SPRINGFIELD - Republican gubernatorial candidate Judy Baar Topinka says her vagueness on several hot-button issues is part of a campaign strategy.

The three-term state treasurer told reporters Wednesday that she is hoping to earn a lot of free publicity in the coming weeks because she simply cannot compete with incumbent Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich's campaign fund in the run-up to the Nov. 7 election.

"I don't have the kind of money he does. As a result, you'll get it piece by piece," Topinka said of her vision on issues such as education and taxes.

Her comments came during a news conference in which she again criticized Blagojevich for not living in the Executive Mansion in Springfield. And, they came as one of the governor's top aides, communications chief Cheryle Jackson, left the administration for a position as president of the Chicago Urban League.

Topinka acknowledged she has been criticized for not strongly outlining her positions but said she is waiting for voters to begin paying more attention to the race before she begins unveiling the cornerstones of her campaign.

"I want to make sure that people are home from vacation, that they're settled in, that they are thinking about this race," Topinka said.

Topinka reports having $1.5 million in her campaign account, Blagojevich reported $12.2 million as of July 1.

Blagojevich campaign spokesman Doug Scofield said Topinka's strategy is an "insult" to voters, who will be going to the polls in less than three months.

"To refuse to share with the people of Illinois what you would do for them in key areas as a campaign tactic is an insult," he said. "It sounds to some extent like an excuse for why she has not been able to come up with any ideas for things that matter."

Thus far, Topinka has unveiled her plans on the issues of ethics and job creation. She said a plan for education will likely be her next announcement.

To bolster her contention that her campaign strategy is solid, Topinka said Blagojevich has spent millions of campaign dollars on negative advertisements, but has not seen an appreciable change in his poll numbers.

"I'd say that's bad planning," Topinka said.

Kurt Erickson can be reached at kurt.erickson@lee.net or 782-1249.