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CHICAGO (CBS) ― The political finger-pointing between Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his GOP challenger, state Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka, gained in intensity Tuesday, one day after a jury convicted former Gov. George Ryan of federal corruption charges.

"What we saw with that verdict was a reminder that under Governor Ryan there was a culture of corruption," Blagojevich said at a Chicago high school.

In the race for governor, Republican Judy Baar Topinka quickly distanced herself from her one-time political mentor.

CBS 2 Political Editor Mike Flannery reports Gov. Blagojevich moved just as swiftly to link Topinka to Ryan's culture of corruption.

Though she once danced a polka with him, and they sometimes campaigned together, Judy Baar Topinka insisted Tuesday that George Ryan was an occasional ally, but not a friend.

"You really don't have friends in politics. You have alliances," Topinka said. "George Ryan was nice to me on the campaign trial. I appreciated that. Everyone likes someone to be nice to them, but it was not a close, close relationship. I was not a social friend."

Blagojevich has tried to link Topinka with Ryan, a one-time Republican ally she served under during her three terms as state treasurer.

Appearing at a women's leadership breakfast, Topinka was quick to point out the Blagojevich administration faces investigations of its own with its hiring practices under federal and state scrutiny. Blagojevich has not been accused of any wrongdoing.

While all Illinois politicians will have to deal with fallout from the Ryan verdict, Topinka said it's going to be more problematic for Blagojevich "because of all the investigations he has going on in his office."

Topinka also has accused Blagojevich of "pay-to-play politics" for handing out state contracts and board appointments to supporters.

The Ryan trial, and now the verdict, are political grenades that Democrats and Republicans both have tried to use and diffuse in the race for the state's highest office.

Topinka has been criticized for accepting campaign contributions from banks that do business with her state treasurer's office, but she never has been accused of any wrongdoing.

During the primary, one of the Republican candidates even aired a TV commercial critical of Topinka that showed her dancing with Ryan, saying he taught her "the pay-to-play polka."

It's an image she dismisses.

"I think people realize I dance with everyone. If there's a polka music and there's somebody around, I'll dance with them," she said.

Still, Topinka works to maintain her distance from Ryan, who was convicted by a federal court jury on Monday of steering state leases and contracts in exchange for gifts. Ryan maintains his innocence and promises an appeal.

As the only statewide Republican office holder, Topinka told reporters that while Ryan was nice to her on the campaign trail, the two never were very close because "you don't really have friends in politics."

Blagojevich called it "sad situation" that "some of the same people who were there when Governor Ryan was in charge, when they were entrusted with the public trust and all of that was happening, didn't lift a finger, didn't raise their voices, didn't try to change anything."

Later Tuesday, Blagojevich's campaign again called on the treasurer to release correspondence and a log of phone calls between her and Ryan.

Topinka campaign spokesman Dave Loveday said the governor's campaign should file a Freedom of Information request for those records from the treasurer's office.

Topinka has campaigned on a promise to end no-bid contracts in the state because she says they are a potential source of corruption.

"That's where you really go wrong. That's where the Blagojevich administration, they should really be looking over their back shoulder on that," she said.

(© 2006 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)