CARBONDALE - State Sen. Dan Rutherford said Mitt Romney won the Illinois Republican presidential straw poll for a reason:

He was organized and he's proved he can raise money.

Rutherford, a Republican from Pontiac, has become the volunteer chairman for Romney's campaign in Illinois.

Rutherford decided to hop on the former Massachusetts governor's campaign after a sit-down session with him in Boston in May, and he is confident once the rest of Illinois gets a taste of Romney's message, they'll be believers in what he could do as president.

"As Illinois gets to know Mitt Romney, you'll start to see here what happened in Iowa and New Hampshire," Rutherford said.

Polls show Romney is doing well in those states, the first that will have primary elections in 2008, Rutherford said. Romney also won a Republican straw poll in Iowa recently and has been gaining popularity nationwide amid the growing number of presidential contenders.

Rutherford said Romney is already starting to generate buzz in Illinois.

"We know that Republicans like what they hear from Mitt Romney," he said. "As I travel communities from Southern Illinois to Chicago, our supporters are energized by this campaign and working hard to spread the Romney message to friends and neighbors."

Romney's tenure as governor of Massachusetts was marked by positive trends in the economy, as well as building a surplus for the state without raising taxes, according to literature from Rutherford.

Rutherford said Romney's message is pertinent for Illinois; he said the candidate has shown a commitment to visit the state before the Feb. 5 primary.

caleb.hale@thesouthern.com

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