A day after Sen. Dick Durbin announced he would not seek reelection, the race to replace him is fully on.
Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton made it official early Thursday: She’s running.
Stratton was quickly endorsed by the Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association, which said it’s “committing seven figures in support of her campaign.” She also believes she has Gov. JB Pritzker’s support, sources told Politico in March, though the governor has thus far declined to endorse anyone.
But Stratton is far from the only candidate expected in the race.Among the House delegation, Democratic Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi, Robin Kelly and Lauren Underwood are all expected to run, sources previously told NOTUS. Krishnamoorthi has a significant war chest — $19 million on hand, according to his most recent FEC filing. Meanwhile, Kelly has $2 million and Underwood has about $1 million.
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Of course, there’s much more to the race than just money.
A March poll, commissioned by a PAC that has previously donated to Underwood, found Krishnamoorthi and Underwood statistically tied on a four-way ballot with Stratton and Kelly. Of the Democratic primary voters polled, 77% recognize Underwood’s name. So far, it’s the only public polling.
A source familiar with Underwood’s thinking told NOTUS Thursday that she is “carefully considering next steps.”
Outside of Illinois’ congressional delegation, Democratic State Treasurer Michael Frerichs also said in a statement on Durbin’s retirement that he’s keeping his options open.
“I am considering how I can continue to best serve the people of Illinois,” Frerichs said. “As part of that, I am having conversations with my family.”
Illinois is a Democratic stronghold. But with Durbin retiring after 28 years, there is some new hope on the GOP side that Republicans could compete.
Republican Rep. Darin LaHood told NOTUS in January that he’s open to a Senate run. He has $5 million on hand. Former GOP state Rep. Tom Demmer also posted on X that he’s “preparing to have conversations to consider the potential formation of a tentative exploratory committee to look in to the possibility of floating my candidacy.”
Durbin’s retirement will also create an opening in Senate Democratic leadership at a time when some in the party have been questioning the existing leadership’s strategies. Although Durbin and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer don’t agree on everything, they largely vote in lockstep. Durbin is the longest-serving whip in Senate history.
Sen. Brian Schatz, currently Durbin’s chief deputy whip, has been floated to fill the position, though he’s not clarified his intentions. Others could also be interested.
While Senate Republicans often allow their leadership battles to play out in public, Senate Democrats typically try to keep squabbles behind closed doors.
The timing of leadership elections can vary, but they’re likely to happen around next year’s midterms. When there was an opening in Senate Democratic leadership last year, Democrats decided the races about a month after the November elections.
In a statement released just minutes after Durbin’s retirement announcement, Schatz wrote that he was “lucky to call Senator Durbin a mentor and friend.”
“I know he will be running through the tape, fighting for Illinois and our nation, as always,” Schatz said.
The race for the Senate will also likely kick off some House races in Illinois.
Already, Rep. Jan Schakowsky, who has not said whether she will run, is facing a primary challenge from a 25-year-old content creator, Kat Abughazaleh, who recently moved to the district.
On Wednesday, Schakowsky posted on X that she would make an announcement about her political future on May 5.
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Helen Huiskes is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow. Ursula Perano is a reporter at NOTUS. Daniella Diaz, who is a reporter at NOTUS, contributed to this report.
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