Illinois Secretary of State candidates Dan Brady, Alexi Giannoulias talk plans to modernize office

CHICAGO (WLS) -- For the first time in 24 years, Illinois voters will go to the polls without Jesse White on the ballot as a choice for Secretary of State. He's retiring when his historic sixth term ends.

The top candidates seeking to take over for White include Democrat Alexi Giannoulias and Republican Dan Brady. Both candidates spoke to ABC7 Monday about their vision for the office.

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Working the room at Manny's Deli, Brady knows his campaign to become Illinois' next Secretary of State is an uphill battle against his well-funded opponent and heavily-endorsed Democrat Alexi Giannoulias. But the longtime Bloomington state Rep is hoping his record of bipartisanship will attract independents and disgruntled Democrats.

"I'm known as somebody who has been in the minority since I've been there, been known to work with the majority party on a variety of fronts," Brady said.

Giannoulias is trying to make a political comeback after losing the U.S. Senate race to Mark Kirk in 2010. Four years earlier, Giannoulias was elected the nation's youngest state treasurer at the age of 30.

During the Democrat primary for Secretary of State, the 46-year-old was not endorsed by Governor Pritzker, Sen Dick Durbin or the man he hopes to replace, Jesse White.

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"I've never been part of the machine, ever," Giannoulias said.

Both Giannoulias and Brady say if elected, their number one priority is modernizing the office.

"We've announced a skip the line program, where people can actually schedule an appointment to get in front of the line," Giannoulias said. "We've looked at mobile driver's license, mobile ID's, creation of an app."

"How can we have a more pleasant experience, more timely experience," Brady said.

"Everything from making our website more user friendly to making sure we have remote access increased."

Brady also wants to temporarily cut license plate renewal fees, an idea Giannoulias calls fiscally irresponsible.

With over 4,000 employees, the Illinois Secretary of State's office is the largest of its kind in the country. Besides driver services, there are 21 divisions the office controls, including overseeing all the state's public libraries.

Giannoulias and Brady say all the divisions need to be brought into the 21st century.