J.B. Pritzker's first year as governor stands in stark contrast to that of his immediate predecessor Bruce Rauner. While the Rauner Administration struggled to find common ground with the General Assembly on a host of issues, Gov. Pritzker worked both sides of the aisle to gain consensus on numerous pieces of significant and in some cases groundbreaking, legislation -- especially on fiscal and tax policy.
This included everything from creating new revenue by authorizing a Chicago casino and legalizing cannabis, to establishing a $45 billion capital program and passing pro-business reforms championed by Republican House Minority Leader Jim Durkin. Pritzker also got a General Fund budget passed on his first try, with bipartisan support to boot. Whether or not you'd favor any one or more of these initiatives, you have to acknowledge it's somewhat remarkable for a rookie governor to have so many legislative successes right out of the box.