Illinois gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018

Elections in Illinois, 2018

* General election: Nov. 6
* Voter registration deadline: Oct. 9
* Early voting: Sept. 27 - Nov. 5
* Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 20

* Online registration: Yes
* Same-day registration: Yes
* Voter ID: No
* Poll times: 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

* * *

On the ballot: U.S. House • Governor • Attorney General • Secretary of State • State executive offices • State Senate • State House • Supreme court • Appellate courts • Local judges • Local ballot measures • Municipal • Democratic primaries • Republican primaries

<- 2014

Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Illinois

Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: December 4, 2017Last day for candidates of established political parties to file original nomination papers
Primary: March 20, 2018
General: November 6, 2018

* * *

Pre-election incumbent(s):
Gov. Bruce Rauner (Republican)
Lt. Gov. Evelyn Sanguinetti (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in Illinois
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Likely Democratic
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Likely Democratic
Inside Elections: Likely Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
Federal and state primary competitiveness
State executive elections in 2018
Impact of term limits in 2018
State government trifectas and triplexes
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018
Illinois
executive elections
Governor

Lieutenant governor
Attorney general
Secretary of state
Treasurer
Comptroller

Businessman J.B. Pritzker (D) defeated incumbent Bruce Rauner (R), Grayson "Kash" Jackson (L), and William "Sam" McCann (Conservative) in the November 6, 2018, general election for Governor of Illinois.

Between Election Day 2014 and Election Day 2018, Pritzker contributed $171.5 million to his own campaign while Rauner contributed $67.8 million to his run.[1][2] Rauner was first elected in 2014 by a margin of 4 percentage points. Of the ten preceding gubernatorial elections, a Republican candidate won seven—including Rauner's victory in 2014—and a Democratic candidate won three. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) carried the state by 17 percentage points.

Pritzker's victory created a Democratic trifecta in Illinois. At the time of the election, Illinois had been under divided government since Rauner was elected in 2014. The winner of this election stood to influence the state's redistricting process following the 2020 census. Under Illinois state law, the governor may veto congressional and state legislative district maps proposed by the state legislature.

Illinois was one of 36 states that held an election for governor in 2018. Democrats gained seven previously Republican-held seats, and Republicans gained one previously independent-held seat. Heading into the 2018 elections, there were 16 Democratic governors, 33 Republican governors, and one independent governor. In 2018, 26 of the 33 states with a Republican governor held a gubernatorial election, while nine out of the 16 states with a Democratic governor held a gubernatorial election. Seventeen of the 36 seats up for election were open seats (four Democratic, 12 Republican, and one independent), meaning that the sitting governor was not seeking re-election. Click here for more information on other 2018 gubernatorial elections.
For more information about the Democratic primary, click here.
For more information about the Republican primary, click here.

## Contents

* 1 Election results
* 2 Candidates
* 2.1 Governor
* 2.2 Lieutenant governor
* 3 Candidate profiles
* 4 Polls
* 4.1 PredictIt Prices
* 5 Campaign finance
* 6 Satellite spending
* 7 Race ratings
* 8 Noteworthy endorsements
* 9 Timeline
* 10 Campaign ads
* 10.1 J.B. Pritzker
* 10.1.1 Support
* 10.1.2 Oppose
* 10.2 Bruce Rauner
* 10.2.1 Support
* 10.2.2 Oppose
* 11 Noteworthy events
* 11.1 Barack Obama campaign appearance
* 11.2 Hillary Clinton campaign appearance
* 11.3 Rauner criticism of Pritzker ad
* 11.4 Democratic involvement in the Republican primary
* 12 Debates and forums
* 13 Campaign themes
* 13.1 J.B. Pritzker
* 13.2 Bruce Rauner
* 14 Social media
* 14.1 Twitter accounts
* 14.2 Facebook accounts
* 15 Pivot Counties
* 15.1 Presidential results by legislative district
* 16 Election history
* 17 2014
* 18 2010
* 18.1 Wave election analysis
* 18.2 State overview
* 18.2.1 Partisan control
* 18.2.1.1 Congressional delegation
* 18.2.1.2 State executives
* 18.2.1.3 State legislature
* 18.2.1.4 Trifecta status
* 18.2.2 2018 elections
* 18.2.3 Demographics
* 18.3 State election history
* 18.3.1 Historical elections
* 18.3.1.1 Presidential elections, 2000-2016
* 18.3.1.2 U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016
* 18.3.1.3 Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016
* 18.3.1.4 Congressional delegation, 2000-2016
* 18.3.1.5 Trifectas, 1992-2017
* 18.4 Recent news
* 18.5 See also
* 18.6 External links
* 18.7 Footnotes

## Election results[edit]

General election

##### General election for Governor of Illinois

J.B. Pritzker defeated incumbent Bruce Rauner, William McCann, and Grayson Jackson in the general election for Governor of Illinois on November 6, 2018.

Candidate

Votes

|
|
|

✔ |

| J.B. Pritzker (D)  |

54.5

| 2,479,746

| Bruce Rauner (R)  |

38.8

| 1,765,751

| William McCann (Conservative Party)  |

4.2

| 192,527

| Grayson Jackson (L)  |

2.4

| 109,518
|  | Other/Write-in votes |

0.0

| 115

* * *

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

| Total votes: 4,547,657

|
|

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

#####  Democratic primary for Governor of Illinois

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for Governor of Illinois on March 20, 2018.

Candidate

Votes

|
|
|

✔ |

| J.B. Pritzker |

45.1

| 597,756

| Daniel K. Biss |

26.7

| 353,625

| Chris Kennedy |

24.4

| 322,730

| Tio Hardiman |

1.6

| 21,075

| Bob Daiber |

1.1

| 15,009

| Robert Marshall |

1.1

| 14,353

* * *

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

| Total votes: 1,324,548

|
|

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

#####  Republican primary for Governor of Illinois

Incumbent Bruce Rauner defeated Jeanne M. Ives in the Republican primary for Governor of Illinois on March 20, 2018.

Candidate

Votes

|
|
|

✔ |

| Bruce Rauner |

51.5

| 372,124

| Jeanne M. Ives |

48.5

| 350,038

* * *

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.

| Total votes: 722,162

|
|

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Libertarian primary election

#####  Libertarian primary for Governor of Illinois

Grayson Jackson defeated Matthew Scaro and Jon Stewart in the Libertarian primary for Governor of Illinois on March 20, 2018.

Candidate

|

✔ |

| Grayson Jackson

| Matthew Scaro

| Jon Stewart

* * *

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

|

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

## Candidates[edit]

See also: Statistics on gubernatorial candidates, 2018

### Governor[edit]

General election candidates

* Bruce Rauner (Incumbent) (Republican Party)
* J.B. Pritzker (Democratic Party) ✔
* William McCann (Conservative Party)
* Grayson Jackson (Libertarian Party)

Democratic primary candidates

* Daniel K. Biss
* Bob Daiber
* Tio Hardiman
* Chris Kennedy
* Robert Marshall
* J.B. Pritzker ✔

Republican primary candidates

* Bruce Rauner (Incumbent) ✔
* Jeanne M. Ives

### Lieutenant governor[edit]

General election candidates

* Evelyn Sanguinetti (Incumbent) (Republican Party)
* Juliana Stratton (Democratic Party) ✔
* Aaron Merreighn (Conservative Party)
* Sanj Mohip (Libertarian Party)

Democratic primary candidates

* Patricia Avery
* Dennis Cole
* Ra Joy
* Juliana Stratton ✔
* Jonathan Todd
* Litesa Wallace

Republican primary candidates

* Evelyn Sanguinetti (Incumbent) ✔
* Richard Morthland

* * *

## Candidate profiles[edit]

See also: Editorial approach to writing about key campaign messages

J.B. Pritzker, businessman

Party: Democratic

Incumbent: No

Political office: None

Biography: Pritzker graduated from Duke University and obtained a law degree from Northwestern University. He had served as chairman of the Illinois Human Rights Commission and founded venture capital firm The Pritzker Group as well as technology incubator 1871.

Key messages

* Pritzker cast himself as a fighter for progressive values, proclaiming in his general election kickoff video that he "will fight today and tomorrow and every day of this election and every day after and I will never forget that you elected me to fight."[3]

* Pritzker emphasized what he called his firm commitment to values he claimed the Rauner administration has violated, often citing his mother's influence in shaping his values, including support for social services and public education, saying "You can’t pull yourself up by your bootstraps if you don’t have any, and this state gave my great grandfather his bootstraps." Pritzker argued that this is a crucial difference between himself and other independently wealthy political figures.[4]

* On the campaign trail, Pritzker tied Rauner to President Trump (R), emphasizing how his policy proposals conflict with theirs and saying that "the values that I care about are under siege by Donald Trump and Bruce Rauner and I am ready to stand with passionate Illinoisans and resist."[5]

Bruce Rauner, Governor of Illinois

Party: Republican

Incumbent: Yes

Political office: Governor of Illinois (2015-Present)

Biography: Rauner graduated from Dartmouth College and received an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. After graduating, he joined the investment firm of Golder, Thomas, Cressey. Prior to his election as governor, Rauner also served on the board of World Business Chicago and was involved in projects including the construction of a Red Cross headquarters in Chicago.

Key messages

* Rauner portrayed himself as a fighter standing up to decades of corruption and mismanagement from the state's political leadership, particularly state House Speaker Michael Madigan (D). In his campaign kickoff video, Rauner described "a corrupt culture of permanent political failure".

* Rauner described his first term as an initial step in combating the state's long-term challenges, suggesting that he has learned many valuable lessons which he could apply to his second term.[6]

## Polls[edit]

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls
Illinois Governor 2018

Poll | Poll sponsor | J.B. Pritzker (D) | Bruce Rauner (R)| Kash Jackson (L)| Sam McCann (C)| Undecided/Other| Margin of Error| Sample Size
Victory Research
(November 1-3, 2018)| N/A | 49%| 33%| 5%| 8%| 6%| +/
-| 1,208
Ipsos
(September 27 - October 5, 2018)| Thomson Reuters/University of Virginia | 50%| 30%| 3%| 6%| 12%| +/-3.6| 968
Victory Research
(September 27 - October 2, 2018)| N/A | 47%| 32%| 6%| 7%| 8%| +/-2.8| 1,208
Simon Institute
(September 24-29, 2018)| N/A | 49%| 27%| 4%| 4%| 17%| +/-3.7| 715
Anzalone Lizst Grove Research
| Forward Illinois | 48%| 32%| 3%| 4%| 13%| +/-3.1| 1,007
Note: A "0%" finding means the question was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org
Click [show] to see older poll results|

|

|  | Illinois Governor 2018

Poll | Poll sponsor | J.B. Pritzker (D) | Bruce Rauner (R)| Kash Jackson (L)| Sam McCann (C)| Undecided/Other| Margin of Error| Sample Size
Research America
(September 5-13, 2018)| Illinois Broadcasters Association | 44%| 27%| 4%| 6%| 18%| +/-3.1| 1,024
Marist College
(August 12-16, 2018)| NBC News | 46%| 30%| 6%| 4%| 15%| +/-4.4| 734
Illinois Public Opinion, Inc.
(July 12, 2018)| N/A | 39%| 26%| 1%| 10%| 23%| +/-5.0| 423
University of Illinois/Illinois Public Radio
(July 3 - August 15, 2018)| N/A | 35%| 23%| 0%| 0%| 42%| +/-3.7| 717
We Ask America
(June 9-11, 2018)| Capitol Fax | 36%| 27%| 0%| 0%| 37%| +/-4.0| 600
Ogden & Fry
(March 23, 2018)| N/A | 46%| 28%| 0%| 0%| 26%| +/-3.87| 667
Note: A "0%" finding means the question was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org
Illinois Governor 2018 (no margin of error information)

Poll | J.B. Pritzker (D) | Bruce Rauner (R)| Undecided/Other| Sample size
Victory Research
(April 2018) | 49%| 31%| 19%| 1,208
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

Click [show] to view polls conducted during the primary election of hypothetical matchups between general election candidates.|

|

|  | Illinois Governor 2018 (Pritzker vs. Rauner hypothetical matchup)

Poll | J.B. Pritzker (D) | Bruce Rauner (R)| Undecided/Other| Margin of error| Sample size
Southern Illinois University
(February 19-25, 2018) | 50%| 35%| 15%| +/-3.0| 1,001
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.
Illinois Governor 2018 (Biss vs. Rauner hypothetical matchup)

Poll | Daniel Biss (D) | Bruce Rauner (R)| Undecided/Other| Margin of error| Sample size
Southern Illinois University
(February 19-25, 2018) | 48%| 34%| 18%| +/-3.0| 1,001
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

### PredictIt Prices[edit]

This section provides the PredictIt market prices for this race during the three months leading up to the election. PredictIt is a site where people make and trade predictions on political and financial events. Market prices reflect the probability, based on PredictIt users' predictions, that a candidate will win a race. For example, a market price of $0.60 for Candidate A is equivalent to a 60 percent probability that Candidate A will win.

## Campaign finance[edit]

## Satellite spending[edit]

Satellite spending, commonly referred to as outside spending, describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.[7][8][9]

This section lists satellite spending in this race reported by news outlets in alphabetical order. If you are aware of spending that should be included, please email us.

* The Economic Freedom Alliance spent over $500,000 on a television ad campaign opposed to J.B. Pritzker (D). The ads first aired on July 3, 2018.[10]

## Race ratings[edit]

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from three outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, and Sabato's Crystal Ball. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

* Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
* Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
* Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[11]
* Tossup ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[12][13][14]

Race ratings: Illinois gubernatorial election, 2018

Race tracker| Race ratings
| November 5, 2018| October 30, 2018| October 23, 2018| October 16, 2018
The Cook Political Report| Likely Democratic| Likely Democratic| Likely Democratic| Likely Democratic
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales| Likely Democratic| Likely Democratic| Likely Democratic| Likely Democratic
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball| Likely Democratic| Likely Democratic| Likely Democratic| Likely Democratic
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every two weeks throughout the election season.

## Noteworthy endorsements[edit]

This section lists noteworthy endorsements issued in this election, including those made by high-profile individuals and organizations, cross-party endorsements, and endorsements made by newspaper editorial boards. It also includes links to endorsement lists published on campaign websites, if available. Please note that this list is not exhaustive. If you are aware of endorsements that should be included, please email us.

