Ever hear of Roque “Rocky” De La Fuente? How about Willie Wilson?
Both are Democrats running for president. And they’ll be on the March 15 presidential primary ballots in Missouri and Illinois.
Wednesday was the last day of the frenetic 72-hour period when presidential candidates could file in Illinois. Missouri’s 29-day window closed about two weeks ago.
All the big names in both parties have filed in both states. On the GOP side, that means a huge list of candidates — 11 in Illinois and 12 in Missouri.
All three remaining Democrats also have made the ballots.
The biggest news arguably is that Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Chris Christie will lead their parties’ ballots in Missouri and Illinois. Both literally won the luck of the draw that determines ballot order for all first-day filers.
But the Democratic list of candidates, especially in Missouri, also will include a number of contenders unknown to most people. That includes Wilson, who owns a medical-supply company and several McDonald’s restaurants in Chicago, and De La Fuente, a San Diego real estate developer who is described by the local newspaper as a “tycoon.”
(Wilson ran for mayor of Chicago last year, and captured about 10 percent of the vote. )
All told, Missouri’s Democratic presidential ballot will include six lesser-known candidates, while Illinois’ will feature three. Wilson and De La Fuente are the only lesser-known candidates to appear on both states’ ballots.
At stake in Missouri will be 84 Democratic delegates and 52 Republican delegates. In Illinois, the breakdown is 102 Democratic delegates and 54 for the GOP. The delegate count is based, in part, on the party's statewide presidential vote in previous elections.
At least 25 states will have held primaries before March 15, but party leaders in both states are still expecting at least some of the presidential hopefuls to hold campaign stops. Clinton held a public rally and private fundraiser in St. Louis about a month ago, and her staff has emphasized her quest to do well in the state's primary.
So far, most of the GOP candidates' stops in either state have been for private fundraising events.
