2026 Illinois primary election voter guide
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The Illinois primary election is March 17, and we have the who, what, where and when to keep you informed.
How it works: Voters can choose a Democratic, Republican, or independent ballot. The independent ballot would only include referendums in places that have them.
Important dates for voter registration:
- Online voter registration must be submitted by March 1, and applications for mail-in ballots are due by March 12.
- Same-day registration is available on Election Day, March 17.
- Mail-in ballots must be postmarked on or before March 19 and can be dropped in a secure drop box until the polls close at 7pm March 17.
Voting: Early voting in Chicago starts Thursday at the downtown supersite at 137 S. State St., and on the sixth floor of the Board of Elections offices at 69 W. Washington St.
- On March 2, early voting sites will open in all 50 wards.
- Same-day voter registration is available at all early voting sites, and voters can go to whichever site is most convenient for them.
📍 Find your local polling place.
Zoom out: Suburban Cook County early voting starts on March 2, and the county clerk's office has a list of locations, as well as what you need to vote early.
Zoom in: Here are the major races we're watching.
U.S. Senate
Three major candidates are duking it out to win the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in hopes of replacing longtime Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin.
State of play: Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, Rep. Robin Kelly and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton are on a blitzkrieg tour of televised forums, debates and interviews, while spending millions of dollars on campaign ads in the Chicago area.
The issues: This is an anti-President Trump race. The candidates have articulated several ways they would push back against the current administration, including calls to abolish ICE.
Follow the money: At the end of 2025, Krishnamoorthi had a sizable lead with over $15 million in campaign cash, while Stratton and Kelly had closer to $1 million apiece.
- Yes, but: Gov. JB Pritzker, who is supporting his lieutenant governor, funneled $5 million into a super PAC supporting Stratton.
The intrigue: Krishnamoorthi has touted the endorsements of labor leaders and former Obama chief of staff Bill Daley.
- Stratton counts Pritzker and Illinois' other senator, Tammy Duckworth, in her camp.
- Kelly has support from a slew of her congressional colleagues, including Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut.
- There are other Democratic candidates too.
Of note: Durbin is staying neutral. For now.
The other side: The Illinois GOP wants a crack at Durbin's seat too. It hasn't been that long since a Republican represented Illinois in the U.S. Senate: Mark Kirk served until 2016.
- The candidates are vast, but the front-runner seems to be former Illinois GOP head Don Tracy. Tracy is running a very focused campaign, mostly on fiscal issues, aligning himself with Trump administration priorities like reducing the size of the federal government.
- Tracy is racking up endorsements, including from former Sen. Kirk.
- Other candidates include Cary Capparelli, Casey Chlebek, Jeannie Evans, Pamela Denise Long and Jimmy Lee Tillman II.
GOP gubernatorial primary
The gubernatorial primary features a crowded field of Republicans running for the opportunity to unseat incumbent Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker.
Why it matters: The Illinois GOP hasn't won the governor's mansion since Bruce Rauner in 2015 and doesn't control a single statewide office.
State of play: In 2024, Republicans made inroads with President Trump on the ballot, but the gubernatorial hopefuls have an uphill battle to beat Pritzker and unite a fractured party, which has yet to coalesce around the MAGA movement.
- The candidates aren't spending time swiping at each other this primary campaign, instead zeroing in on Pritzker, citing his progressive policies and state finances.
Zoom in: Front-runner Darren Bailey is back for a rematch, hoping to reprise the 2022 gubernatorial race, but with better results.
- His campaign is hoping that running mate Aaron Del Mar, a rising Republican star in Cook County, can help him with voters in the Chicago area.
Zoom out: Bailey, a former downstate lawmaker, won the 2022 Republican primary mostly because he aligned himself with Trump and a more far-right agenda versus more moderate competition.
Reality check: The Illinois GOP is firmly behind Bailey, but then again, they were firmly behind Richard Irvin in 2022, before Bailey pulled the upset in the primary.
The other side: This time, Bailey won't have that advantage since his main competition is Ted Dabrowski, who runs the conservative media site Wirepoints.
- First-time candidate Dabrowski is the underdog, but has rallied to raise more money than Bailey, mostly from downtown Chicago businesses.
- Developer Rick Heidner and DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick are also running.
Congressional races
1st: U.S. Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D). Stretches from Chicago's near South Side, south through Frankfort down to Bourbonnais.
- Jackson faces one Democratic challenger, Jerico Brown, and Republicans Marcus Lewis and Christian Maxwell.
2nd: U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly (D) is leaving the post to run for U.S. Senate. Starts in Chicago's Kenwood, stretching straight southeast, through Pontiac and to Champaign. Read more
3rd: Incumbent Delia Ramirez is running unopposed on the Democratic side in the district covering Chicago's Northwest Side and western suburbs through Addison to Elgin and faces one Republican challenger, Angel Oakley.