Noteworthy general election endorsements

Endorsement  | Pritzker | Rauner
Newspapers and editorials
Chicago Sun-Times[15] |  ✔  |
Chicago Tribune[16] |  |  ✔
Crain's Chicago Business[17] |  ✔  |
The News-Gazette[18] |  |  ✔
Rockford Register Star[19] |  ✔  |
Elected officials
Former President Barack Obama (D)[20] |  ✔  |
Organizations
Illinois Chamber of Commerce[21] |  |  ✔
Illinois Fraternal Order of Police[22] |  ✔  |
Click [show] to view endorsements issued in the March 20 Democratic primary|

|

| Democratic candidate endorsements

Endorsement  | Date  | Pritzker | Kennedy | Biss
Federal officials
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D)[23] |  December 8, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Sen. Dick Durbin (D)[23] |  December 8, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Rep. Danny K. Davis (D)[24] |  November 21, 2017  |  |  ‎✔ |
Rep. Mike Quigley (D)[25] |  October 30, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Rep. Cheri Bustos (D)[26] |  October 9, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Former Rep. Jerry Costello (D)[27] |  October 4, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Former Rep. Glenn Poshard (D)[28] |  September 21, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Rep. Robin Kelly (D)[29] |  August 17, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Rep. Bobby Rush (D)[30] |  June 19, 2017  |  |  ‎✔ |
National figures
Former Sen. Adlai Stevenson III (D-IL)[31] |  January 18, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Activist Les Leopold[32] |  January 6, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Lawrence Lessig, law professor[33] |  November 28, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State figures
State Sen. Tom Cullerton (D)[34] |  March 16, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Sen. Kimberly Lightford (D)[34] |  March 16, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Rep. Camille Y. Lilly (D)[34] |  March 16, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Rep. Robyn Gabel (D)[35] |  \-  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Sen. Toi Hutchinson (D)[36] |  February 18, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Rep. Mary E. Flowers (D)[37] |  February 7, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
Former state Sen. President Emil Jones Jr. (D)[37] |  February 3, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
Former state Rep. Daniel Beiser (D)[38] |  December 17, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Sen. James Clayborne (D)[38] |  December 17, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Rep. LaToya Greenwood (D)[38] |  December 17, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Sen. Bill Haine (D)[38] |  December 17, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Rep. Jay Hoffman (D)[38] |  December 17, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Rep. Katie Stuart (D)[38] |  December 17, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Rep. William Davis (D)[39] |  December 15, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Sen. Bill Cunningham (D)[40] |  December 8, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Rep. Theresa Mah (D)[41] |  December 5, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Rep. Greg Harris (D)[42] |  December 2, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Sen. Laura Murphy (D)[43] |  November 17, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Rep. Carol Ammons (D)[44] |  November 15, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Illinois State Treasurer Mike Frerichs (D)[45] |  November 15, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Sen. Andy Manar (D)[46] |  November 10, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Sen. John Mulroe (D)[47] |  November 10, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Sen. Don Harmon (D)[48] |  November 3, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Rep. Ann Williams (D)[49] |  October 23, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza (D)[50] |  September 27, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Sen. Steve Stadelman (D)[51] |  September 19, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Doug House, president of the Illinois Democratic Chairmen's Association[52] |  September 13, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Donna Miller, Vice President of Illinois Democratic Women[53] |  August 26, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Former Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon (D)[54] |  August 25, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White (D)[55] |  August 23, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
State Sen. Pat McGuire (D)[56] |  August 8, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Sen. Omar Aquino (D)[57] |  July 21, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Sen. David Koehler (D)[58] |  July 6, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Rep. Kelly Cassidy (D)[59] |  June 28, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
State Rep. Will Guzzardi (D)[60] |  June 16, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Local figures
Former Chicago Treasurer Stephanie Neely (D)[37] |  February 18, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
Chicago Ald. Susan Sadlowski Garza [61] |  February 12, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin (D)[37] |  February 11, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Trustee Debra Shore (D)[62] |  \-  |  |  |  ‎✔
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle (D)[63] |  February 7, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
Cook County Board President Bobbie Steele (D)[37] |  February 5, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
Chicago Ald. Anthony Beale (D)[37] |  February 2, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
Former Chicago Ald. Dick Simpson[64] |  December 12, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Chicago Ald. Scott Waguespack[65] |  November 29, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Chicago Ald. Roberto Maldonado[66] |  November 20, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Lori Lightfoot, Chairwoman of the Police Accountability Task Force[67] |  November 14, 2017  |  |  ‎✔ |
Chicago Ald. John Arena[68] |  November 7, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Cook County Commissioner Jesus Garcia[69] |  September 28, 2017  |  |  ‎✔ |
Bloomington Mayor Tari Renner[70] |  July 26, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Organizations
The Chicago Maroon[71] |  March 17, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Quad-City Times[72] |  March 15, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
Shaw Media[73] |  March 14, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
Indivisible Lakeview[74] |  March 13, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Indivisible NWIL[74] |  March 13, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Indivisible Oak Park Area[74] |  March 13, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
The Columbia Chronicle[75] |  March 12, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
The Daily Northwestern[76] |  March 9, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
St. Louis Post-Dispatch[77] |  March 8, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
Peoria Journal Star[78] |  March 2, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
Chicago Sun-times[79] |  February 25, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
Champaign/Urbana News-Gazette[80] |  February 25, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
The Pantagraph[81] |  February 25, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Berwyn United[82] |  February 22, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Chicago City Council's Veterans Caucus[83] |  February 22, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
Our Revolution[84] |  February 22, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Chicago Tribune[85] |  February 21, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
Sierra Club \- Illinois[86] |  February 20, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Chicago Daily Herald[87] |  February 16, 2018  |  |  ‎✔ |
People's Action[88] |  February 15, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Illini Democrats[89] |  February 8, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
National Association of Social Workers-Illinois[90] |  February 7, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Equality Illinois[91] |  February 6, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
Blackroots Resistance[92] |  January 30, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Our Revolution Illinois[93] |  January 29, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Planned Parenthood[94] |  January 25, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  ‎✔ |  ‎✔
MoveOn.org[95] |  January 25, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
National Nurses United[96] |  January 22, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Reclaim Chicago[96] |  January 22, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Democratic Party of Evanston[97] |  January 21, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
New Trier Democrats[98] |  January 14, 2018  |  |  |  ‎✔
Personal PAC[99] |  January 11, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
Illinois Education Association[100] |  January 10, 2018  |  ‎✔ |  |
Illinois Federation of Teachers[101] |  December 9, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Northwest Illinois Building Trades[67] |  November 14, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Northside Democracy for America[102] |  November 9, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
45th Ward Independent Democrats[68] |  November 7, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Indo-American Democratic Organization[103] |  November 6, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Laborers International Union of North America[104] |  September 25, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Arab American Democratic Club[105] |  September 15, 2017  |  |  ‎✔ |
Cook County Democratic Party[106] |  August 11, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Champaign County Young Democrats[107] |  July 31, 2017  |  |  |  ‎✔
Illinois AFL-CIO[108] |  June 6, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
International Union of Operating Engineers Local[109] |  May 10, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
St. Clair County Democratic Party[110] |  May 9, 2017  |  ‎✔ |  |
Southern Illinois Democratic County Chairmen's Association[111] |  March 1, 2017  |  |  ‎✔ |

Click [show] to view endorsements issued in the March 20 Republican primary|

|

| Republican candidate endorsements

Endorsement  | Date  | Rauner | Ives
National figures
Gov. Eric Greitens (R-MO)[112] |  October 24, 2017  |  ✔  |
Gov. Eric Holcomb (R-IN)[112] |  October 24, 2017  |  ✔  |
Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI)[112] |  October 24, 2017  |  ✔  |
State figures
State Rep. Barbara Wheeler (R)[113] |  January 24, 2018  |  |  ✔
State Rep. Tim Bivins (R)[113] |  January 24, 2018  |  |  ✔
State Rep. Margo McDermed (R)[113] |  January 24, 2018  |  |  ✔
State Rep. Peter Breen (R)[113] |  January 24, 2018  |  |  ✔
State Rep. Tom Morrison (R)[113] |  January 24, 2018  |  |  ✔
State Rep. Jim Durkin (R)[114] |  January 22, 2018  |  ✔  |
State Sen. John Curran (R)[114] |  January 22, 2018  |  ✔  |
State Rep. Patti Bellock (R)[114] |  January 22, 2018  |  ✔  |
State Rep. Grant Wehrli (R)[114] |  January 22, 2018  |  ✔  |
State Rep. Christine Winger (R)[114] |  January 22, 2018  |  ✔  |
State Rep. David McSweeney (R)[115] |  December 11, 2017  |  |  ✔
State Sen. Kyle McCarter (R)[116] |  November 17, 2017  |  |  ✔
David Blumenshine (R), Illinois House of Representatives candidate[117] |  November 15, 2017  |  |  ✔
State Rep. Tom Bennett (R)[118] |  November 1, 2017  |  ✔  |
State Rep. Bill Mitchell (R)[119] |  November 1, 2017  |  ✔  |
State Rep. Allen Skillicorn (R)[120] |  October 30, 2017  |  |  ✔
Local figures
DuPage County Board Chairman Dan Cronin (R)[114] |  January 22, 2018  |  ✔  |
Naperville Mayor Steve Chirico[114] |  January 22, 2018  |  ✔  |
Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin (R)[114] |  January 22, 2018  |  ✔  |
Wheaton Mayor Michael Gresk[114] |  January 22, 2018  |  ✔  |
Organizations
National Review[121] |  March 16, 2018  |  |  ✔
Chicago Sun-Times[122] |  February 20, 2018  |  ✔  |
Kankakee Daily Journal[123] |  February 17, 2018  |  |  ✔
Chicago Tribune[124] |  February 16, 2018  |  ✔  |
Chicago Daily Herald[125] |  February 16, 2018  |  ✔  |
Susan B. Anthony List[126] |  February 16, 2018  |  |  ✔
Palatine Township Republican Party[127] |  February 13, 2018  |  ✔  |
Family Research Council Action PAC[128] |  February 12, 2018  |  |  ✔
Cook County Republican Party[129] |  February 7, 2018  |  ✔  |
Evanston Township Republican Organization[130] |  February 11, 2018  |  ✔  |
Tax Accountability[131] |  January 16, 2018  |  |  ✔
Chicago Republican Party[132] |  January 11, 2018  |  |  ✔
Fremont Township Republican Organization[133] |  January 8, 2018  |  |  ✔
Wheatland Township Republican Party[134] |  November 15, 2017  |  |  ✔

## Timeline[edit]

* November 4, 2018: A Victory Research poll found Pritzker with 49 percent support and Rauner with 33 percent support. The poll did not report a margin of error.
* November 4, 2018: Former President Barack Obama (D) headlined a rally supporting Pritzker in Chicago.
* November 3, 2018: The Rockford Register Star endorsed Pritzker.
* October 11, 2018: Pritzker and Rauner met for a debate in Quincy.
* October 10, 2018: An Ipsos poll sponsored by Thomson Reuters and the University of Virginia found Pritzker leading Rauner 50-30. The poll reported a margin of error of 3.6 percentage points.
* October 9, 2018: Pritzker and Rauner met for a debate in front of the Chicago Sun-Times editorial board.
* October 9, 2018: A Victory Research poll found Pritzker leading Rauner 47-32. The poll reported a margin of error of 2.8 percentage points.
* October 5, 2018: The Chicago Tribune endorsed Rauner.
* October 5, 2018: Crain's Chicago Business endorsed Pritzker.
* October 3, 2018: Pritzker and Rauner met for a debate in Chicago hosted by ABC-Channel 7.
* October 3, 2018: The News-Gazette endorsed Rauner.
* October 1, 2018: Hillary Clinton (D) made a campaign appearance alongside Pritzker.
* September 20, 2018: Jackson, McCann, Pritzker, and Rauner met for a debate in Chicago hosted by NBC-Channel 5 and Telemundo Chicago.
* September 15, 2018: The Rauner campaign released an ad saying that Pritzker wanted to raise taxes and implement additional regulations on firearms.
* September 13, 2018: A Research America poll commissioned by the Illinois Broadcasters Association found Pritzker leading Rauner 44-27. The poll reported a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.
* September 8, 2018: The Pritzker campaign released an ad titled Never. The ad said that a recent assertion from the Rauner campaign that Pritzker had proposed a mileage tax on cars was incorrect.

## Campaign ads[edit]

This section shows advertisements released in this race. Ads released by campaigns and, if applicable, satellite groups are embedded or linked below. If you are aware of advertisements that should be included, please email us.

###  J.B. Pritzker[edit]

#### Support[edit]

"All Over" - Pritzker campaign ad, released September 6, 2018

"Dad Jokes" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 28, 2018

"Karaoke" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 28, 2018

"Parade" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 25, 2018

"President Obama: 'JB gets things done'" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 20, 2018

"Sip of Hope" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 10, 2018

"Puppies" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 3, 2018

"The Time Is Now" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 26, 2018

"All Kinds of Fights" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 26, 2018

"Make a Difference" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 18, 2018

"Jobs" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 16, 2018

"Support" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 13, 2018

"Not Impossible" - Pritzker campaign ad, released June 20, 2018

"Project Blue Wave" - Pritzker campaign ad, released April 26, 2018

"Fight" - Pritzker campaign ad, released April 17, 2018

#### Oppose[edit]

"Unholy Union" - Rauner campaign ad, released October 22, 2018

"Blank Check" - Rauner campaign ad, released September 16, 2018

Rauner campaign ad, released September 15, 2018

"No More Extra Money" - Rauner campaign ad, released September 6, 2018

"Every Mile" - State Solutions Illinois ad, released September 5, 2018

"Yep" - Rauner campaign ad, released August 29, 2018

"Moby Dick" - Rauner campaign ad, released August 29, 2018

"The Main Thing" - Rauner campaign ad, released August 23, 2018

"Least Offensive" - Rauner campaign ad, released August 22, 2018

"Tax Hiker" - Rauner campaign ad, released August 8, 2018

"Pritzker Covers for Madigan" - Rauner campaign ad, released July 25, 2018

"Works for Madigan" - Rauner campaign ad, released July 19, 2018

"Just Call Madigan" - Rauner campaign ad, released July 17, 2018

"Madigan's Candidate" - Rauner campaign ad, released July 9, 2018

Economic Freedom Alliance ad, released July 2, 2018

"Porcelain Prince" - Rauner campaign ad, released June 19, 2018

"Who Knew?" - Rauner campaign ad, released June 12, 2018

"That's The One I Would Want" - Rauner campaign ad, released June 7, 2018

"Hilarious" - Rauner campaign ad, released June 5, 2018

"Trust" - Rauner campaign ad, released May 25, 2018

"Pritzker-Madigan: 'Higher Taxes'" - Rauner campaign ad, released May 9, 2018

###  Bruce Rauner[edit]

#### Support[edit]

"Change Doesn't Come Easy" - Rauner campaign ad, released October 4, 2018

"Saving Our State" - Rauner campaign ad, released September 25, 2018

"This Election is a Choice" - Rauner campaign ad, released September 6, 2018

"Bruce's Biker Pins" - Rauner campaign ad, released August 23, 2018

"Governor's Day" - Rauner campaign ad, released August 17, 2018

"They Said" - Rauner campaign ad, released August 15, 2018

#### Oppose[edit]

"Rauner Failed: Not an Emergency" - Pritzker campaign ad, released October 8, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Disaster" - Pritzker campaign ad, released October 2, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Interest" - Pritzker campaign ad, released September 19, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Credit" - Pritzker campaign ad, released September 19, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Never" - Pritzker campaign ad, released September 8, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Students and Teachers" - Pritzker campaign ad, released September 6, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Failure" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 24, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Dress Up" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 17, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Real Change" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 9, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Chris" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 6, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Mike" - Pritzker campaign ad, released August 6, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Silent Partners" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 19, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Nothing" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 18, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Disgrace" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 11, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Not Much" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 5, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Record of Failure" - Pritzker campaign ad, released July 5, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Investment" - Pritzker campaign ad, released June 29, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Thank You" - Pritzker campaign ad, released June 29, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Silent Partner" - Pritzker campaign ad, released June 29, 2018

"Rauner Failed: That's Bad" - Pritzker campaign ad, released June 25, 2018

"Emily" - Pritzker campaign ad, released June 14, 2018

"Rauner Failed: $1 Billion Waster" - Pritzker campaign ad, released June 7, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Brent" - Pritzker campaign ad, released June 5, 2018

"Rauner Failed: You're Out!" - Pritzker campaign ad, released June 1, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Responsible" - Pritzker campaign ad, released April 4, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Four Years of Failure" - Pritzker campaign ad, released April 4, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Quincy" - Pritzker campaign ad, released April 4, 2018

"Rauner Failed: Done Nothing" - Pritzker campaign ad, released April 4, 2018

## Noteworthy events[edit]

### Barack Obama campaign appearance[edit]

Former President Barack Obama (D) headlined a rally in Chicago supporting Pritzker on November 4, 2018.[135]

### Hillary Clinton campaign appearance[edit]

On October 1, 2018, former U.S. Secretary of State and 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton (D) appeared at a roundtable workforce discussion alongside Pritzker.[136]

### Rauner criticism of Pritzker ad[edit]

On July 11, 2018, the Pritzker campaign released an ad titled Rauner Failed: Disgrace. The ad criticized Rauner, claiming that he had not opposed a federal policy of detaining children who entered the country without legal permission separately from adults they entered the country alongside. It cited a Politico report which alleged that Rauner had a stake in a private equity fund which owns Correct Care Solutions, which has been contracted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to provide healthcare to detainees. The ad claimed that Rauner personally profited off of the policy of separate detention due to his stake in the company. Rauner campaign spokesman Alex Browning said, "The Pritzker campaign should immediately take down this dishonest and shameful ad", pointing to a statement Rauner had made criticizing the federal government's policy and arguing that Rauner had placed his stake in the equity fund under a blind trust before the fund first invested in Correct Care Solutions.[137]

### Democratic involvement in the Republican primary[edit]

On March 16, 2018, the Democratic Governors Association launched two campaign advertisements ahead of the March 20 primary election. One advertisement targeted Gov. Bruce Rauner (R), criticizing the state's economic performance and saying that he "racked up billions in unpaid bills, leaving Illinois taxpayers on the hook." The other advertisement targeted state Rep. Jeanne Ives (R), saying that "her conservative policies are just too conservative for Illinois." The advertisement targeting Ives was " reminiscent of the Missouri Senate primary in 2012, when Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill paid for ads calling then-Rep. Todd Akin (R-Mo.) — whom she viewed as her weakest possible opponent — 'too conservative' for the state", according to Politico.[138]

## Debates and forums[edit]

* Pritzker and Rauner met for a debate in Quincy on October 11, 2018.[139] Click here for footage of the debate.
* Pritzker and Rauner met for a debate in front of the Chicago Sun-Times editorial board on October 9, 2018. Click here for footage of the debate.
* Jackson, McCann, Pritzker, and Rauner met for a debate in Chicago hosted by NBC-Channel 5 and Telemundo Chicago on September 20, 2018. Click here for footage of the debate.
* Pritzker and Rauner met for a debate in Chicago hosted by ABC-Channel 7 on October 3, 2018. Click here for footage of the debate.

