Lt. Gov. Julianna Stratton has won the Democratic Senate primary in Illinois, NBC News projects, ahead of two members of Congress with a boost from Gov. JB Pritzker in an expensive race.
A Democratic Sen. has targeted members of his own party in Washington, DC for not standing up to President Donald Trump. Stratton defeated Reps. Raja Krishnamurthy and Robin Kelly in the race to retire Dick Durbin.
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Stratton was leading in vote-rich Cook County by 40% to Krishnamurthy’s 29% and Kelly’s 23%, earning nearly 80% of the expected vote. Stratton, a native of the South Side, defeated Krishnamurthy by 20 points in the city of Chicago, and he tied in suburban Chicago.
If elected, Stratton would become the sixth black woman to serve in the Senate. And it’s the first time three black women have served in the Senate at the same time.
“I’ve heard clearly from people about what’s going on in Washington,” Stratton said in a recent interview with NBC News. “They’re frustrated and angry at a president who flouts the Constitution, who acts on a whim without thinking about what’s best for the American people. And they’re looking for a fighter in Washington, someone who’s going to check this president.”
Stratton managed to overcome a significant financial disadvantage. Krishnamurthy, a prolific fundraiser during five terms in the House, spent $29 million on ads in the primary, according to ad-tracking firm AdImpact. Kelly’s campaign spent $1.4 million and Stratton’s $1.1 million.
Stratton served in the Legislature before Pritzker tapped her as his running mate in 2018. In a crowded primary, Pritzker and Sen. Endorsed by Tammy Duckworth. Pritzker, a billionaire and potential presidential contender in 2028, helped fund the Illinois Future PAC, which spent $14.9 million on ads boosting Stratton in the race and attacking Krishnamurthy. Stratton faced a nearly $10 million raid by Fairshake, a group funded by cryptocurrency executives.
A spokeswoman for Fairshake declined to comment on its spending on this particular run. But there may be a connection to measures Pritzker signed into state law last year that established new crypto regulations. Sen. Backs Crypto Regulations Rep. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., also endorsed Stratton.
Stratton cast himself as the most progressive candidate in the race by supporting policies including “Medicare for all” and a $25 minimum wage, as well as abolishing ICE amid the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts.
The three Senate candidates differed on ICE’s methods, with Krishnamurthy calling for “Trump’s repeal of ICE” and Kelly suggesting that the Department of Homeland Security be dismantled entirely.
Stratton dismissed concerns that policies like repealing ICE could be problematic for the Democratic Party and easily weaponized by Republicans.
“Anyone who wants to talk about what can be weaponized, how about the fact that the federal government is armed against our own citizens? That’s really ridiculous here,” Stratton said in a recent interview.
Stratton is slated to continue as party leader in the chamber over Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y. They said that they do not support him.
“I’m the only candidate in this race who has made it clear that I’m not going to support Chuck Schumer to lead the Democratic caucus, the Senate caucus, because that’s not what people are looking for right now,” Stratton said in an interview. “They need someone who is going to fight, and we need fighters and not folders.”
Stratton is expected to be in a strong position to win the November general election in the historically Democratic state. He will face former Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy, whom NBC News projects as the winner of the Republican Senate primary. Former Vice President Kamala Harris won Illinois by 11 percentage points in 2024.
