Aggressive stances, including calls to abolish ICE, have led to a surge in the polls for Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton, and a recent swing between her and Representative Raja Krishnamoorthy.
Sen. Dick Durbin says he is not seeking re-election
Mr. Durbin was a central figure in the Democratic caucus and rose to prominence in Congress, particularly by supporting Barack Obama early in the historic 2008 presidential campaign.
scripps news
- Illinois’ Democratic Senate primary will test whether the party’s base wants a more confrontational approach to Republicans.
- The race pits Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton and Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthy against each other, with immigration policy being a key dividing point.
Democrats looking to strengthen their party’s stance against President Donald Trump will learn just how much their base wants it if deep blue Illinois voters choose a Democratic candidate to replace retiring incumbent Sen. Dick Durbin.
Unlike the recent Texas Senate primary, where Democrats publicly weighed the issue of electability, Prayer’s March 17 primary focuses on the broader aspirations of liberal voters.
“I think Democrats should do everything possible to thwart Republicans,” Jacob Rosenbacher, a Chicago technology executive who voted early for Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, one of the front-runners, told USA TODAY.
He said Illinois voters need to send a message to Washington in response to President Trump’s aggressive use of executive power, including sending thousands of immigration enforcement agents and 300 National Guard troops to Chicago last year as part of Operation Midway Blitz.
That’s why he is backing Stratton, a close ally of Gov. J.B. Pritzker, one of President Trump’s fiercest opponents, over his well-funded rival, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, who was leading in early polls.
Mr. Krishnamoorthi would not be considered a conservative in most states. He voted against the Iran war and is focused on affordability.
But Mr. Rosenbacher, 32, cited reports that President Trump’s advisers and other conservative activists were among Mr. Krishnamoorthi’s donors, and described him as “a Republican who sued the Democrats.”
Stratton has strongly voiced his support for abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and in February he gained national attention for a profanity-laced campaign ad in which several voters said “fuck Trump” directly to the camera.
Her aggressive style has helped her soar in the polls, and she has recently wavered between the two candidates.
At least 16 candidates are running, with 10 Democrats and six Republicans vying to replace Mr. Durbin, the second-ranking Democrat in the Senate.
Illinois’ Senate race is rated by forecasters as a solidly blue state for the 2026 midterm elections, meaning the Democratic candidate is likely to win the general election.
On the Republican side, former state party chairman Don Tracy led by about 6% in the only poll that found 84% of Illinois Republicans remained undecided two months before the election.
John Mark Hansen, a political science professor at the University of Chicago, said the race recently turned into a referendum on reforming or dismantling ICE, whose popularity has declined dramatically across the country following the killings of two Americans by federal agents earlier this year.
“Mr. Stratton’s political patron is our governor, so she seems beholden to Governor Pritzker,” Hansen said. “She saw him benefiting locally and abroad by taking a more confrontational stance against the Trump administration than many other Democrats, and that was her stance.”
Mr. Pritzker fiercely opposed the Trump administration’s ambitious deportation campaign in Chicago, which saw federal authorities spray protesters and journalists with chemical agents outside a local immigration enforcement facility. They rappelled from a Black Hawk helicopter and raided a South Side apartment building in the middle of the night. A Mexican man, Sillio Villegas Gonzalez, was shot and killed in the northwest suburbs after federal authorities say he hit a police officer with his car.
Hansen said smaller policy differences or questionable campaign contributions could be important given the presence of Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) in the race. She has the support of the Congressional Black Caucus, and some political observers have speculated that divisions among black voters could hinder Stratton’s rise. Both Stratton and Kelly are black.
In an interview with USA TODAY, Krishnamoorthi, a five-term congressman born in New Delhi, India, acknowledged that the campaign reflects the direction of the party.
“We must hold the Trump administration accountable and fight for our principles, not necessarily by arguing and shouting at the other side, but rather by standing up for our principles,” he said.
Abolition or reform? Candidates clash over ICE
In a debate on January 26, the three leading candidates each called for a review of ICE, but their opinions differed on the extent. Mr Stratton called for the agency to be “abolished” and Mr Kelly said it should be “dismantled”.
Mr. Krishnamoorthi took a more moderate approach, suggesting that President Trump’s leadership was to blame for the agency’s misconduct. He said regulations need to be regulated through concrete reforms, such as banning employees from wearing face coverings. Visible ID and body camera required. Establish an inspector general within ICE to ensure compliance with laws and regulations.
But during the debate, Stratton jumped in and accused the lawmaker of accepting donations from executives at Palantir, a data company that contracts with ICE.
The lieutenant governor also criticized Mr. Krishnamoorthy for supporting a House bill that would provide funding for government agencies and for voting on a resolution to “express gratitude” to law enforcement, including ICE officers, among other things.