## Campaign themes[edit]

###  J.B. Pritzker[edit]

Pritzker's campaign website stated the following:

“  |

JB's Priorities for Protecting Net Neutrality
The internet is essential to everyday business operations, student learning, and free speech. The Federal Communications Commission’s decision to dismantle net neutrality, the rules that protect the free flow of information online, threatens equal access to the internet. In the absence of federal protections, internet service providers (ISPs) will be able to block website content, manipulate internet speeds, and charge customers extra to utilize certain websites.

Twenty-three state attorneys general, including Illinois, are suing the FCC to preserve net neutrality. Right now, Illinois should be taking actions to ensure that every Illinoisan has unfettered access to the internet. Unfortunately, Bruce Rauner continues to fail families throughout the state by remaining silent while the Trump administration reverses consumer protections and infringes upon free speech.

As governor, I will ensure that all internet traffic is treated equally so that everyone can continue to use the internet to grow their businesses, further their education, and enjoy the freedom of expression.

JB will fight to protect net neutrality:

* Require ISPs that do business with the state to honor net neutrality principles for all customers in Illinois.

* Prohibit those ISPs from blocking content, applications or services, slowing down internet traffic, and providing preferential treatment to certain customers.

* Compel those ISPs to disclose their network management practices and performance.

* Empower the state to hold those ISPs accountable.

JB's Commitment to Women's Rights
As governor, I will be a tireless advocate for women as I’ve been my entire life. From door-knocking for progressive Democrats with my mother, to marching with NARAL twenty-five years ago, to working to elect pro-choice candidates in Illinois, I’ve fought for women’s rights for decades. I passionately supported HB40 and demanded Bruce Rauner sign this critical legislation because all women should be able to access reproductive healthcare in Illinois regardless of their income. I have also made it a priority to mentor women entrepreneurs and invest in women-owned businesses.

It is unacceptable that today in Illinois women make only 79 cents on the dollar compared to men — and that African American women who make 63 cents and Latina women who make just 54 cents on the dollar are also more likely than other women to live in poverty. Bruce Rauner’s failed policies have hurt women across this state. He imposed drastic cuts to the Child Care Assistance Program, which provides affordable child care to low-income families, three-quarters of which are female-headed single-parent households. Rauner also vetoed the No Salary History bill that would have helped narrow the wage gap by preventing employers from setting salaries based on previous ones. And Rauner’s 736-day manufactured budget crisis threatened access to free breast and cervical cancer screenings for more than 9,000 low-income women.

In Springfield, Juliana and I will continue to stand up for women’s rights. I will fiercely defend women’s healthcare, fight for policies that improve women’s economic well-being, and foster a culture in which sexual harassment is not tolerated. I will also stand up to Donald Trump when he proposes policies that hurt Illinois women, and I will stand with women as we work to root out sexual harassment and discrimination from our society.

JB will fight for women’s rights:

* Pass annual budgets that restore funding for healthcare services for low-income women, including reproductive and preventive healthcare.
* Stand up to Donald Trump’s attempts to cut funding for Planned Parenthood and rollback federal protections for women’s healthcare, like access to birth control.
* Fight for legislation that strengthens equal pay laws and prevents employers from asking about salary history.
* Support raising the minimum wage to a living wage to help lift up families striving to get into the middle class, especially female-headed single-parent households.
* Increase access to the Child Care Assistance Program so that working parents can maintain stable employment.

JB's Plan for Economic Inclusion
People of color in Illinois have been left out and left behind when it comes to economic prosperity and job growth. Bruce Rauner’s fiscal mismanagement has stunted job creation, destabilized local economies, and eroded the financial security of working families. As a result, many residents, particularly in communities of color, are fleeing Illinois and seeking economic opportunity elsewhere.

JB’s plan to foster economic inclusion will expand opportunities for minority entrepreneurs and small business owners across the state, reversing the trend of disinvestment and outward migration while restoring hope and opportunity for communities that need it most. In order to achieve true economic inclusion, JB’s plan focuses on twelve areas of opportunity to create economic growth and jobs:

Procurement Reform

* Expand opportunities for minority business owners to secure state contracts by increasing the use of sheltered markets, expanding the range of contracts subject to the Business Enterprise Program, increasing the M/WBE aspirational goal to 30%, unbundling contracts, and adding metrics to the procurement scoring process that benefit firms that meet diversity benchmarks in both their public and private sector work.
* Drastically increase M/WBE participation in the state’s procurement of professional services, including but not limited to legal, financial, and accounting services.
* Create a new cabinet-level position responsible for fostering diversity, economic inclusion, and accountability throughout the procurement process and executive agencies.

Increase Access to Capital

* Create new loan programs to ensure that minority business owners have the resources, working capital, and bridge financing they need to expand their businesses and compete for state contracts.

Minority and Women-Owned Business (M/WBE)-Focused Business Accelerators

* Establish M/WBE-focused accelerators in communities across the state that provide entrepreneurs with access to targeted resources & services, mentorship, technical assistance, bridge financing, and investment capital. The purposes of these accelerators are to foster M/WBE startups, to help existing M/WBE small businesses grow, and to help promote M/WBE procurement subcontractors to become prime vendors.

Diversify the Pipeline of Workers Employed by Union and Non-Union Building Trades and Contractors

* Establish state-funded career readiness and pre-apprenticeship programs targeting disadvantaged communities.
* Utilize bid credits at the Capital Development Board and the Illinois Department of Transportation to reward firms that employ minority and female workers.
* Foster greater employment opportunities for women and minority workers by promoting the use of Project Labor Agreements.

Ensure Communities of Color Share in the Economic Benefits of Marijuana Legalization

* Create a Cannabis Equity Program that promotes black and brown entrepreneurs in the ownership and licensing of new marijuana dispensaries and offers fee waivers, technical assistance, and subsidized loans to equity applicants.
* Allow individuals with misdemeanor marijuana convictions to expunge records and qualify for DBE small business loans, cannabis permits, and licensing.

Incentivize Job Creation

* Provide tax incentives for businesses that relocate or initiate new businesses in Opportunity Zones and adhere to state diversity targets.

Youth Employment

* Expand employment opportunities for disadvantaged youth throughout the state by enhancing the geographic reach of youth employment programs and the number of youth participating across the state.

Access to Financial Institutions

* Partner with banks and financial institutions to provide banking services in public libraries and public spaces in underserved communities.

Consumer Protection

* Establish rate caps on how much check cashing agencies can charge consumers.

Online Lending

* Provide entrepreneurs with a comprehensive online portal to help them identify and apply for non-predatory business loans.

Small Businesses Borrowers' Bill of Rights

* Establish consumer protections for small businesses that will safeguard against predatory lending practices by unscrupulous lenders.

Increase High-Speed Connectivity

* Build statewide high-speed broadband internet infrastructure to ensure access in underserved communities across Illinois. Broadband will assist startup entrepreneurs and provide easy access to educational resources.

JB's Plan to Protect Illinois Seniors
Seniors deserve to live healthy, independent lives. No senior who wants to remain in their home should be forced to live in a nursing home, and seniors who cannot live independently deserve safe short- and long-term rehabilitative facilities. Respecting seniors means ensuring they have access to quality, affordable care in the environment of their choice along with a strong web of community-based services that provide them the tools they need to live independently. JB will fight to make sure Illinois gives seniors the tools they need to continue living and thriving in their communities.

JB will work to protect seniors across Illinois:

Ensure seniors live with dignity in the environment of their choice with access to quality care

* Strengthen the Community Care Program to help seniors remain in their homes by moving our state toward a universal long-term care program, improving wages and benefits for caregivers, offering improved training opportunities, and improving conditions for family caregivers so they can both care for their loved ones and provide for their families.
* Improve agency oversight and accountability of short and long-term rehabilitation facilities to ensure the safety of residents who cannot live independently.
* Require nursing homes to abide by staffing and safety requirements that make sure seniors receive quality care.

Protect access to affordable, dependable healthcare for seniors

* Ensure that seniors living independently in their homes benefit from coordinated healthcare delivery to prevent unnecessary and expensive hospitalizations.
* Work with federal policy makers to protect Medicare and oppose efforts that make prescription drugs and patient co-pays less affordable.
* Enact a new public health insurance option that would allow every Illinois resident the chance to acquire low-cost health insurance.

Rebuild human services to give seniors the tools they need to live independently in their communities

* Capture all available Medicaid waiver federal dollars to better meet the needs of seniors.
* Ensure seniors have access to affordable housing and utilities, financial literacy programs, adult education and life-long learning, and job training.
* Support stronger consumer protections for seniors and ensure enforcement of existing Illinois laws and regulations that protect the financial resources of senior citizens.

JB's Priorities for Protecting Immigrant Families
Illinois is home to 1.8 million immigrants, including about 450,000 undocumented residents and 42,000 DACA recipients. They are our neighbors and a critical part of our state, contributing to the culture and the economy that make Illinois a great place to live.

Unlike Bruce Rauner, I won’t stand idly by while Donald Trump tries to separate children from their parents and attacks the foundations of our American values. I will resist his attempts to build a wall along our southern border, eliminate DACA, and end Temporary Protected Status for people from El Salvador, Haiti, and Nicaragua.

Immigrant families want the same thing my great-grandfather did when he came to the United States: safety, freedom, and the opportunity to build a better life. As governor, I will support our immigrant families and speak out against xenophobia, racism, and injustice because every Illinois family deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.

As governor, I will work hand-in-hand with students, advocates, and elected officials to improve educational opportunities, increase healthcare options, and foster economic opportunity for immigrant youth and their families.

JB will fight to protect immigrant families:

* Stand against Donald Trump’s attacks on Dreamers and fight for a permanent, legislative solution for DACA recipients to stay in this country and pursue the American dream.
* Enforce the Illinois TRUST Act and support local efforts to create welcoming communities for immigrant families across our state.
* Prohibit Illinois from participating in a Muslim registry or any federal registry program based on race, color, ancestry, national origin, or religion.

JB's Priorities for Protecting the Environment
Illinois deserves clean air, clean water, and a safe environment where all communities can thrive. Unfortunately, under Bruce Rauner our environment is under assault. His 736-day manufactured budget crisis defunded state agencies dedicated to the protection of our environment. Rauner proposed scrapping pollution limits designed to ensure clean air and water. And when Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement, Bruce Rauner remained silent, refusing to join other states in committing to this important accord.

Unlike Donald Trump and Bruce Rauner, I stand on the side of science and believe climate change is real. The transition to a clean energy economy has already begun, and Illinois will be left behind if we don’t act. As governor, I will bring all stakeholders to the table to put Illinois on a path toward 100% clean, renewable energy and make sure that every community justly benefits during this transition.

Additionally, I will invest in clean water infrastructure, expand energy efficiency efforts, and support the agencies that protect our environment. Most importantly, I will honor the Paris Climate agreement and join the U.S. Climate Alliance.

Here are my priorities:

* Put Illinois on a path toward 100% clean, renewable energy and attract commercial investment in clean energy production and transmission here in Illinois.
* Protect clean water and air by investing in clean water infrastructure and expanding energy efficiency efforts.
* End the Rauner era of neglect by prioritizing expertise within state environmental agencies including IDNR, IEPA, and the Illinois Environmental Justice Commission.
* Stand up to Donald Trump’s attacks on our environment and join the U.S. Climate Alliance to uphold the provisions of the Paris Agreement.

Legalizing Marijuana
The path forward for Illinois is clear: we need to legalize marijuana. As governor, I am ready to stand with leaders, communities, and families across our state to legalize marijuana and move our state forward.

There is an abundance of evidence that shows we can legalize marijuana in a safe way. It would have real benefits for Illinois, including reducing opioid overdoses and bringing in much needed revenue from taxation.

Most importantly, legalizing marijuana is a step forward in reforming our broken criminal justice system. Criminalizing marijuana hasn’t made our communities safer. What it has done is disproportionately impact black and brown communities. There are way too many people who have gone to prison or are currently sitting in prison for marijuana related offenses. The criminalization of marijuana has never been and never will be enforced fairly and it’s time to bring that to an end.

JB will work to legalize marijuana, reduce mass incarceration, and reinvest in Illinois communities:

* Safely legalize and decriminalize marijuana and put in place a framework to license businesses to sell marijuana to consumers for recreational use.
* Review and commute the sentences of people incarcerated for marijuana offenses in Illinois. It’s time to bring the era of mass incarcerations for minor drug offenses to an end.
* Intentionally include black and brown entrepreneurs in the planning and licensing of new marijuana dispensaries. New jobs and businesses must be created in the communities that have experienced the most disinvestment under Bruce Rauner.
* Reinvest in communities hit hardest by the war on drugs and the legacy of mass incarceration.

A Public Health Approach to Gun Violence
Gun violence is a public health epidemic. It kills people, destroys families, and rips apart our communities. Our plan centers on recognizing violence as the health epidemic that it is, interrupting it, reducing the risk, and changing community norms so that everyone can feel safe in their own homes.

People resort to violence when they lose hope and are closed off from opportunity. Systemic racism and disinvestment has closed communities off from economic opportunity for decades and this has only been compounded by Bruce Rauner. Unemployment in the five Chicago communities most affected by gun violence is as high as 35%. Unemployment in other regions of the state most affected by gun violence exceeds the state average too. Bruce Rauner’s 736-day budget crisis decimated funding for violence prevention, after school programs, and mental health services, all of which contribute to more resilient communities.

We need to fight for all communities to be healthy and safe, and we need to partner with those already doing this work. As governor, I will work with all communities affected by gun violence. Together, we will lead efforts to treat gun violence as a public health epidemic, rebuild healthy communities, and increase firearm safety.

JB will treat gun violence as a public health epidemic:

* Empower the Illinois Department of Public Health to expand their treatment of gun violence as a public health epidemic.
* Fight for public health research on gun violence by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) at the federal level.
* Focus on prevention and intervention by investing in community programs that interrupt violence and encourage non-violent conflict resolution.

JB will work to rebuild healthy communities:

* Restore funding for community organizations and human services programs. These services are critical to prevent violence, disrupt violence through after school and mental health services, treat those most at risk, and change community norms.
* Create economic opportunity in neighborhoods most affected by gun violence by increasing access to capital and training for small businesses and expanding education opportunities for youth.
* Partner with localities to develop conflict resolution programs for our children.

JB will increase firearm safety:

* Implement universal background checks for every gun sale in Illinois.
* Make a lethal violence protection order available so that families can step in to protect loved ones from harming themselves and others.
* Ban assault weapons, high capacity magazines, and bump stocks in Illinois to help prevent mass shootings.
* Support and sign a gun dealer licensing bill to ensure firearms are sold in a safe and responsible manner.
* Create and lead a consortium of regional states committed to reducing gun trafficking across our state border. This will also allow law enforcement agencies to share data to help track the flow of illegal guns.
* Create a dedicated gun crime investigation unit within state police that coordinates with local police departments to focus on illegal gun trafficking and gun crime.
* Secure federal funding to improve background check records reporting.
* Create an inter-agency working group to evaluate the state’s progress in providing prohibiting records to the federal NICS background check system.
* Ensure all domestic violence and drug abuse prohibiting records are pre-validated and uploaded to the appropriate background check systems in a timely manner.

JB's Commitment to LGBTQ Rights

My mother was an LGBTQ activist during the mid-1970’s in San Francisco. She instilled in me a spirit of inclusivity and respect for the humanity of all people. That’s why I’ve been a staunch advocate for LGBTQ rights my entire life. I marched in the Chicago Pride Parade long before it was a celebration, but instead was a protest march. And 20 years before it was legal, MK and I hosted a gay wedding in our backyard not to make a statement, but because Stephen and Dale were our friends and were in love.

We have made historic strides towards equality in Illinois, but we still have a long way to go. Especially today as Donald Trump threatens to undermine the civil rights of LGBTQ people and Bruce Rauner remains silent. Rauner’s 736-day manufactured budget crisis threatened the lives of LGBTQ people by cutting critical funding for HIV testing and prevention and by gutting homeless youth services, substance abuse services, and mental health services all critically important to LGBTQ people. We need a governor who will restore stability and defend the rights of every person in Illinois.

