The Illinois governor's race might seem like a crowded field already. The major parties have fielded incumbent Pat Quinn and state senator Bill Brady; Rich Whitney is running from the Green Party; walking media circus Scott Lee Cohen announced his independent bid for governor; not to mention Michael White and Lex Green, who have also announced.
But then again, you might look at the same slate of candidates and see the race as wide open. The state is still facing major crises a year into Gov. Quinn's administration. Bill Brady is a far-right conservative. Scott Lee Cohen has already tried and failed at being on a ticket; Whitney and the others have failed to gain much traction.
It's from this point of view that William "Dock" Walls, who ran for governor in the Democratic primary, has now entered the race as an independent.
"We don't carry the baggage of the parties," Walls told FOX Chicago. "As independents, we can take unpopular stances."
Walls' running mate is Ed Scanlan, an Oak Park trial lawyer who also ran in the governor's primary.
FOX's Tera Williams asked the two for quick responses about the other principal candidates in the race:
Tera Williams: "Scott Lee Cohen."
Walls: "Uneducated."
Scanlan: "Flawed candidate."
Tera Williams: "Pat Quinn."
Walls: "Ill equipped."
Scanlan: "Gutless."
Tera Williams: "Bill Brady."
Walls: "Too conservative."
Scanlan: "Out of touch with the people of Illinois."
Both Scanlan and Walls sought the Democratic Party's nomination for governor in the party's primary. But they both dropped out in mid-December. A Tribune poll of the race showed that the two candidates combined received around 5 percent of voter' support.
Like Cohen and other independent candidates, Walls and Scanlan will need to get 25,000 signatures from registered voters by June 21. According to the FOX report, they claim they have already collected that many signatures, but are aiming for 100,000, in case of challenges.