Democratic Illinois governor Pat Quinn faces new scrutiny over a $54.5 million neighborhood grant program that has been the subject of a federal probe, with the release of e-mails suggesting the program was used to shore up Quinn’s 2010 reelection campaign by appealing to black voters.

E-mails between Quinn’s 2010 campaign manager, chief of staff, and brother, Tom Quinn, reportedly show that the anti-violence grant program was discussed as part of an effort by the campaign to solidify support in the African-American community in Chicago, according to the Chicago Tribune. The Neighborhood Recovery Initiative (NRI) was intended to address street violence when it was launched in 2010, but it was ended two years later as reports of mismanagement emerged. The NRI is the subject of state and federal investigations that have questioned the hasty and poorly planned allocation of resources to the program in the months leading up to the 2010 election.

The controversy involving the program will likely be on center stage at Quinn’s first official debate with Republican candidate Bruce Rauner tonight. Quinn is currently up 1.5 percentage points according to the RealClearPolitics average, as the lead Rauner held on Quinn throughout the summer has evaporated.