My administration will fight hate wherever it occurs in our state by rooting out bullying in our schools and enforcing workplace nondiscrimination laws. I will work with the legislature to pass annual budgets that invest in social service agencies that address the unique challenges facing the LGBTQ community. When I’m governor, the LGBTQ community won’t just have a seat at the table, they will be equal partners in the fight to make equality a lived reality for all.

JB will fight for LGBTQ rights:

* Address the rise of anti-LGBTQ hate crimes, particularly against the transgender community, and work to root out LGBTQ bullying in our schools.
* Pass annual budgets that restore stability to our social service agencies and fund programs for homeless youth, mental health, and HIV prevention, testing and treatment.
* Expand healthcare so that LGBTQ residents have access to affordable healthcare options that meet their medical needs.
* Build an administration that represents the diversity of our state with LGBTQ individuals hired or appointed across the government and ensure government employees are trained on sexual orientation and gender diversity issues.
* Oppose legislation that discriminates against LGBTQ residents and fight back against Donald Trump and his party’s bigoted agenda.

JB's Priorities to Raise Wages in Illinois
Just as the labor movement helped create the middle class in our country in the last century, it will be key to rebuilding the middle class in Illinois today. Under Bruce Rauner, working families and workers’ rights have been under attack. JB will stand up for workers’ rights and work hand-in-hand with the labor movement to fight against harmful legislation that lowers wages. He will also stand up to Donald Trump’s attempts to undermine federal labor protections.

Protect Collective Bargaining Rights
JB believes unions are key to building a strong middle class.

Governor Rauner’s extreme agenda is a direct attack on Illinois’ working families. Governor Rauner favors right to work legislation, which would destroy unions in this state, and has proposed legislation that would significantly limit collective bargaining by preventing workers from bargaining over central tenets of employment—wages and healthcare.

JB knows workers are the heart of every organization and must be treated with respect. JB will fight to protect collective bargaining rights because he believes unions are key to building a strong middle class. JB will protect fair share agreements and will be a good faith partner for labor unions and workers.

Support a Living Wage
JB believes that the minimum wage needs to be increased.

Governor Rauner is holding the minimum wage hostage to his extreme agenda. Governor Rauner pays lip service to a minimum wage increase, but does not support a living wage for Illinois’ working families.

JB supports raising the minimum wage to $15. JB understands that respect for workers means paying them a living wage. A person making Illinois’ current minimum wage of $8.25 an hour earns just $17,160 annually to work full time. Raising the minimum wage will help reverse the growing wage gap.

Fight for Equal Pay
JB knows that women deserve to earn equal pay for equal work.

JB will fight to strengthen Illinois’s Equal Pay Act. Women not only deserve equal pay, but they also deserve to know when they’re being paid less than their male counterparts. Equal pay laws should include harsher penalties for companies that are not in compliance. JB will also fight to make sure progress toward equal pay isn’t rolled back on the federal level.

Enforce Laws Protecting Workers from Misclassification and Wage Theft
JB knows businesses need to pay workers the wages and benefits they rightfully deserve under law.

Governor Rauner wants to help business at the expense of workers. Governor Rauner’s extreme “turnaround agenda” fails to acknowledge the enforcement and investigative work that must be done to protect workers.

JB understands that worker misclassification and wage theft hurt workers and business. JB supports full enforcement of the 2010 Illinois Wage Theft Enforcement Act, which strengthens worker protections, and improving accountability measures for employers that improperly pay their employees. JB will appoint a Director of the Department of Labor who will relentlessly enforce all laws and direct the Joint Misclassification Enforcement Task Force to actively investigate and penalize employers who are in violation of the law.

Fight for an Enforceable Prevailing Wage
JB believes that government should not act to drive down wages.

Governor Rauner wants to repeal the Illinois Prevailing Wage law. Under Governor Rauner’s administration, the Illinois Department of Labor hasn’t updated wage rates depriving workers of what’s owed to them.

JB will fight to protect prevailing wage law in Illinois. JB supports a law that would formalize wage determinations, just as the federal prevailing wage law does. Studies show that prevailing wage laws do not drive up construction costs. Instead, they elevate worker skills in the construction industry, promote better workplace safety, and increase government revenues.

Strengthen Project Labor Agreements
JB believes that the State should be a responsible partner in public works construction projects.

Governor Rauner wants to repeal the Illinois Project Labor Agreements Act. Governor Rauner would prohibit the use of project labor agreements on state-funded projects, except where required by federal law.

JB believes that Project Labor Agreements help ensure a skilled and experienced workforce and foster greater employment opportunities for women and people of color in the construction industry. JB will promote diversity in union apprenticeship programs and will sign an executive order to advocate the use of PLAs by all State agencies.

JB's Plan for the Opioid Epidemic
There is an opioid crisis in Illinois that is ending too many lives and devastating too many families. This crisis is only getting worse, with a 44.3 percent increase in drug-related overdoses from 2013 to 2016. Last year, there were 2,278 drug-related deaths in Illinois, and over 80 percent of drug overdoses are now caused by opioids. The super-opiate, Fentanyl, took 562 lives in Cook County alone in 2016, up from 20 in 2014.

Unfortunately, Governor Bruce Rauner is once again failing to lead. In 2015, bipartisan members of the General Assembly came together to pass the Heroin Crisis Act, a forward-thinking and comprehensive bill to combat the epidemic. Rauner vetoed the bill – forcing legislators to override his veto – the only override of that legislative session.

Rauner also proposed slashing funding for addiction treatment by 20 percent, with Illinois already in the bottom three states for providing publicly funded addiction treatment. Rauner’s 736-day manufactured budget crisis made the problem worse, devastating the state’s addiction and mental health treatment services and forcing 27 public health departments to reduce staff or services. All the while, Illinois’ opioid crisis spiraled out of control.

We can’t afford to ignore this crisis. We need a governor who will recognize this emergency and prioritize addressing it.

My plan is focused on six key priorities:

* Focus on Youth Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Prevention and Education.
* Reduce the Risks of Prescription Opioids.
* Remove Barriers to Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery.
* Work with the Criminal Justice System to Prioritize Treatment Over Incarceration.
* Ensure Health Insurance Companies Cover Addiction Treatment Fairly.
* Leverage Federal Funding Opportunities to Fight the Opioid Epidemic Locally.

Focus on Youth Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Prevention and Education
Opioid use can be particularly dangerous among children and adolescents. Between 1994 and 2007, the prescribing rates for opioids among adolescents and young adults almost doubled. In 2015, more than a quarter of a million adolescents were using pain relievers without a medical purpose. Children often access opioids from prescriptions of family members, while most adolescents who abuse opioids were first prescribed them by a doctor. Children and adolescents who are prescribed opioids have a higher risk for substance use disorder.

As governor, I will work with the medical and mental health communities to make sure that pediatricians discuss the serious dangers of opioids with parents and patients, both during routine check-ups and when writing prescriptions. I will also encourage regular mental health screenings, and work to ensure that psychiatrists discuss drug abuse with adolescent patients, given the increased danger of drug addiction in patients with mental illness. Finally, I support a greater public health campaign in schools. This will allow for the dangers of opioids to be taught at a younger age and ensure the stigma of addiction will not prevent those who need it from seeking treatment.

Reduce the Risks of Prescription Opioids
Opioids have legitimate medical purposes, but they are not without substantial risks. Nationally, nearly 80 percent of heroin users reported using prescription opioids first. Patients can also shop doctors and pharmacies, leaving little way to monitor their prescriptions.

To combat prescription opioid abuse, I will work with physicians to put in place measures that help keep people safe. I will fight to strengthen Illinois’ prescription monitoring program so that physicians and pharmacies have access to accurate information about the quantity of opioids their patients receive. I will also work to ensure that physicians are better trained in the dangers of opioid addiction and treatment options as part of continuing medical education.

Finally, as called for in the updated prescribing guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, I will support legislation to implement comprehensive prescribing guidelines that further limit the number of days of an initial opioid prescription, which can reduce the risk for addiction.

Remove Barriers to Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery
Too often, those suffering from opioid addiction only receive treatment once they go to emergency rooms. Intermediate treatment and medication-assisted treatment are hard to find, especially in central and southern Illinois. This makes long-term recovery harder and leaves Illinoisans most at-risk without the tools they need to build healthy lives.

As governor, I will use a multi-pronged approach to remove barriers to addiction and mental health treatment and recovery. I will restore the treatment, housing, and workforce development supports that were decimated under Bruce Rauner and look for ways to expand capacity across the state for treatment services.

Additionally, I will facilitate coordination between hospitals and social service agencies to ensure that individuals who receive emergency treatment for drug use are directed to treatment programs when they’re discharged. We also need to expand jail and prison substance use disorder case management systems to connect individuals to community treatment upon release. This coordination will give those suffering from drug addiction the tools they need to transition into recovery.

Work with the Criminal Justice System to Prioritize Treatment Over Incarceration
We know that incarcerating Illinoisans who are addicted to opioids is more expensive and less effective than providing medical treatment. The average cost of methadone maintenance treatment is about $4,700 per patient. A year in prison costs Illinois over $22,000 per inmate. Every dollar invested in addiction treatment programs yields a return of between $4 and $7 in reduced drug-related crime and criminal justice costs. Methadone treatment for 2,500 people could save Illinois up to $100 million dollars in reduced crime and healthcare outcomes.

As governor, I will work to increase access to problem-solving drug courts, ensure that judges understand the available treatment options, and ensure those options are more readily available. That means having enough space to meet demand in rehabilitation programs, including both inpatient or medication-assisted treatment programs. Providing access to this treatment will help formerly incarcerated people ease back in to the community, increasing their chances to rehabilitate their lives and reducing the likelihood of recidivism.

Ensure Health Insurance Companies Cover Addiction Treatment Fairly
Healthcare is a right, not a privilege, and all Illinoisans deserve access to quality care. That includes treatment for opioid addiction. Quality treatment is easier with insurance coverage, and Illinois has strong laws on the books to ensure that insurance companies cover treatment for mental health and substance use disorders, given the strong correlation between the two.

However, a recent report found that 75 percent of Medicaid managed care organizations (MCOs) denied coverage for a range of treatments. This is in addition to almost half of commercial insurance companies that deny coverage for inpatient treatment and nearly one-third that deny coverage for partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, and medication-assisted treatment. The report also found that both Medicaid MCOs and commercial insurance companies regularly use other barriers to care for mental health and substance use disorder treatment short of outright denial.

As governor, I will work to ensure that insurance companies provide the coverage for mental health and substance use disorder treatment that they are lawfully required to cover. I will strengthen enforcement of the state’s parity laws and close loopholes that still allow insurance companies and MCOs to partially deny coverage based on a range of non-quantitative treatment limitations. I will also work to expand healthcare across our state, through my first-in-the-nation public option health insurance program, IllinoisCares.

Leverage Federal Funding Opportunities to Fight the Opioid Epidemic Locally
To root out the opioid epidemic, we also need to do the work at the local level. There is positive work happening in some of our communities where law enforcement, social services, and schools work together and apply for federal grants. These resources are then used to fund locally-directed prevention and drug take-back programs at the community level. The state should assist every community in Illinois to form coalitions and compete for these critical grants.

As governor, I will fight to ensure that the state is capturing as much federal funding as possible. I will focus on matching opportunities, where a modest state investment can unlock federal funding. I will also find ways for the state to assist local governments and non-profit organizations in taking advantage of federal grant opportunities. This is especially true for many of our small and rural communities that may need more technical assistance on grant applications. Finally, I will help local governments form intergovernmental task forces, so that police departments, schools, and public health departments can work together to combat opioid abuse across our state.

Conclusion
By working together and investing in prevention and treatment instead of incarceration, we can combat the opioid epidemic in Illinois and create real, lasting change. My plan is a multi-faceted approach to prevent addiction in the first place, remove barriers to treatment, and encourage treatment instead of incarceration. We can and we will break the cycle of addiction today and for future generations.

JB's Priorities for Economic Stability
One of my most important goals as the next governor of Illinois will be to create jobs and restore economic stability and vibrancy to the hardest hit communities in our state. If we improve the prospects for economic prosperity of a community, we can create greater stability for our children and families and reduce the potential for violence. By increasing access to capital, training, and mentorship for small business owners and entrepreneurs, we can create jobs in communities that need it the most. I believe we can and must accomplish this goal, especially for Illinois’ black and brown communities.

We must undo the harm caused by Bruce Rauner’s failed leadership and systemic disinvestment in Illinois’ communities. We can do this by empowering local community lenders and small business owners, and establishing innovative financing models that increase and expand access to capital to those who need it the most.

I am committed to working with leaders, like Kurt Summers, who have fought to expand economic opportunity for the people of our state. Together, we can achieve these goals if we:

Restore and Expand Small Business Development Centers Across the State
Before Bruce Rauner took office, Illinois’ Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) were considered best in class. These centers provide critical guidance and training for small business owners. Unfortunately, due to Bruce Rauner’s failed leadership, one-quarter of the SBDCs in this state have closed due to lack of funding. This has had a detrimental impact on job creation. The Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity (DCEO) noted that due to the work of SBDCs, 2,504 jobs were created and 3,114 jobs were retained in FY15. However, under Rauner, this year’s estimate has decreased by nearly half, as only 1,200 new jobs will be created and 1,600 retained. I will fully fund small business development centers, restore them to their prime, and expand their impact. I will build on their success to support innovative training and mentorship opportunities for aspiring small business owners across the state.

Empower Under-Served Communities by Giving Them a Seat at the Table
I will convene Community Development Financial Institutions, community leaders, SBDC staff, labor, and small business owners across the state to discuss job creation, access to capital, glean best practices, and give community leaders a voice in developing economic plans that are responsive to the unique needs of their community. I will leverage my experience spearheading the state’s most successful technology innovation hub – 1871 – to better inform this discussion and scale up strategies that work.

Reenvision Investment Incentives for Distressed Communities
State enterprise zones are designed to stimulate economic growth, which drives job creation and revitalizes distressed communities. In the first 100 days of my administration, I will convene state, county, labor, and local leaders to undertake a deep review of the State Enterprise Zone Program to ensure that we are doing all that we can to effectively funnel incentives and resources to the communities that need them the most and that we are creating jobs as a result.

End the Rauner Era of Systemic Disinvestment through innovative funding models
Communities hit hardest by the recent economic downturn remain under assault by Donald Trump and Bruce Rauner. Under Bruce Rauner, social service and community investment programs across the state have been slashed. Even worse, Donald Trump has proposed complete disinvestment in community development programs. I will fight to maintain federal funding and incentivize greater private investment. I will also work with state and federal officials to establish innovative financial partnerships that leverage successful development programs like the Small Business Investment Company program and the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund tax credit and grant programs. Finally, I will empower community stakeholders in the design of these programs.

Small businesses employ approximately 2.4 million people in Illinois, that’s nearly 46% of the private workforce. In order to restore economic stability and vibrancy to underserved communities, small business development must be a core solution. That means expanding access to capital for small business owners and entrepreneurs, providing training and mentorship, and incentivizing investment.

I remain dedicated to the revitalization of all communities across Illinois, and the programs above represent one important aspect of my economic development plan.

JB's Plan to Support Illinois Veterans
When we support our Veterans, we are building stronger families and communities across our state. Supporting Illinois Veterans means increasing opportunities for their families to build better lives.

As the son and grandson of Navy Veterans, I have a very personal commitment to uphold the sacred obligation to those who risk their lives so that we can live in a free and democratic society.

Illinois should help smooth the transition for Veterans and their families as they return to communities as civilians, and we also need to make sure that once they are home they are supported with housing, employment, healthcare, education and any additional services they need. To make this a reality, we need to increase access to social and economic opportunity. We must make it easier for Veterans and their spouses to get and keep good paying jobs so they can take care of their families. Access to affordable housing and healthcare options for Veterans and their families must also be increased.

It is unacceptable that our Illinois Veterans’ homes – homes that care for our frail, elderly Veterans – have caused the death of over a dozen Veteran heroes. Over the past three years, we have lost too many Veterans to Legionnaires Disease and deaths continue to be reported. Our heroes deserve to live out their remaining years in dignity, not in fear of unsafe or unhealthy living conditions. We must address ongoing health and safety issues in Illinois Veteran’s homes. It’s unacceptable that cases of Legionnaires disease continue to be reported, and that lives continue to be lost.

