2026 United States Senate election in Illinois

For related races, see 2026 United States Senate elections.

2026 United States Senate election in Illinois

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Party Democratic Republican

Incumbent U.S. senator Dick Durbin Democratic

The 2026 United States Senate election in Illinois will be held on November 3, 2026, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Illinois. Incumbent Democratic senator Dick Durbin is eligible to run for reelection, having been re-elected in 2020 with 54.9% of the vote, but has yet to indicate whether he will do so.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Filed paperwork

• Austin Mink, writer ^[1]

Formed exploratory committee

• Meredith Shiner, communications consultant ^[2]

Publicly expressed interest

• Dick Durbin, incumbent U.S. Senator (1997–present) (decision expected in early 2025) ^[3]
• Robin Kelly, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 2nd congressional district (2013–present) ^[4]
• Delia Ramirez, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 3rd congressional district (2023–present) ^[4]
• Juliana Stratton, Lieutenant Governor of Illinois (2019–present) (will not run if Durbin runs) ^[5]

Potential

• Rahm Emanuel, former U.S. Ambassador to Japan (2022–2025) and former mayor of Chicago (2011–2019) ^[6]
• Michael Frerichs, Illinois State Treasurer (2015–present) ^[4]
• Alexi Giannoulias, Illinois Secretary of State (2023–present), former Illinois State Treasurer (2007–2011), and nominee for U.S. Senate in 2010 ^[4]
• Raja Krishnamoorthi, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 8th congressional district (2017–present) ^{[7] [4]}
• JB Pritzker, Governor of Illinois (2019–present) ^{[8] [4]}
• Kwame Raoul, Illinois Attorney General (2019–present) ^[9]
• Lauren Underwood, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 14th congressional district (2019–present) ^{[9] [4]}

Declined

• Nikki Budzinski, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 13th congressional district (2023–present) ^[4]
• Sean Casten, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 6th congressional district (2019–present) ^[4]
• Danny Davis, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 7th congressional district (1997–present) ^[4]
• Bill Foster, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 11th congressional district (2013–present) ^[4]
• Chuy García, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 4th congressional district (2019–present) ^[4]
• Jonathan Jackson, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 1st congressional district (2023–present) ^[4]
• Mike Quigley, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 5th congressional district (2009–present) ^[4]
• Jan Schakowsky, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 9th congressional district (1999–present) ^[4]
• Brad Schneider, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 10th congressional district (2017–present) ^[4]
• Eric Sorensen, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 17th congressional district (2023–present) ^[4]

Republican primary

Candidates

Publicly expressed interest

• Darin LaHood, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 16th congressional district (2015–present) ^[4]

Declined

• Mike Bost, U.S. Representative from Illinois's 12th congressional district (2015–present) ^[4]

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
Inside Elections [10]	Solid D	January 17, 2025
The Cook Political Report [11]	Solid D	February 11, 2025
Sabato's Crystal Ball [12]	Safe D	February 13, 2025

References

1. "Statement Of Candidacy" (PDF). January 22, 2025.
2. Shiner, Meredith (February 3, 2025). "Primary Every Democrat". The New Republic . ISSN   0028-6583 . Retrieved February 6, 2025. Today, it brings me no pleasure to announce that I am launching an exploratory committee for a Senate run to replace the senior senator from my home state, Dick Durbin.
3. Kapos, Shia (August 5, 2024). "What if Pritzker becomes VP?". Politico . Retrieved December 3, 2024.
4. Huiskes, Helen (January 27, 2025). "The Race for Dick Durbin's Senate Seat Has Already Begun". NOTUS. Retrieved January 27, 2025.
5. Sweet, Lynn (January 27, 2025). "Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton launching PAC to help potential bid for Senate if Durbin does not run again". Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved January 27, 2025.
6. Sweet, Lynn (November 23, 2024). "What's next for Rahm Emanuel?". Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved December 2, 2024.
7. Solender, Andrew (November 27, 2024). "Scoop: Huge wave of House members eyes 2026 exits". Axios . Retrieved December 3, 2024.
8. Vinicky, Amanda (August 6, 2024). "Kamala Harris Did Not Pick JB Pritzker as Her Running Mate, but the Illinois Governor's National Profile Has Only Grown". WTTW . Retrieved December 3, 2024.
9. Sivak, David (September 17, 2024). "No. 2 Senate Democrat Dick Durbin to decide on reelection plans in new year". Washington Examiner . Retrieved December 3, 2024.
10. "Senate Ratings". Inside Elections. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
11. "2026 CPR Senate Race Ratings". Cook Political Report. Retrieved February 11, 2025.
12. "2026 Senate ratings". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved February 13, 2025.