for a mayoral bid. 

That makes him an instant front-runner for the fifth floor of City Hall, the pundits say. 

Really? Let’s look at another high-profile, big-bucks campaign in Illinois, the 2026 U.S. Senate primary race for the Democratic nomination. The contest between the leading candidates, U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton and........

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