Increase opportunities for education and employment for Veterans and their families

* Make it easier for servicemembers returning home to use prior military experience to earn credits at Illinois’ higher education institutions.
* Stabilize funding for higher education scholarships for Veterans and connect them with job opportunities in the trades.
* Create jobs by offering additional incentives to businesses that hire Veterans and their spouses.
* Improve access to state professional licensing based on skills gained while serving in the armed forces.

Ensure Illinois Veterans of all ages have safe, stable, and affordable housing options

* Reduce homelessness and increase access to safe, affordable housing in communities for Veterans and their families.
* Remediate all unsafe living conditions for our Veterans and improve the quality of life in Illinois Veterans’ Homes by increasing mandatory health inspections and routine maintenance to end outbreaks of preventable diseases like Legionnaires disease.

Improve healthcare options for Veterans across the state

* Increasing the number of qualified nursing staff working in Illinois Veterans’ Homes to ensure quality care.
* Work with communities to recruit and retain qualified medical personnel to expand access to healthcare and mental healthcare, particularly in rural areas.

Better manage and coordinate Veteran's services

* Improve online coordination of federal, state and local Veterans services.

JB's Criminal Justice Reform Plan
It’s time to imagine a criminal justice system that gives Illinoisans a chance to reach their full potential. It’s time to end mass incarceration and get our communities the support they need to thrive. It’s time to move away from a system of imprisonment and build a true system of justice.

As governor, I will propose an office of Criminal Justice Reform and Economic Opportunity, spearheaded by my pick for Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton. This office will focus on evidence-based solutions to move us forward. We will build economic opportunity to keep people out of the criminal justice system and help Illinoisans transition back to their communities. We’re going to support youth and adults so they don’t enter the justice system in the first place. We’re going to reform sentencing to match the offense and support rehabilitation. Finally, we’re going to reduce gun violence with the public health approach we need to keep our communities safe.

Long term, we must reverse Bruce Rauner’s systemic disinvestment in communities across our state. Bruce Rauner decimated human services in Illinois, blocked public education funding, and undermined economic opportunity for so many of our communities. These are the services and foundations that enable communities to build better lives and as governor, I will fight every day to reverse this damage.

My plan focuses on four key areas:

* Legalize marijuana and modernize sentencing, especially for low level drug offenses.
* Reduce recidivism and re-entry by removing economic barriers around employment, affordable housing, human services, and family reunification.
* Reform our juvenile justice system and end the criminalization of children by investing in court diversion programs and restorative justice alternatives to incarceration.
* Treat gun violence like a public health epidemic and make police more accountable to the communities they serve.

Legalize Marijuana and Modernize Sentencing
It is time to envision a criminal justice system that delivers justice to victims, rehabilitates individuals, and builds safer communities. That’s not where we are right now. Decades of systemic racism, underfunded public schools, and excessive sentences have led to mass incarceration across Illinois. Our prisons are operating at 134 percent capacity and there are nearly 43,000 individuals behind bars – but this is about more than statistics and numbers. This is about systemic disinvestment in communities and families, African American men being incarcerated at staggering rates, and a broken system in desperate need of reform.

We must start with Illinois’ sentencing laws. We need sentencing guidelines that not only match the offense, but also work to deter crime and build safer communities. We also need to reform the bail system and partner with communities across the state to bolster successful diversion programs and robust data collection.

As governor, I will work to reverse the foundational causes of mass incarceration. Under Bruce Rauner, we’ve seen steady disinvestment in our communities, human services decimated, and economic opportunity for our middle class and those striving to get into the middle class disappear. Yet, Illinois will spend over $1.4 billion in FY17 incarcerating its citizens. We need to modernize our approach to sentencing to focus on public safety and smart sentencing. The savings obtained from modernizing the sentencing system should be invested directly back to our communities to fund programs that reduce incarceration in the first place and expand opportunity for all Illinois communities.

* Reform sentencing laws to better match the offense:
* Legalize marijuana, lower the penalties for certain drug offenses, and adjust the punishments for other non-violent offenses.
* Reform excessive sentencing, reduce the use of mandatory-minimums, and allow judges greater discretion to use probation for certain offenses.
* Protect people from being unfairly detained and imprisoned:
* Abolish the monetary bail system and replace it with a validated risk assessment tool that is fair to all of our communities.
* Stop the unjust application of fees and fines that burden those who can’t afford to pay and can lead to further incarceration.
* Partner with communities to divert people from the justice system:
* Strengthen local diversion programs and promote collaboration to share best practices and replicate what’s working.
* Partner with local officials to collect and analyze data, provide support to evaluate local initiatives, and share best practices across the state.

Reducing Recidivism
The overwhelming majority of people in prison will be released and will return to their communities. But the sad truth is that many of those individuals will end up back in prison. Roughly half of those released from an Illinois prison will return within three years. This is what happens when we do not prioritize rehabilitation and re-entry services. Too many formerly incarcerated people are returning to communities without restored social connections, economic opportunity, and access to affordable housing. Without that support, they are more likely to end up back in prison.

Our state government should partner with communities to help people released from prison thrive. We need to build strong social connections and create economic opportunity in our communities and that can’t just start when people are released. It means rehabilitative services, job training, and re-entry services that begin in prison and extend after release.

Expanding these programs in our prisons and in our communities will build that bridge between incarceration and re-entry. It will connect individuals to the social and economic opportunities they need to thrive and reduce recidivism. It’s a long-term investment in our state that will help lower future incarceration costs, which currently cost over $23,000 per inmate. Let’s spend money educating instead of incarcerating Illinoisans.

* Prioritize rehabilitation services in prisons to reduce recidivism after release:
* Connect people in prison early with evidence-based rehabilitative services including job training, education, mental health and substance abuse treatment.
* Encourage and facilitate positive relationships between people in prison, their families, and their communities to reduce the likelihood of recidivism after release.
* Create economic opportunity and strengthen our communities:
* Create vibrant and thriving communities by investing in quality education, including preschool and quality childcare.
* Ensure community business owners and entrepreneurs have access to the capital, training, and mentorship they need to thrive.
* Reduce barriers to employment and expand community-based learning opportunities so people can build self-sufficient lives.
* Expand stable housing and healthcare in all of our communities.
* Help Illinoisans safely re-enter the workforce via a state re-entry employment program designed to place qualified people in state positions.

Juvenile Justice Reform
Exposure to trauma, neglect, sexual assault, or abuse as a child can negatively impact adolescent brain development. Too often in our juvenile justice system, trauma is ignored and adolescent behavior is criminalized. We need to do more to ensure juvenile justice agencies are trauma informed and culturally competent. We also need to make sure they reflect the latest science indicating that significant brain development occurs well into a person’s twenties. This is particularly true in the area of the brain that controls risk-taking and impulsivity.

While adolescents are more likely to take risks and behave impulsively, their brains are also more open and responsive to education and rehabilitation. Recognizing this, we should focus on rehabilitative alternatives to prosecution and incarceration in our juvenile justice system.

Keeping adolescents out of the system will not only improve their own well-being, it also frees up resources we can use to invest in education and building community capacity. In 2016, the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice spent $172,000 annually to incarcerate each youth. That is a staggering 29 times more than effective community-based alternatives to incarceration that cost an average of only $6,000 per youth, per year.

* Reform state agencies working with children to reflect the latest science:
* Ensure state agencies are trauma-informed, culturally competent, and responsive to the latest science on adolescent brain development.
* Build community capacity and invest in protective factors that make communities strong:
* Increase state funding for public education, invest in early childhood education, expand access to quality healthcare with a public option plan, and restore and expand investments in after-school programs.
* Reverse Bruce Rauner’s damage to human service agencies across our state by properly funding effective evidence-based programs like home visitation for at-risk youth, community-based mental health, and violence prevention and intervention.
* Keep families intact by diverting youth involvement with the juvenile justice system:
* Expand evidence-based youth diversion programs that address mental health, substance use, trauma, and other needs that may lead to negative outcomes. Partner with municipalities in the use of restorative justice as an alternative to prosecution and incarceration of adolescents.

A Public Health Approach to Gun Violence and Holding Law Enforcement Accountable
Gun violence is a public health epidemic. It kills people, destroys families, and rips apart our communities. Recognizing violence as a health epidemic and building safer communities must be at the center of any plan to reduce gun violence. Like all epidemic diseases, the treatment must include interruption, risk reduction, and a change in community norms so that everyone can feel safe in their own communities.

There is no single cause for this epidemic and there is no single solution. Access to guns and where they come from is one factor. Over half of guns recovered by the Chicago Police Department can be traced to a state outside of Illinois. Without better data collection and law enforcement coordination across the state, it’s hard to know the same about crime guns recovered from Peoria and East St. Louis to Cairo. That’s a problem.

Systemic disinvestment in our communities leading to adverse economic outcomes is also a key factor. Unemployment in the five Chicago communities most affected by gun violence is as high as 35%. Unemployment in other regions of the state most affected by gun violence exceeds the state average too. This has only been compounded by Bruce Rauner’s failed leadership. His 736-day budget crisis decimated funding for violence prevention, after-school programs, and mental health services.

We need to fight for all communities to be healthy and safe, and we need to partner with those already doing this work. As governor, I will work with all communities affected by gun violence. Together, we will lead efforts to treat gun violence as a public health epidemic, rebuild healthy communities, increase firearm safety, and support the relationship between law enforcement and the communities they serve.

* Treat gun violence as a public health epidemic:
* Empower the Illinois Department of Public Health to expand their treatment of gun violence as a public health epidemic.
* Fight for public health research on gun violence by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) at the federal level.
* Focus on prevention and intervention by investing in community programs that interrupt violence and encourage non-violent conflict resolution.
* Rebuild healthy communities:
* Restore funding for community organizations and human services programs. These services are critical to prevent violence, disrupt violence through after school and mental health services, treat those most at risk, and change community norms.
* Create economic opportunity in neighborhoods most affected by gun violence by increasing access to capital and training for and expanding education opportunities for youth.
* Partner with localities to develop conflict resolution programs for our children.
* Increase firearm safety:
* Implement universal background checks for every gun sale in Illinois.
* Make a legal violence protection order available so that families can step in to protect loved ones from harming themselves and others.
* Ban assault weapons, high capacity magazines, and bump stocks in Illinois to help prevent mass shootings.
* Support and sign a gun dealer licensing bill to ensure firearms are sold in a safe and responsible manner.
* Create and lead a consortium of regional states committed to reducing gun trafficking across our state border. This will also allow law enforcement agencies to share data to help track the flow of illegal guns.
* Create a dedicated gun crime investigation unit within state police that coordinates with local police departments to focus on illegal gun trafficking and gun crime.
* Secure federal funding to improve background check records reporting.
* Create an inter-agency working group to evaluate the state’s progress in providing prohibiting records to the federal NICS background check system.
* Ensure all domestic violence and drug abuse prohibiting records are pre-validated and uploaded to the appropriate background check systems in a timely manner.
* Support the relationship between law enforcement and the communities they serve:
* Increase accountability between law enforcement and the communities they serve by making the Traffic and Pedestrian Stop Statistical Study permanent and incentivizing data collection for all stops no matter the result.
* Implement continuing education training for law enforcement that is culturally competent, evidence-based, and a routine component of professional development. We also need to ensure this training includes instruction on de-escalation tactics, proper use of force, and community intervention.
* Support state and local law enforcement officers by ensuring they receive proper mental health services for any trauma they may experience.

Conclusion
This is our plan to build healthy and safe communities across our state. With Juliana Stratton at the helm, the Office of Criminal Justice Reform and Economic Opportunity will build a system of justice that reflects the values of Illinois. That’s a system that diverts youth and adults from incarceration in the first place, modernizes sentencing, encourages rehabilitation, works to reduce gun violence, and creates economic opportunity. We’re ready to bring our vibrant educational institutions, faith groups, businesses, and human service providers together to get all Illinoisans the support they need to thrive. Most importantly, we’re ready to partner with the organizations and advocates already doing this work and give all of our communities a seat at the table. We can only move forward together. I hope you’ll join us.

JB's Domestic Violence Prevention Plan
A Plan to Break the Cycle: Building a Safer Future for Illinois Families Domestic violence impacts children and families across Illinois. It transcends age, income, race and gender, and forces too many to live in fear. We can’t be afraid to talk about this violence, listen to survivors, and amplify their voices. Illinois families should not have to live in fear. They should not be subject to cycles of emotional, physical, and economic abuse. I believe we can do more to break these cycles and help our families build better lives and I am ready to do that as your next governor.

We know that counseling and therapy, legal services, shelter, and job training provide survivors of domestic violence with the resources to successfully leave abusive relationships. But instead of setting children and families up for success, Bruce Rauner did long-term damage to the tools domestic violence survivors need to build a path toward self-sufficiency.

Due to Bruce Rauner’s budget crisis, payments to domestic violence shelters were delayed or cut, resulting in many agencies reducing staff hours, laying people off, and taking out lines of credit. In July, Governor Rauner vetoed all funding for domestic violence services, jeopardizing life-saving services for more than 53,000 adults and children who receive support from community-based providers each year. Even after the legislature overrode Governor Rauner’s dangerous veto, the Department of Human Services continued to drag its feet in getting payments to domestic violence shelters.

My Plan:
Trauma-informed intervention services for survivors of domestic violence can change lives. These services help survivors and children break cycles of violence to pursue safe and healthy futures. As governor, agencies and the survivors and families they serve will have an advocate in Springfield.

Putting our children on a path to success
We know that children who witness domestic violence often have difficulty learning in school and struggle with social and emotional development. Long-term impacts of childhood trauma that result from witnessing domestic violence can lead to greater health risks as an adult, including substance abuse, obesity, heart disease, and mental illness. To give our children the tools for success I will:

* Implement evidence-based screening, detection, and prevention models to identify and help children who witness domestic violence.
* Ensure that schools and community-based providers help children who witness domestic violence rebuild their lives by utilizing trauma-informed treatment models.

Tools for parents to rebuild their lives
Parents experiencing domestic violence deserve access to shelters and services that help them escape fear and start to rebuild their lives. Counseling and therapy, legal services, shelter and other support services like job training provide survivors of domestic violence with the resources they need to successfully leave an abusive relationship and build a path toward self-sufficiency. To help parents I will:

* Ensure families have access to the tools they need to rebuild their lives by stabilizing state investment in domestic violence shelters and services that have been hurt by Governor Rauner’s budget crisis.
* Work with community-based programs to help them build and maintain a trained workforce able to fully address the needs of domestic violence survivors.

JB's Plan to Resist Trump
Resisting Trump
Donald Trump’s legislative agenda threatens to wreak havoc on the lives of Illinois families. Trump is actively working to dismantle health care in the United States, potentially stripping millions of families of their coverage and targeting those who need it most. He is waging war on science in his refusal to acknowledge climate change and his rejection of the policies that will preserve our future. Trump’s attacks on public education, immigrant families, and people of color are tearing communities apart, and undermining the principles that make this country strong. Every day, Trump is exploiting divisions and peddling hate.

Illinois will be deeply impacted by this administration’s devastating agenda, and Governor Bruce Rauner is asleep at the wheel. Rauner is silent in the face of Trump’s attacks and refuses to put in place policies that will protect Illinois families. Worse, Rauner is actively working to force a special interest agenda on Illinois that will amplify Donald Trump’s destruction. After a 736-day budget crisis, with a state economy in turmoil, and with public school funding at risk, Illinois simply can’t afford Trump’s agenda or more of Rauner’s failed leadership.

My parents raised me with a commitment to social justice. I’ve spent my life fighting for Illinois families and bringing people together to solve big problems for this state. Those values are under attack and I am ready to fight every day to make sure Illinois is a firewall against Donald Trump’s destructive agenda and hateful rhetoric. We will protect and expand health care for all of our families, invest in education, defend our environment, stand with our immigrant families, and fight for civil rights. I’m running for governor because the values that I care about are under siege by Donald Trump and Bruce Rauner and I am ready to stand with passionate Illinoisans and resist.

After Bruce Rauner’s failed leadership, there is so much work to do and this my plan to resist Trump as Illinois’ next governor.

Protecting Health Care
Trump
Donald Trump’s mean-spirited attempt to dismantle health care as we know it would strip coverage from millions, including 650,000 Illinoisans who would lose Medicaid. The state could lose $40 billion in federal funding over ten years. Trump succeeded in getting Congress to outlaw the individual mandate, which could cause more than 500,000 Illinoisans to lose health insurance and premiums to rise. Trump is also committed to defunding Planned Parenthood and overturning Roe v. Wade – a direct attack on women’s health care.