4th: Jesus "Chuy" Garcia is retiring and basically named his chief of staff Patty Garcia as his replacement in the district that starts on Chicago's Southwest side, heads west to La Grange Park and zigzags north to North Lake. Garcia has no primary challenger but faces Republican Lupe Castillo.
5th: Incumbent Mike Quigley has three Democratic challengers and three Republicans in the district covering Chicago's near Northeast Side west to Park Ridge and Elmwood Park.
6th: Sean Casten is looking to return to his seat repping Wheaton and Downers Grove south to Tinley Park. He faces one Democrat in the primary. Two Republicans are also running.
7th: Danny Davis is one of the longtime representatives retiring this year, creating a competitive and crowded field to replace him in the district spanning from Chicago's West Side through the western 'burbs. Read more
8th: Raja Krisnamoorthi is vacating the seat as he runs for Senate, leaving eight Democrats and four Republicans running in the district covering northwest suburbs, including Schaumburg, Elgin and West Dundee.
9th: Jan Schakowsky's retirement opened up the far North Side and North Shore district, and the race is crowded. Read more
10th: Incumbent Brad Schneider has one Democratic opponent — Morgan Coghill — in the district running from Northbrook north through McHenry County up to the Wisconsin border. Republican Carl Lambrecht is also running.
11th: Bill Foster is running unopposed on the Democratic side. Four Republicans are running to represent Naperville up to Rockford.
14th: Lauren Underwood is unopposed in the primary. Three Republicans are running for the southwest suburban district stretching from Joliet to LaSalle.
Cook County president
Incumbent Toni Preckwinkle is seeking her fifth term as the leader of Cook County.
The longtime politician, who once served in the city council, has steered the largest county in Illinois through COVID-19, criminal justice reform and budget issues since 2010.
- After 2022, the 78-year-old signaled she would not seek reelection and instead retire.
- If she is reelected, she will surpass John Stroger for years in office, but will still trail George Dunne, who holds the record for longest-serving Cook County president at 22 years.
Zoom in: Preckwinkle has brought a more progressive agenda to county politics, while balancing budgets and fortifying the county's public health care.
Yes, but: Preckwinkle is currently mired in a county controversy over a tech upgrade gone wrong, forcing property tax bills to be delayed, causing some schools to make emergency maneuvers, including taking out short-term loans to cover immediate costs.
The intrigue: The Chicago Teachers Union has supported her in the past, but Preckwinkle told reporters she wasn't seeking their support this time around.
- Preckwinkle has big Democratic support from Gov. JB Pritzker, several unions and leaders in Springfield.
The other side: Preckwinkle will face off in the Democratic primary against downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly, who has served on the council for nearly 20 years and was vice mayor under Rahm Emanuel from 2015 to 2019.
- He also shepherded downtown development and big events like Lollapalooza and the NASCAR Street Race.
- Reilly has attracted some big financial support from downtown businesses looking to unseat Preckwinkle and has secured several editorial endorsements from city newspapers like the Tribune.
Between the lines: Reilly has been a moderate pro-business lawmaker who oversaw the construction of the Trump Tower, which was completed in 2009, but it's questionable to align him with the MAGA movement.
Interesting facts: The office has been held by a Black politician since 1994.
- No Republicans are running.
Cook County assessor
The Democratic primary for Cook County assessor may be the nastiest of the cycle, with an incumbent's track record versus a challenger's notorious surname.
The big picture: Fritz Kaegi is running for his third term heading up the office that determines how much money you pay in property taxes.
- Kaegi, who has run as a reformer, is in the crosshairs of his political opponents after years of property tax bill confusion and delays, punctuated with infighting between his office and the Cook County Board of Review and the Cook County Treasurer's Office.
Catch up quick: While Kaegi has said his past assessments that hit wealthier areas harder were about making the system fair for all residents, the most recent bills featured several instances of skyrocketing tax bills for residents on the South and West sides of Chicago.
- The assessor blames the higher bills on the Board of Review for giving tax relief to downtown businesses, switching the burden to neighborhoods.
Zoom out: That's where Kaegi's challenger, Lyons Township Assessor Pat Hynes, thinks he has an advantage. Hynes, who has been the assessor in Lyons since 2021, says he brings years of property tax experience to the job.
Yes, but: You may know the Hynes name in Chicago. That family name has been synonymous with Chicago machine politics throughout the years, most notably with the late Tom Hynes, who was the county assessor from 1978 to 1997.
- Voters rejected machine politics in 2018 when Kaegi dispatched incumbent Joe Berrios.
The other side: No Republican is running for Cook County assessor.
Go deeper: Check out all the candidates for federal office, as well as a breakdown by county.