By Michael Katz | Tuesday, March 17, 2026 10:58 PM EDT
Darren Bailey, who lost Illinois’ 2022 gubernatorial race to Democratic incumbent JB Pritzker, will face him again in November after securing victory in Tuesday’s Republican primary.
The former state senator and representative from downstate Xenia defeated three challengers with 52.7% of the vote based on returns from 76% of precincts. Former bank executive Ted Dabrowski earned 29.5%, DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick received 9.5%, and businessman Rick Heidner captured 8.3%.
Bailey lost by a margin of 12.5 percentage points (54.9% to 42.4%) in the 2022 race, a state that has elected only one Republican governor in the past century. Pritzker, seeking his third term, ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Bailey entered the contest following a family tragedy: the deaths of his son, daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren in a helicopter crash last fall.
President Donald Trump, who endorsed Bailey’s initial campaign, encouraged him to remain in the race. The devout Christian cited a higher calling to continue the conservative struggle in Illinois, which has been heavily Democratic for decades.
“There was just this welling up in our heart that set in, and I knew that we were being called to do this,” Bailey told the Chicago Sun-Times ahead of Election Day. “I’m fighting for my children and my grandchildren and a better future for everyone in Illinois.”
In the state’s U.S. Senate race to replace retiring Democrat Sen. Dick Durbin, former state GOP chair Don Tracy of Springfield clinched the Republican nomination with 40.3% of the vote based on returns from 93% of precincts.
Tracy will face Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, who captured 39.3% of the vote in her race against six challengers based on returns from 75% of precincts. Stratton faced a strong challenge from Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, who earned 33.6%.
In heavily Democratic Illinois, the last Republican elected to the Senate was Mark Kirk in 2010, and the GOP’s most recent statewide victory occurred in 2014. The Democratic candidate is widely expected to replace Durbin after his 30-year tenure.
Additionally, Republicans won several congressional races:
– Incumbent Rep. Mary Miller secured the 15th Congressional District.
– Christian Maxwell claimed the 1st Congressional District.
– Tommy Hanson captured the 5th Congressional District.
– Niki Conforti won the 6th Congressional District.
– Chad Koppie took the 7th Congressional District.
– Jeff Wilson earned the 13th Congressional District.
– James Marter secured the 14th Congressional District.