Rauner
Bruce Rauner refuses to stand up for Illinois in the face of this impending health care disaster. As Republicans threaten to impose deep cuts to Medicaid and strip healthcare from millions, Bruce Rauner is sitting on the sidelines instead of fighting to save these critical federal dollars. And, instead of speaking out on Donald Trump’s attacks on women, Rauner waivered on his support of HB40, a bill that would protect a woman’s right to choose, leaving Illinoisans uncertain about their access to healthcare.

How We Resist
Quality and affordable health care is a right, not a privilege. I will stand with Illinois families to defend the progress we’ve made under the Affordable Care Act. I have introduced a public option health insurance plan to allow Illinois families to purchase affordable health insurance coverage through Illinois’ existing public medical assistance program.

Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are ramming through mean-spirited and deeply unpopular legislation to overhaul the progress we’ve made to make health care more accessible and affordable under the Affordable Care Act. If they are successful, the impact on Illinois would be nothing short of devastating. Millions of Illinoisan’s health care could be jeopardized, 650,000 of our neighbors would be automatically stripped of Medicaid in 2021, and 46,000 Illinois workers could lose their jobs. Premiums would skyrocket, with seniors bearing the brunt of the cost, and Illinois women could lose access to critical health services through Planned Parenthood.

Trumpcare is a direct attack on the health care of millions of families, seniors, and women in Illinois. But even after bipartisan governors across the country criticized the legislation, Bruce Rauner refuses to take a principled stand. Instead, Donald Trump’s partner in Illinois is working to force his special interest agenda on our state through his own destructive Medicaid proposal and his threat to veto HB40.

I’m running for governor to fight for Illinois families and that means doing everything in my power to protect their health care. I will resist Trump in Washington and stand with governors across the nation to provide meaningful leadership that will protect and expand health care for all Illinoisans. That means working to expand access to care, increase patient choice, and keep costs down by providing a public option health insurance plan. This public option will provide another choice in the health insurance marketplace and protect Illinoisans from rising premiums at no additional cost to taxpayers. I will also stand with Illinois women in the fight to protect women’s health care and their right to choose. Unlike Rauner, that is a promise I will never waiver on.

Funding Education
Trump
Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos wanted to gut the federal government’s investment in education by $9.2 billion in FY18. Rather than invest in programs that establish a foundation for academic success and provide students with support, the president has proposed decreasing funding for the federal Head Start program, eliminating after school programs, and discontinuing federally subsidized loans for college students.

Rauner
The damage done by Bruce Rauner’s 736-day state budget impasse pushed over 25,000 children out of the state’s child care assistance program, drove high school graduates to out-of-state colleges, and reduced the credit rating of five public universities to junk status. After vetoing the entire FY18 state budget, Bruce Rauner amendatory vetoed the school funding reform bill (SB1) in order to insert a backdoor voucher program into the final school funding reform package (SB1947).

How We Resist
As governor, I will invest in a public education system that improves the well-being of every child and prepares them for the jobs of tomorrow. I will oppose school vouchers and charter school expansion and I will work to construct a stronger birth-to-five system of early childhood education. Every child deserves to enter kindergarten prepared for success. As governor, I will increase K-12 funding across the board because the state hasn’t done enough to help children in every school thrive. Finally, we will revive our community colleges and public universities by providing them with adequate resources and making college more affordable for low-income students.

Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos want to reduce the federal government’s investment in our greatest asset – our children – by threatening to cut more than $9 billion from the U.S. Department of Education. Their assault on public education will directly and disproportionately hurt low-income students. Rather than invest in programs that provide everyone with an opportunity to achieve their academic potential, Trump plans to drastically reduce funding and funnel savings into school choice programs.

Bruce Rauner has a long history with Betsy DeVos, which comes as no surprise given their overlapping agendas. Young children missed out on opportunities to learn and grow as a result of Rauner’s changes to the Child Care Assistance Program. High school graduates left the state in part because of the financial instability surrounding public universities and lack of MAP grants. The ‘short term pain’ associated with Rauner’s budget crisis came at the expense of children and families across our state. Like Donald Trump, Rauner’s narrow, special interest agenda threatens the well-being of children and families across the state.

In order to build a globally competitive workforce, we have to provide a world class education to every Illinois child. For over 20 years, I have been fighting for increased access to early childhood education and I won’t stop as governor. I’m going to take a two-generation approach to building a comprehensive, birth-to-five system of early childhood education. I plan to raise the state’s investment in K-12 schools to address the imbalance that exists between the share of state and local school funding. Finally, I will give our high school graduates a reason to stay in Illinois by making public universities more affordable, supporting our community colleges, and investing in our financial aid programs. We can achieve these goals by implementing a progressive income tax, where those who can afford it, pay more.

Restoring the Environment
Donald Trump is working to gut the EPA. He wants to eliminate both the Clean Power Plan designed to combat global warming and the Clean Water Rule, which would protect the drinking water of more than 117 million Americans. His withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord is a stunning statement to the world that the U.S. will not be a partner in the work to mitigate the impacts of climate change.

Rauner
Bruce Rauner has failed to join leaders and other governors across the country speaking out against Donald Trump’s environmental policies and has done nothing to defend our regional EPA office from proposed cuts. Rauner’s budget crisis has decimated conservation programs across the state and he refused to stand with regional governors in defense of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. It’s clear that protecting our precious environment is not a priority for this governor.

How We Resist
As governor, I will ensure Illinois upholds the provisions of the Paris Climate Agreement by joining an alliance of states committed to upholding the accord. I will set the state on a path toward 100% clean renewable energy. I will fight to maintain full funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, and I will work to expand shared renewables like 14 other states and the District of Columbia, which already have plans in place. I will also defend our regional EPA office and restore funding to critical conservation programs across the state.

Donald Trump is compromising our future and our children’s future in his quest to disregard science and lead us to environmental ruin. Trump and his climate change denier EPA Director Scott Pruitt are systematically working to gut the EPA, proposing $2.6 billion in cuts to the agency that would slash 3,200 jobs. Trump is simultaneously working to eliminate the Clean Water Rule, which would ensure safe drinking water, as well as the Clean Power Plan, which set out to regulate energy plants powered by fossil fuels. On June 1, Trump withdrew the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement, a historic international agreement between 195 countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Trump’s withdrawal was a striking statement that the U.S. will not partner to reduce the impacts of climate change.

Bruce Rauner has been silent as Donald Trump wages war on our environment. While leaders of cities and states across the country stepped forward to say that they will continue to uphold the provisions of the Paris agreement, Bruce Rauner failed to act. Rauner has done nothing to push back on Trump’s proposed cuts to the EPA, which could lead the Illinois regional office to close entirely or cut critical jobs and programs. In fact, Bruce Rauner’s director of the Illinois EPA is a former registered lobbyist who represented some of this state’s largest polluters. And, of course, the damage done by Rauner’s budget crisis has decimated conservation programs across the state.

As governor, I will stand with science, not with Donald Trump. One of my first acts will be joining responsible leaders across the country to ensure that Illinois upholds the provisions of the Paris Climate Agreement. I will fight Donald Trump’s cuts to the EPA and ensure our regional office keeps its doors open. I will work to expand clean energy production and invest in green jobs. Finally, I will pass a budget that restores funding to the conservation programs that keep our environment safe and clean. Climate change is a real threat, and we have a responsibility to our children to act. I’m ready to do that as governor.

Fighting for Immigration Reform
Trump
Instead of uniting our country to build a more tolerant and prosperous nation for everyone, Donald Trump has built his political career on divisive attacks against immigrant families. His relentless efforts to authorize an unconstitutional Muslim travel ban, build a wall on the Mexican border, and deport immigrants are tearing apart families and attacking the foundation of our American values.

Rauner
Bruce Rauner has repeatedly chosen to undermine investments and policies that help improve the well-being and safety of immigrant children and families. He has repeatedly proposed eliminating funding for immigrant integration services and Illinois Welcoming Centers. He also vetoed legislation advanced by the University of Illinois that would have allowed undocumented students to serve as student trustees in their system.

How we Resist
I will make Illinois a welcoming state where everyone is treated with dignity and provided with an opportunity to achieve their human potential. Unlike Bruce Rauner, I refuse to be silent while Donald Trump terrorizes immigrant families. I will stand up against his bigoted policies and racist rhetoric. As governor, I will enhance funding for immigrant and refugee services, increase health care options for undocumented adults, improve the U-Visa certification process for victims of violent crimes, provide access to financial aid for undocumented students, oppose a federal registry program based on race, religion, and country of origin, and I will sign pro-immigrant laws like the Illinois Trust Act.

The United States is a nation of immigrants. Every generation, our country is strengthened by men and women from across the globe seeking freedom and opportunity here. Rather than welcome this generation of immigrant children and families, our president has demonized Mexicans, turned his back on Syrian refugees, and has implemented a modified travel ban to several Muslim-majority nations. Estimates from 2015 found that if Donald Trump were to succeed in deporting every undocumented immigrant in Illinois, the state could lose $25.6 billion in economic activity, $11.4 billion in gross state product, and approximately 119,214 jobs. We must protect our ideals and do everything possible to make the promise of America the practice of America.

Illinois should serve as a beacon of hope, a place where every person is given the tools to build a better life, contribute to their community, and help strengthen our economy. Illinois is home to approximately 1.8 million immigrants, but Bruce Rauner has done nothing to protect them from Donald Trump’s hateful agenda. In fact, he’s proactively taken steps to jettison immigrant integration programs and dilute pro-immigrant bills. Immigrants were nearly 18% of Illinois’ workforce in 2013, and in 2012 undocumented immigrants in Illinois paid approximately $793.7 million in state and local taxes.

Today’s immigrant families want the same thing my great-grandfather did when he came to the United States: safety, freedom, and the opportunity to build a better life. As governor, I will strive to build the social and economic infrastructure necessary to create opportunities for everyone, regardless of citizenship. Unlike our governor, I will welcome refugees with open arms and send a message to the president that Illinois is a welcoming state. I will restore and expand funding for immigrant integration services. Finally, I will proudly sign pro-immigrant bills like the Illinois Trust Act into law and look forward to standing with immigrant families to rebuild trust in our communities.

Standing Up to Intolerance
Trump
Donald Trump’s rhetoric has curated a culture of bigotry and fear in this country and he is now implementing policies to back that up. Trump rescinded critical Obama era criminal justice reform policies that led to fewer prosecutions of nonviolent, low-level drug offenders and fewer mandatory-minimum sentences. Trump also rolled back essential protections for transgender students and recently attempted to ban transgender people from serving in the military. Trump even defended some neo-Nazis and white supremacists at a confederate rally in Charlottesville, Va.

Rauner
Bruce Rauner has effectively defunded social services that give children, families and seniors the tools they need to build better lives. And, under Rauner, Redeploy Illinois, which provides critical services to Illinois youth to address mental health issues, substance use, abuse, trauma and neglect, was cut approximately 33% from previous funding levels. Rauner likens Chicago’s public schools to prisons

How we Resist
As governor, I will bring people together to create opportunity and stand firm against hate. I will expand access to capital and support local entrepreneurs creating jobs where they are needed most. I will reverse Rauner’s cuts to critical after-school and anti-violence programs. I will declare that transgender individuals are welcome to serve their state as state troopers and I will stand against LGBT bullying and intolerance in our schools. Most importantly, I will seek diverse input and ensure all Illinoisans have a seat at the table and a voice in their government.

Donald Trump and his administration have supported and enacted flagrantly racist policies, from pledging to build a wall on the Mexican border to placing a travel ban on Muslims who want to come to the U.S. Trump rescinded a Department of Education guidance designed to protect transgender students. A new policy by Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinds a 2013 memo from then-Attorney General Eric Holder, which sought to reduce the use of mandatory minimums for non-violent offenders. Long sentences for low-level, nonviolent drug offenders have not been proven to increase public safety, deter violence, or effectuate greater rehabilitation. However, they have been found to criminalize communities of color and drive up incarceration costs.

Under Bruce Rauner, hate crimes against Jews, Muslims, Arabs and Hispanics in Chicago hit five-year highs in 2016. His administration has decimated social services in Illinois that primarily serve communities that need it the most. After-school programs for at-risk youth and preventative HIV programs for LGBTQ populations have been particularly devastated, despite clear evidence of their effectiveness. Rauner has done nothing to stand up for transgender Illinoisans in the face of Donald Trump’s blatant discrimination.

I’m proud to have worked with Holocaust survivors to build the Illinois Holocaust Museum, which educates tens of thousands of Illinois students and teachers on how to fight intolerance and hate every year. As governor, I will listen to the diverse experiences and views of Illinoisans and ensure those who have gone voiceless for far too long have a seat at the table. l will fund our social services and ensure access in communities that need them the most. I will stand with our transgender students and all Illinoisans against bigotry. Finally, I will fix our school funding formula and provide access to capital in communities that have been left behind. Illinoisans deserve a governor fighting to give all communities the opportunity to thrive.

Join Me
Donald Trump has been president of the United States for over six months. This was not a sentence I ever anticipated having to write. It’s no secret that I opposed Trump in the 2016 election. I saw the race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump as one of the most consequential of my lifetime and I did not stay on the sidelines. I knocked on doors, made phone calls, raised money, and went on national TV to call out his hateful agenda. Like so many Americans, I woke up on November 9 saddened by the results. We lost.

In the days that followed, my greatest hope was that Trump would prove me wrong. For the sake of our country, I hoped that Trump would rise to the responsibility of holding our country’s highest office. Those hopes were quickly dashed. I won’t mince words. Donald Trump’s administration has been plagued by staggering incompetence on his best days and a flagrant disregard for our values, ethics, and the rule of law on his worst.

Our basic values and way of life here in Illinois are under threat. The long-term stability of this state and the well-being of our families is at stake if we don’t act. We need a governor ready to resist Donald Trump with every tool at their disposal and I am ready to be that governor.

I hope you will join me.

Illinois Cares: JB's Healthcare Plan
Attempts by Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans to dismantle healthcare threaten insurance coverage for millions of Americans, including over 1 million Illinoisans. In the face of this threat, Bruce Rauner has remained silent, refusing to stand with a bipartisan group of governors in opposition.

Meanwhile, hard-working Illinois families could face losing healthcare coverage, rising premiums, and limited selection in the health insurance marketplace. As governor, I will use every tool at my disposal to ensure that Illinoisans have the healthcare coverage they need, and the first step is introducing a healthcare option called IllinoisCares.

I propose a public health insurance option that would allow every Illinois resident the chance to buy low-cost health insurance. I will work with legislators and the health care community to design this public option to provide another choice in the health insurance marketplace, to lower the cost of premiums and mitigate market uncertainty – at no cost to taxpayers. If the Affordable Care Act (ACA) remains the law of the land, my plan would provide an important avenue to expand access to affordable healthcare in Illinois. But if Republicans in Washington are successful in repealing ACA, IllinoisCares would become even more necessary and could give Illinois a path to expanded innovative healthcare coverage at the state level.

I hope there continues to be conversation about how we can expand healthcare coverage across our country, including the consideration of a federal single payer system, which I support. But with Donald Trump in the White House and Republicans in control of the House and Senate, it’s now up to the states to innovate. That’s why I’m proposing a public option for Illinois, which would be the first in the nation leading in this way.

IllinoisCares would allow Illinois residents to buy into the state’s Medicaid system:

* Because Medicaid is individually administered by states, the program offers a unique opportunity for states to function as laboratories and lead in the creation of progressive healthcare policy.
* With the creation of IllinoisCares, Illinois would be the first state to expand Medicaid in this manner.
* Medicaid is a lower-cost option than private insurance, giving Illinoisans another choice when faced with rising premiums. It can be offered in every county, as opposed to the dwindling number of plans on the Affordable Care Act exchanges in many counties.
* Illinois currently spends about $3,350 per year per adult and $2,108 per child for Medicaid coverage. While an actuarial analysis will have to be completed to set premiums and cost-sharing rates for the program, it is clear that IllinoisCares offers a lower cost option for families compared to those being offered in the private insurance market.
* As a Medicaid buy-in option, IllinoisCares would require Illinoisans who do not receive federal healthcare subsidies to pay premiums to cover the full cost of Medicaid coverage. As a result, there should be no additional cost for taxpayers for this program.
* Participants who qualify for ACA tax credits could use those to help pay for their premiums.
* IllinoisCares would be designed to encourage healthy young adults as well as older Americans who are not yet eligible for Medicare to participate and would help ensure a robust patient mix.
* IllinoisCares could allow for affordable deductibles and copays as well as open enrollment and special enrollment periods, which are all standard features that keep plans affordable and stable in the private insurance market.
* In the event of full repeal of the ACA, I will work to make sure IllinoisCares gives all Illinoisans affordable health insurance, and will enact patient protections so that Illinoisans with pre-existing conditions will not be discriminated against in healthcare coverage.

