Nov 6, 2024 - Election

Illinois U.S. House Rep. Eric Sorensen defeats GOP challenger Joe McGraw

Justin Kaufmann

Animated illustration of a ballot dropping into a ballot box over a blue background, which rotates to become a checkbox, with a checkmark drawn in front of it. — Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios

Democratic Rep. Eric Sorensen is returning to the U.S. House to represent Illinois' 17th Congressional District.

Sorensen, who boasts that he's the first openly LGBTQ+ member of Congress in Illinois' history, held off a fierce challenge from Republican Joe McGraw, a retired judge and prosecutor.

The intrigue: Sorensen, a first-term representative, was targeted by national Republicans who saw the district as a possible seat to flip in this election.

The big picture: He won the 17th District in 2022, succeeding Democratic Rep. Cheri Bustos, who did not seek reelection. Sorensen, a former Rockford weatherman, has benefited from the state redrawing the congressional district map after the 2020 census.

The Northwest Illinois district now includes Rockford, the area near the Quad Cities, Peoria and Bloomington-Normal.

The other side: McGraw ran a mostly law-and-order campaign but was tripped up late when it was revealed he doesn't live in the district.

He says he lived in the district for 40 years but was displaced by the latest redistricting.

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Illinois U.S. House Rep. Eric Sorensen defeats GOP challenger Joe McGraw

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