Expect announcements from Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Rep. Lauren Underwood within hours and days of Sen. Dick D
Tina Sfondeles and Dave McKinney at WBEZ:
The gloves are off in one of the most competitive Senate primary races Illinois has seen in decades. Expect Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Rep. Lauren Underwood to launch bids within hours and days of Sen. Dick Durbin’s announcement that he will not seek reelection in the Senate, a seat he has held since winning his first term in 1996. In an Illinois exclusive interview with WBEZ on Tuesday, Durbin said more than a dozen people have expressed interest in his seat. “There are at least a dozen names that I think are serious,” Durbin said. “There is a larger number that has approached me and said they might be interested in it, so I don’t want to rule anyone in or out at this point.” U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly and State Treasurer Michael Frerichs are also expected to jump into the race. Frerichs and Underwood have both conducted polling. And former Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who is busy spreading the word on the failures of the Democratic Party, has also said he would be open to run for a local race, although he’s got his eye on the governor’s race should Gov. JB Pritzker opt out of a third term. Stratton and Krishnamoorthi have treated Durbin’s pending announcement delicately — heaping public praise on the senator while playing coy about their potential runs. The two are among those who have spoken to Durbin personally. Durbin said he took calls from potential candidates to mean they would be seeking his endorsement.
[...] For Stratton, the question will be whether she can compete with Krishnamoorthi’s $19 million and counting campaign war chest — and whether Pritzker will pour in a little or a lot to help support her bid. Should she lose the Senate bid, Stratton is also in a position to run for governor in the future, and she would make history as the first Black governor of Illinois should she win. There’s a gigantic wrinkle in some of these bids. Kelly, Krishnamoorthi and Underwood could lose their House seats if they go all in on the Senate race and lose. For now, the three could circulate petitions for both posts, and make a game-time decision before a deadline later this year. With polling in full force, they would be able to decide whether to hold onto their House seats. The decision is a calculated risk for Krishnamoorthi, Kelly and Underwood, who could set in motion competitive races in their districts. Underwood, 38, was elected to House leadership in 2022 and although her 14th Congressional District became more blue in the latest redistricting map, she has helped to hold down a seat at a time when Democrats in the House have much to lose and everything to gain.
With Sen. Dick Durbin (D)’s retirement from his Senate seat effective the end of this current term, there will be a slugfest primary on the Democratic side (and the Republican side too). This could also have cascading effects on races further down the ballot.
Several Dems are expected to run, including Reps. Lauren Underwood, Robin Kelly, and Raja Krishnamoorthi, Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, Treasurer Michael Frerichs, Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, State Sen. Robert Peters, and former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
On the Republican side, Reps. Mary Miller and Darin LaHood, former State Rep. Jim Durkin, former State Rep. Jeanne Ives, and MAGA grifter 2x candidate Peggy Hubbard could all run.