“As Donald Trump and Republicans in Washington try to destroy the progress made by the ACA, Bruce Rauner sits in Springfield doing nothing for the more than 1 million Illinoisans whose coverage is at risk,” said JB Pritzker. “Our state has the chance to lead the nation with a progressive idea that expands coverage while offering residents an affordable healthcare option. My proposal, IllinoisCares, is a public health insurance option for the people of Illinois. As governor, I will do everything I can to make sure that all Illinoisans have quality, affordable healthcare coverage at the best price possible.”

Early Childhood Education
My five-point plan engages parents and children in a two-generation approach to build a comprehensive, birth-to-five system of early childhood education that gives every child an opportunity to achieve their potential and gives parents the tools they need to strengthen our families. Research shows that Illinois taxpayers will see budget savings in K-12 education from investments in early learning.

My plan includes the following:

1\. Ensure every child participates in kindergarten
Ensure every child participates in kindergarten by lowering the compulsory school age from 6 to 5 years old.

In Illinois, roughly half of kindergarten-age children live in low-income households, around 20 percent speak a language other than English at home, around 14 percent have special needs, and several thousand are homeless.

Research indicates that during kindergarten, there is a clear achievement gap between advantaged and disadvantaged kids. While evidence suggests that participation in kindergarten, particularly full-day kindergarten, improves academic outcomes, self-confidence, and the ability to interact with others, it is estimated that 5,000 school-age children are not enrolled in kindergarten across the state.

Lowering the compulsory age of education from six to five will ensure that every child is able to benefit from the cognitive, social, and emotional benefits of kindergarten. It will also build upon the investment the state is making in birth-to-five early learning services.

Unfortunately, Bruce Rauner put the education of kindergarten children in jeopardy by trying to use school funding as leverage to score a political win. Illinois needs to fully fund its schools and ensure that school districts across the state equitably receive the resources they need to provide kindergarteners with a high-quality education.

2\. Put Illinois on a path towards universal preschool for 3 and 4-year-olds
Put Illinois on a path towards universal preschool for 3 and 4-year-olds, starting with the children who would benefit the most.

Illinois is currently serving approximately 110,000 3 and 4-year-olds through the state’s Preschool for All and the federally-funded Head Start Program. In order to provide every parent with the opportunity to enroll their 3 and 4-year-olds in a high-quality preschool program, Illinois would have to serve over 200,000 more children, 50,000 of which are considered low-income. The state should make bold moves to accomplish that goal, but it has to be done incrementally because there aren’t enough teachers or classroom space to do this overnight.

We need to increase the state’s investment in the Early Childhood Block Grant so that Illinois can serve at least 12,500 more children every year, while investing in training the teachers we’ll need to expand access even further. This would enable the state to enroll every low-income child within four years and put Illinois on path towards serving 100,000 more children in eight years.

Illinois is currently in the middle of a five-year preschool expansion plan initiated under Governor Pat Quinn and supported by a federal grant from the Obama Administration. Despite state efforts, Illinois is currently ranked 21st in the nation in preschool access for 4-year-olds. Even though he claims to support early learning programs, Bruce Rauner vetoed the state’s FY18 budget allocating $443.7 million for the Early Childhood Block Grant.

3\. Increase access to the Child Care Assistance Program
Increase access to the Child Care Assistance Program by raising income eligibility to 200 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL) and creating an exit ramp at 300 percent of the FPL, which will allow working parents to increase their wages without losing assistance. This will help more than 10,000 children receive the quality care they deserve.

Increasing income eligibility for the Child Care Assistance Program to 200 percent of the federal poverty level would allow a family of three to qualify for assistance with an annual salary of about $40,000. Today, Child Care Assistance Program eligibility is capped at 185 percent of the federal poverty limit, which would leave a family of three outside of the system if they earn more than roughly $38,000. We would also create an exit ramp that allows those who qualify for it to continue receiving assistance as their wages increase up to 300 percent of the FPL which is roughly $61,000 annual earnings for a family of three.

Increasing access to the Child Care Assistance Program is critical to a two-generation approach to supporting children and their parents. Under my plan, working parents can avoid having their assistance abruptly taken away when they get better paying jobs or get a raise. Working parents who receive child care assistance are more likely to maintain stable employment, earn more money, and reduce their debt. When families don’t have access to affordable, high-quality child care, they are more likely to place their children in inferior settings. This can contribute to the 30-million-word gap that already exists between higher-income families who can afford high-quality child care and those from lower-income families who cannot.

Unfortunately, more than 30,000 children lost access to high-quality child care over the last few years because of Bruce Rauner’s assault on working families. On July 1, 2015, Rauner made Illinois’ Child Care Assistance Program the least accessible program in the nation when he lowered income eligibility to 50 percent of the federal poverty limit, or no more than $10,045 a year for a family of three. This change in policy denied child care assistance to 90 percent of the working families who typically apply for the program. Under pressure from the public and the legislature, Rauner increased income eligibility up to 162 of the federal poverty limit in November 2017 and promised to elevate it back up to 185 percent of the federal poverty limit when a full budget was authorized – a promise Rauner failed to fulfill until October 2017 – 84 days after lawmakers voted to override his veto of the fiscal year 2018 budget.

4\. Expand birth-to-three services and create a new "Family Engagement Portal"
Expand birth-to-three services and create a new ‘Family Engagement Portal’ that will provide every new and expecting parent with comprehensive information about child development.

Evidence-based home visiting programs have shown positive long-term impacts on children through increased school readiness, reduced child maltreatment, and reduced lifetime arrests and convictions. Evidence-based home-visiting programs also show positive impacts for families, such as increased parental income and increased percentages of parents who live together.

Illinois currently has several birth-to-three home-visiting programs administered by the Department of Human Services and the State Board of Education. As governor, I will work to expand the reach of those programs and create a new ‘Family Engagement Portal.’ This new, parent-centered mobile and online portal will provide parents and caregivers with information about publicly available local child development resources for children and families. We’ll also strive to reach all new and expecting parents through health care providers and urge them to sign-up to receive mobile messaging about maternal and child health, positive parenting practices, and early learning programs. Focusing on assisting parents will help build stronger families and enhance the learning environment for young children.

Bruce Rauner’s 736-day budget crisis has debilitated families’ access to birth-to-three home-visiting programs, which did not receive a full-year appropriation in FY16 or FY17. Instability surrounding the state budget and late payments from the state resulted in a 30 percent decline in home-visiting funding. Bruce Rauner even proposed restricting access to the Early Intervention Program, which helps infants and toddlers overcome developmental delays. Thankfully, parents, medical professionals, and advocates fought back against this proposal and succeeded in protecting critical services for young children.

5\. Invest in adding more teachers and classrooms
For Illinois to grow its globally competitive workforce, we need a world-class education system. Bruce Rauner is failing to prepare the next generation of Illinois workers for the jobs of tomorrow. Only 35 percent of 4th graders are reading at proficiency, just 38 percent of high school graduates are college-ready, and only 50 percent of adults have a post-secondary degree or credential. We can do better.

Early childhood education is a critically important part of a successful education system that strengthens families and communities. Research clearly shows that investments in high-quality early learning opportunities, starting at birth and through age five, increases children’s school readiness, raises high school graduation rates, boosts labor participation, and improves health outcomes. It also saves money by reducing expenditures later in life on remedial programs, job training, and incarceration. In fact, it’s fiscally responsible to invest in early learning.

Inspired by experts like Barbara Bowman and Irving Harris, for almost two decades, I’ve been at the forefront of local and national efforts to increase access to high-quality early learning opportunities. As a national activist, I provided Congressional testimony, spoke at the National Governors Association and numerous other organizations, and I supported the creation of the First Five Years Fund, a national advocacy organization advancing high-quality early childhood education. In 2014, I helped lead President Obama’s White House Summit on Early Childhood Education. This is a priority for me and as governor, I will make Illinois a national leader in early childhood education.

Conclusion
Instead of setting an agenda for children that will lead to better educational outcomes, Bruce Rauner has provided no vision or leadership for our state’s youngest children and their families. Instead, his 736-day budget impasse and current school funding crisis has created a cloud of instability that looms over our state. Rauner has failed to establish a plan to strengthen the state’s birth-to-five early learning system and its youngest learners.

Our children deserve better. As governor, I will work to provide a strong early educational environment for every Illinois child starting at birth and will assist parents and caregivers in their desire to strengthen families.

Think Big: A Plan for Illinois Jobs
Illinois is the fifth largest economy in the U.S. and we are powered by hardworking families in every corner of our state. Illinoisans are creative, passionate, and determined. From Carbondale to Chicago, I know we are ready to take advantage of the incredible potential and opportunity in our state, tackle the challenges we face, and grow the economy statewide.

I’m running to be a governor who represents our entire state and my plans for our economy reflect that. There are unique assets and needs in Central and Southern Illinois that must be a part of any plan to create jobs in our state. My plan will invest in infrastructure so we can make Illinois a place where people want to do business again. It will provide capital and support for small businesses, the number one job creators in our state. It will lift up our community colleges and public universities as engines of economic growth and incubators for start-ups and new businesses. All while supporting longstanding pillars of Illinois’ economy like agriculture and manufacturing.

The challenges across our state are real, the needs are large, but I’m ready to create jobs in Illinois again. Here’s my plan:

Infrastructure for Our Future
Why It Matters
Illinois’ role as a transportation hub for the nation is a critical component of our economy. Nearly one-third of all freight traffic in the country either originates, ends, or passes through Illinois. Quality infrastructure attracts new businesses to our state, keeps existing businesses here, and allows all of our businesses — from family farmers to manufacturers — to thrive. Investing in infrastructure is an immediate jobs plan that will employ people on construction projects statewide. In the long term, building and maintaining a world-class infrastructure yields substantial dividends for Illinois as a commercial hub.

Rauner's Record
Under Bruce Rauner’s watch, Illinois’ infrastructure has crumbled. From our highways to our railroads and waterways, the recent lack of investment has forced maintenance to pile up. One in every three miles of roads and one in every ten bridges will be in unacceptable condition by next year. Illinois has the fourth highest funding need in the country for drinking water infrastructure improvements and nearly 40% of rural Illinois households are still not connected to high speed internet. The needs are great, and this governor’s inaction is crippling.

My Plan
As governor, I will prioritize a comprehensive 21st Century Capital Bill to build the infrastructure we need to restore Illinois’ place as an economic leader. My plan will leverage as much federal money as possible to bring significant investment to our surface, rail, water, broadband and community infrastructure. It is time to imagine what Illinois can be in the 21st century and get this done.

Create jobs statewide by employing Illinoisans on new construction projects. I will ensure these are good-paying jobs by supporting Project Labor Agreements and prevailing wage. Support our farmers and manufacturers and attract new businesses by creating the transportation and logistics network they need to thrive. Upgrading our roads, rail, and water will be critical to getting goods to market and allowing manufacturers to expand.

Build up our high-speed broadband infrastructure to ensure statewide access for businesses and entrepreneurs. Small businesses need high-speed broadband to succeed, and we need to make access throughout the entire state a priority.

Ensure safe drinking water by updating our lead service lines and water infrastructure.

New Business Creation
Why It Matters
Small businesses and start-ups are the backbone of our economy and the primary job creators in this state. They employ approximately 2.4 million people in Illinois and comprise almost 46% of the private workforce. Small businesses hire locally, reinvest profits in their neighborhoods, and provide a foundation for communities to grow and thrive. Success stories like Southern Illinois University’s Small Business Incubator and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Research Park prove regional incubators can yield state-of-the-art innovation.

Rauner's Record
Bruce Rauner has decimated the network of Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) across the state. SBDCs used to be considered best in class in Illinois, providing critical training and guidance to small business owners. But under Bruce Rauner, one quarter of SBDCs have been forced to close due to lack of funding. As a result, from 2015 to 2016 the number of jobs created and retained by SBDCs was slashed by nearly half.

My Plan
As governor, I will prioritize revitalizing small business growth throughout the state. My plan revolves around key priorities including: expanding access to capital, rebuilding SBDCs, and guaranteeing truth in lending for small business borrowers. These policies will create an environment where potential entrepreneurs can thrive knowing they have support from the state.

Expand availability of microloans to increase access to capital for small businesses. I will help chartered community banks and certified Community Development Financial Institutions deploy more capital and tie state assistance to benchmarks in order to ensure effectiveness.

Restore and expand Small Business Development Centers to help small businesses navigate regulatory requirements and connect with lenders. Business owners need mentorship, training, and support to succeed and SBDCs are critical in making that happen.

Introduce a Truth in Lending Act to protect small business owners from online and alternative lending products that are detrimental to their fiscal health.

Invest in Higher Education
Why It Matters
Illinois’ universities and community colleges educate the workforce of tomorrow. They are also economic engines that power our state. The University of Illinois system alone provides $14 billion in economic activity. Illinois State University is the second largest employer in McLean County. For every state dollar invested in Southern Illinois University, it generates over eight times as much economic activity for the local economy. Illinois is also home to more than 800 start-up companies launched in university-based settings.

Rauner's Record
Bruce Rauner’s 736-day budget crisis starved Illinois’ public colleges and universities of funding, forcing faculty and students to flee the state. Students lost access to financial aid, staff was laid off, and programs were shut down. Bruce Rauner’s damage to higher education in Illinois is done as communities and families continue to pay the price.

My Plan
As governor, I will put education front and center in the work to create jobs in Illinois. I know investments in our state universities and community colleges will grow our economy statewide. They are critical sites of innovation, research, and training that must be lifted up to create economic prosperity in Illinois.

Empower community colleges as hubs of economic growth, workforce training, and innovation. The National Sequestration Education Center at Richland Community College in Decatur offers associate degrees and training in carbon sequestration technology. This is the type of innovative education that grows and develops our economy. Richland Community College and community colleges across our state need a partner in the governor’s office who will pursue federal dollars, create public-private partnerships, and pursue private investments in technology and innovation.

Support university-based start-ups by reinstating matching funds and modest seed grants to help start-ups better leverage federal money. I will also bring together university and business leaders to promote private capital investment in growth stage companies. University incubators and the start-ups they create are a critical resource for economic growth and deserve support from the state.

Expand youth apprenticeship programs by promoting partnerships between high schools and trades unions and encouraging companies to establish multi-year commitments for apprenticeship programs. We should also leverage federal dollars as new federal apprenticeship funding opportunities become available.

Promote environmentally responsible energy development by investing in renewable energy cooperatives, promoting the widespread development of wind and solar power, and supporting the Advanced Coal and Energy Research Center at SIU Carbondale and other innovative research efforts.

Nurture our Agricultural Economy
Why It Matters
Illinois is an agriculture leader, ranked seventh nationally in agriculture sales in the most recent agricultural census. Illinois is a national leader in soybean and corn production, and our net farm income has increased over time despite a decrease in the number of farms. Of Illinois’ almost 75,000 farms, around 95% are family owned and operated. Agriculture accounts for one in 17 jobs in Illinois.

Rauner's Record
Bruce Rauner has proposed cutting more than 300 agricultural education programs that serve almost 30,000 students. His failure to address the maintenance needs of our roads, bridges, and waterways has made it harder for our farmers to compete.

My Plan
As governor, I will support farmers across Illinois. I will make sure that upgrades to our state’s infrastructure take into account farm to market transportation, and I will work to implement policies that help our agriculture communities thrive.

Improve farm to market infrastructure by upgrading rural roads, nearly half of which are rated in poor, mediocre, or fair condition. Upgrading the locks and dams on the Mississippi and Illinois rivers by using federal dollars will also support the $54 billion in agricultural products that flow through the Mississippi River watershed to get to market.

Expand access to capital for family farmers so they can invest in new technology that keeps their businesses competitive.

Defend agricultural education to ensure that these programs remain a vibrant part of our vocational education programs and that Illinois has well-trained future farmers.

Support agricultural research at our universities and colleges to find value-added ways to expand the use and marketability of our state’s natural resources, like soybeans and corn.

Jumpstart Manufacturing
Why It Matters
Illinois’ manufacturers account for more than 13 percent of the state’s output. Between 2009 and 2013, manufacturing exports in Illinois grew by almost 60 percent — faster than the national average. Yet, Illinois’ manufacturing sector has not recovered to anything close to employment levels before the Great Recession.