“This is not an example of someone willing to stand up to Donald Trump and fight for all of our communities,” Stratton said during the Jan. 26 debate. “I want to abolish ICE because this agency cannot be reformed. It doesn’t matter whose ICE it is.”
The congressman’s campaign, which released a March 12 ad highlighting Mr. Krishnamoorthi’s immigrant roots, was quick to point out that CoreCivic, the company that runs the immigrant detention facility, had donated more than $135,000 to the Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association, a political action committee that supports Mr. Stratton.
Krishnamoorthi told USA TODAY that ICE had “earned the ire” of voters, but added that some of Stratton’s attacks were disingenuous. For example, he said, the House resolution was a broader measure condemning anti-Semitism rather than thanking government agencies.
“Listen, I’m an immigrant too, okay? This is a personal issue for me, and I don’t need someone to lecture me on how to stand up to ICE and Border Patrol like I do,” he said.
Activists on the left have been demanding stronger action to control ICE’s actions for more than a year, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York has come under intense criticism, especially as party officials weigh whether it’s best to focus on confronting Trump or courting MAGA-leaning voters.
Several Democratic voters in Illinois who spoke with USA TODAY praised Senate Democrats for withholding funding for the Department of Homeland Security, citing calls for reform of ICE and other immigration enforcement agencies.
Christian Michel, 30, a software developer from Chicago and the son of Haitian immigrants, said he worries about being “snatched” every time his family comes to visit. He said Stratton’s fierce reaction and stance on ICE removal represented how many people felt about Trump’s operations and led to a change in his decision.
“If you look at the positions of the other candidates, it looks like we’re going to continue to maintain the status quo and move backwards,” Michel said. “Getting rid of it is probably the best way to start, because if you leave it in place, it can potentially hold back people who were involved and people who don’t have the best track record.”
Illinois faces historic choice and potential for division.
If there is a wild card in the Illinois Senate derby, it will be the role Kelly, who was first elected to the House in 2013, could play in the campaign.
If either Kelly or Stratton wins, she would likely become the sixth black female senator in history. with Democratic Party members. In the case of Maryland’s Angela Alsobrooks and Delaware’s Lisa Blunt Rochester, the three senators would be the best of all time.
If elected, Krishnamoorthi will become the second Indian-American senator in history.
Prominent black members of Congress, including Representative James Clyburn (D.C.), have expressed support for Mr. Kelly. He traveled to Illinois last week to host a fundraiser for her.
“If you look at how local politicians line up, like state legislators and city councilors, they line up as you would expect,” said Hansen, a professor at the University of Chicago. “They’re competitors in the same tier, so I wouldn’t be too surprised if it’s probably Kelly who messes with Stratton in the pick.”
By most metrics of the campaign, he is a distant third. Public Policy Poll’s March 10 poll, for example, showed Mr. Stratton’s approval rating at 32%, Mr. Krishnamoorthi’s approval rating at 30%, and Mr. Kerry’s approval rating at just 13%. The person with the most votes wins the primary, regardless of whether they receive a full majority or not.
Some of Mr. Stratton’s supporters are quick to point out that Mr. Kerry is backed by organizations aligned with Mr. Krishnamoorthi, including the Indian American Impact Fund and groups connected to the crypto industry, including a super PAC called Fairsake.
For example, one of the Indian American Impact Fund’s digital spots features former President Barack Obama, who has not endorsed the Senate race, praising Kerry as an “outstanding” lawmaker.
Krishnamoorthi told USA TODAY he doesn’t need anyone else to boost his candidacy for Congress, adding that he has “a lot of respect” for Kerry.
Kelly’s campaign did not respond to repeated requests for comment, but he addressed the issue on the campaign trail, telling voters at a March 10 event, “A vote for Robin Kelly is a vote for Robin Kelly. Always.”
She also hasn’t spared Krishnamoorthy from criticism, saying in a March 11 post on the X Show that while Krishnamoorthi is “known as a fundraiser” in Washington, she is “known for getting things done.”
Kelly added, “I’m doing the job I was elected to do.” “I put people before profits every day, all day long, and the same goes for the Senate.”
Democratic Myra Macias, a Chicago-area candidate for the Illinois House of Representatives, said the lack of diversity in the Senate is a problem and could lead to historic turnout in these communities. But he said racial tensions are not as pronounced as in other Democratic races, such as Texas.
“We have an opportunity to put a Black woman in the U.S. Senate, which is huge and frankly necessary given the lack of diversity in the U.S. Senate,” Macias said. “But I will also say that we are past the days when just having someone’s identity was enough for voters to support them.”
Contributions: Tom Ackerman, Brenden Moore