Rauner's Record
Since Bruce Rauner took office, Illinois has lost almost 10,000 manufacturing jobs. His failed leadership and manufactured budget crisis meant that the state could not compete to attract manufacturing businesses nor could it support existing manufacturers trying to expand their businesses.

My Plan
As governor, I will ensure that we pass balanced budgets and bring stability back to state government so that manufacturers will want to invest in Illinois again. Upgrading our state’s infrastructure and supporting policies that enable research and innovation will allow Illinois to continue growing its manufacturing businesses.

Support Illinois’ growing manufacturing export industry through infrastructure upgrades to the roads, rails, bridges, and waterways that transport these goods. Nurture advanced manufacturing by extending quality, high-speed internet access to rural communities across the state.

Support manufacturers in securing access to capital and create training opportunities to meet their unique needs. Manufacturing employs 10 percent of the state’s workforce and deserves continued support.

Foster the growth of manufacturing incubators like mHUB across the state and allow local manufacturers, academic researchers, and entrepreneurs to innovate, create jobs, and meet workforce demands.[140]

|  ”

|
|

—JB for Governor[141]

###  Bruce Rauner[edit]

Rauner's campaign website stated the following:

“  |

Illinois is worth fighting for
Our state has been held back for decades by the same politicians that have only made government work for themselves, not for the people. We're working to enact reforms that shake up the broken status quo and return power to the people of Illinois.

The people of our state deserve a government that works for them instead of the politically-connected. With bipartisan reforms, we’ll grow good jobs, deliver value for taxpayers, give every child access to world-class schools, and enact term limits to get rid of career politicians. We’ll make Illinois a state where families and businesses thrive once again. Let’s get to work – because Illinois is worth fighting for.

Standing Up for Taxpayers
Hardworking Illinois taxpayers have been burdened for too long by career politicians who would rather spend your money than do the people's work. Mike Madigan's permanent 32 percent income tax hike hurts families and businesses. I've proposed a plan to roll back Madigan's tax hike and give Illinois families a $1 billion tax cut, keeping more money in your pocket and giving a boost to the state's economy.

For decades, special interests and political insiders controlled Illinois for their benefit and left taxpayers holding the bill. I want to make sure that taxpayers come first, and that state government delivers value for your hard-earned tax dollars. That’s why I was proud to veto Mike Madigan’s permanent 32 percent income tax hike and to have proposed a plan to roll it back with a $1 billion tax cut. And it’s why I’m fighting for lasting property tax relief by freezing property taxes and giving local communities more flexibility to control their costs and lower taxes. We’ve also saved taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars by rooting out fraud, cutting wasteful spending in state operating costs, and negotiating innovative government contracts.

Criminal Justice Reform
Fixing a broken system takes time and consistent effort, which is why my administration is committed to creating lasting reform to address the systemic issues in our criminal justice system.

For too long, an ineffective and counterproductive criminal justice system plagued our state, tearing families apart and hurting communities of color. That’s why I worked to bring Republicans, Democrats, and law enforcement together to begin to fix it.

Unlike past Governors, my priority is on rehabilitation, not dangerous early release programs. In just the past two years, I’ve signed over two-dozen bipartisan criminal justice reform bills. We’re increasing access to job training and opportunities, giving offenders the tools to lead productive lives after they’ve served their time. We’re making the criminal justice system fairer because everyone, no matter their background, deserves to be treated equally before the law.

21st Century Jobs
Entrenched politicians have put a stranglehold on the Illinois economy. I am working to energize our state's economy, bringing in businesses and creating good-paying jobs.

Illinois’ central location, fertile agriculture lands, and world-class communities, combined with the best, hardest-working people in America means our state should be thriving. We have everything going for us except decades of crony politics and bad policy has held us back. I am working hard to make Illinois more competitive and to help create more good-paying jobs. That means working to lower the cost of doing business by reforming Illinois’ expensive workers compensation system, reining in out-of-control lawsuit abuse, and freezing property taxes. It also means modernizing Illinois’ economic development efforts so they move at the speed of business.

Even though the career politicians and special interests are trying to block these reforms, we’ve worked to bring thousands of new, good-paying jobs to Illinois.

We brought nearly 8,000 Amazon jobs to Joliet, Monee and Romeoville. We brought Rivian Automotive to Normal, where 1,500 jobs will be created. We brought Flex-N-Gate and hundreds of quality jobs to Chicago’s South Side. And with the Future Energy Jobs Act, we are now leading the Midwest in clean energy jobs and will continue to create thousands of new green energy jobs throughout the state in addition to saving thousands of jobs across Illinois.

Cleaning Up Government
Illinois' career politicians have forgotten the reason they were sent to Springfield: to represent the people of our state. We must enact real reforms to give power back to the people of Illinois - where it belongs.

Illinois’ political system is broken, and it’s going to take real reforms to fix it. Our state is controlled by a political machine and special interests who will do anything to protect the status quo. I’m working to clean up Springfield by getting rid of illegal patronage hires and implementing ethics reforms to stop the revolving door between lobbyists and government. Illinois voters deserve to choose their elected officials, not the other way around. That’s why I’m fighting for term limits and fair maps to make elections more competitive and ensure politicians are genuinely accountable to voters.

Improving Education
Every student in Illinois deserves an education that prepares them for success in college, their careers, and life. We need higher standards, effective funding, and more choice and control for parents and communities.

We’ve fully funded education for the first time in years, increasing K-12 education funding by $1.2 billion, and we brought early childhood education funding to historic levels. And this year, we signed a historic education reform law that provides tax credits for scholarship programs which gives educational choice to low-income families, provides more funding for school districts most in need, brings parity in funding for charter schools, and removes onerous state mandates to give local communities more control.[140]

|  ”

|
|

—Citizens for Rauner[142]

## Social media[edit]

### Twitter accounts[edit]

Tweets by J.B. Pritzker Tweets by Bruce Rauner

### Facebook accounts[edit]

J.B. Pritzker
Bruce Rauner

## Pivot Counties[edit]

See also: Pivot Counties by state

Eleven of 102 Illinois counties—10.8 percent—are Pivot Counties. These are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008

County  |  Trump margin of victory in 2016  |  Obama margin of victory in 2012  |  Obama margin of victory in 2008
Alexander County, Illinois | 8.30% | 13.65% | 12.62%
Carroll County, Illinois | 26.69% | 1.49% | 4.81%
Fulton County, Illinois | 14.93% | 11.04% | 21.33%
Henderson County, Illinois | 28.43% | 12.25% | 17.67%
Henry County, Illinois | 20.99% | 3.08% | 7.74%
Jo Daviess County, Illinois | 14.64% | 1.16% | 10.49%
Knox County, Illinois | 2.91% | 17.37% | 19.89%
Mercer County, Illinois | 20.36% | 7.39% | 11.91%
Putnam County, Illinois | 19.92% | 1.82% | 15.64%
Warren County, Illinois | 16.50% | 5.47% | 8.08%
Whiteside County, Illinois | 6.18% | 17.02% | 17.56%

In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton (D) won Illinois with 55.8 percent of the vote. Donald Trump (R) received 38.8 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Illinois voted Republican 50 percent of the time and Democratic 50 percent of the time. Illinois voted Democratic in all five elections from 2000 to 2016.

#### Presidential results by legislative district[edit]

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Illinois. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[143][144]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 75 out of 118 state House districts in Illinois with an average margin of victory of 39.2 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 76 out of 118 state House districts in Illinois with an average margin of victory of 42.1 points. Clinton won 13 districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections.

In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 43 out of 118 state House districts in Illinois with an average margin of victory of 15 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 42 out of 118 state House districts in Illinois with an average margin of victory of 22.1 points. Trump won four districts controlled by Democrats heading into the 2018 elections.

2016 presidential results by state House district

District |  Obama |  Romney |  2012 Margin |  Clinton |  Trump |  2016 Margin |  Party Control
1 | 83.62% | 15.21% | D+68.4 | 82.32% | 14.37% | D+68 | D
2 | 82.39% | 15.42% | D+67 | 80.05% | 14.65% | D+65.4 | D
3 | 79.93% | 18.51% | D+61.4 | 79.31% | 17.11% | D+62.2 | D
4 | 85.70% | 11.51% | D+74.2 | 86.74% | 8.01% | D+78.7 | D
5 | 85.51% | 13.50% | D+72 | 86.81% | 9.67% | D+77.1 | D
6 | 87.98% | 11.09% | D+76.9 | 85.82% | 10.82% | D+75 | D
7 | 80.06% | 18.99% | D+61.1 | 80.62% | 15.84% | D+64.8 | D
8 | 86.10% | 13.03% | D+73.1 | 85.11% | 11.52% | D+73.6 | D
9 | 87.33% | 11.58% | D+75.8 | 87.72% | 8.52% | D+79.2 | D
10 | 89.16% | 9.51% | D+79.7 | 89.44% | 6.93% | D+82.5 | D
11 | 70.89% | 26.65% | D+44.2 | 80.64% | 13.16% | D+67.5 | D
12 | 72.73% | 24.96% | D+47.8 | 81.23% | 13.31% | D+67.9 | D
13 | 83.32% | 14.08% | D+69.2 | 85.26% | 10.09% | D+75.2 | D
14 | 86.60% | 10.95% | D+75.7 | 86.67% | 8.59% | D+78.1 | D
15 | 61.08% | 37.44% | D+23.6 | 63.15% | 32.35% | D+30.8 | D
16 | 67.28% | 31.33% | D+36 | 70.19% | 26.06% | D+44.1 | D
17 | 61.83% | 36.93% | D+24.9 | 69.97% | 25.22% | D+44.8 | D
18 | 66.52% | 31.94% | D+34.6 | 76.28% | 18.12% | D+58.2 | D
19 | 63.32% | 34.68% | D+28.6 | 60.22% | 34.98% | D+25.2 | D
20 | 52.74% | 45.64% | D+7.1 | 51.65% | 43.61% | D+8 | R
21 | 74.33% | 24.11% | D+50.2 | 74.36% | 21.32% | D+53 | D
22 | 71.92% | 26.75% | D+45.2 | 72.11% | 24.01% | D+48.1 | D
23 | 68.15% | 30.25% | D+37.9 | 68.21% | 27.01% | D+41.2 | D
24 | 76.56% | 21.82% | D+54.7 | 78.51% | 17.01% | D+61.5 | D
25 | 93.09% | 5.86% | D+87.2 | 91.45% | 5.66% | D+85.8 | D
26 | 85.59% | 13.65% | D+71.9 | 86.53% | 10.16% | D+76.4 | D
27 | 81.90% | 17.46% | D+64.4 | 79.07% | 18.14% | D+60.9 | D
28 | 79.41% | 19.90% | D+59.5 | 75.46% | 21.59% | D+53.9 | D
29 | 83.65% | 15.75% | D+67.9 | 81.69% | 15.87% | D+65.8 | D
30 | 82.89% | 16.29% | D+66.6 | 79.99% | 16.71% | D+63.3 | D
31 | 82.49% | 16.80% | D+65.7 | 77.74% | 19.39% | D+58.4 | D
32 | 87.17% | 12.26% | D+74.9 | 82.32% | 15.18% | D+67.1 | D
33 | 87.38% | 12.10% | D+75.3 | 85.39% | 12.24% | D+73.2 | D
34 | 80.42% | 18.91% | D+61.5 | 76.17% | 21.23% | D+54.9 | D
35 | 56.71% | 41.96% | D+14.8 | 53.87% | 41.66% | D+12.2 | D
36 | 56.82% | 41.83% | D+15 | 56.15% | 39.16% | D+17 | D
37 | 39.72% | 58.89% | R+19.2 | 39.49% | 55.32% | R+15.8 | R
38 | 78.87% | 20.34% | D+58.5 | 76.44% | 20.51% | D+55.9 | D
39 | 82.46% | 14.81% | D+67.7 | 82.71% | 12.52% | D+70.2 | D
40 | 81.75% | 15.46% | D+66.3 | 82.84% | 11.67% | D+71.2 | D
41 | 47.44% | 51.05% | R+3.6 | 55.32% | 38.20% | D+17.1 | R
42 | 45.06% | 53.21% | R+8.2 | 51.28% | 41.48% | D+9.8 | R
43 | 65.55% | 32.50% | D+33.1 | 65.81% | 28.61% | D+37.2 | D
44 | 62.30% | 36.05% | D+26.3 | 62.48% | 32.17% | D+30.3 | D
45 | 48.18% | 50.30% | R+2.1 | 48.39% | 46.46% | D+1.9 | R
46 | 58.46% | 39.71% | D+18.8 | 59.07% | 35.26% | D+23.8 | D
47 | 43.33% | 55.30% | R+12 | 51.72% | 41.63% | D+10.1 | R
48 | 49.08% | 49.10% | R+0 | 55.13% | 37.66% | D+17.5 | R
49 | 47.84% | 50.47% | R+2.6 | 52.14% | 40.94% | D+11.2 | R
50 | 42.69% | 55.72% | R+13 | 44.59% | 48.88% | R+4.3 | R
51 | 42.13% | 56.55% | R+14.4 | 50.03% | 43.68% | D+6.3 | R
52 | 44.02% | 54.27% | R+10.3 | 45.31% | 48.09% | R+2.8 | R
53 | 49.78% | 48.75% | D+1 | 55.58% | 38.54% | D+17 | R
54 | 47.53% | 50.89% | R+3.4 | 53.16% | 40.31% | D+12.9 | R
55 | 55.26% | 43.04% | D+12.2 | 57.50% | 37.06% | D+20.4 | D
56 | 55.72% | 42.70% | D+13 | 56.72% | 37.77% | D+19 | D
57 | 57.78% | 40.95% | D+16.8 | 61.54% | 33.50% | D+28 | D
58 | 56.67% | 42.28% | D+14.4 | 67.90% | 27.15% | D+40.8 | D
59 | 59.17% | 39.44% | D+19.7 | 64.53% | 30.30% | D+34.2 | D
60 | 75.70% | 23.34% | D+52.4 | 75.53% | 20.08% | D+55.5 | D
61 | 50.84% | 47.70% | D+3.1 | 51.76% | 42.09% | D+9.7 | R
62 | 54.69% | 43.51% | D+11.2 | 55.13% | 38.21% | D+16.9 | D
63 | 45.16% | 52.83% | R+7.7 | 40.55% | 52.68% | R+12.1 | R
64 | 44.10% | 54.17% | R+10.1 | 41.29% | 52.51% | R+11.2 | R
65 | 43.52% | 55.10% | R+11.6 | 46.78% | 47.37% | R+0.6 | R
66 | 46.19% | 52.24% | R+6.1 | 46.91% | 46.96% | R+0.1 | R
67 | 70.11% | 28.12% | D+42 | 64.34% | 30.36% | D+34 | D
68 | 48.13% | 50.10% | R+2 | 44.36% | 49.75% | R+5.4 | R
69 | 43.41% | 54.91% | R+11.5 | 38.97% | 55.13% | R+16.2 | R
70 | 49.12% | 48.75% | D+0.4 | 46.09% | 46.77% | R+0.7 | R
71 | 56.68% | 41.68% | D+15 | 43.93% | 50.00% | R+6.1 | R
72 | 62.60% | 35.95% | D+26.7 | 53.78% | 40.19% | D+13.6 | D
73 | 37.57% | 60.78% | R+23.2 | 34.45% | 59.10% | R+24.7 | R
74 | 50.34% | 47.90% | D+2.4 | 37.36% | 56.41% | R+19.1 | R
75 | 43.44% | 54.51% | R+11.1 | 36.58% | 57.17% | R+20.6 | R
76 | 52.08% | 46.00% | D+6.1 | 42.52% | 51.68% | R+9.2 | R
77 | 64.97% | 33.66% | D+31.3 | 64.89% | 30.98% | D+33.9 | D
78 | 80.57% | 18.10% | D+62.5 | 80.12% | 15.92% | D+64.2 | D
79 | 48.61% | 49.64% | R+1 | 41.25% | 53.07% | R+11.8 | R
80 | 66.23% | 32.75% | D+33.5 | 64.99% | 31.42% | D+33.6 | D
81 | 49.98% | 48.31% | D+1.7 | 54.80% | 38.55% | D+16.3 | R
82 | 41.03% | 57.68% | R+16.7 | 43.86% | 50.67% | R+6.8 | R
83 | 69.12% | 29.20% | D+39.9 | 69.54% | 24.80% | D+44.7 | D
84 | 59.63% | 38.93% | D+20.7 | 63.03% | 31.19% | D+31.8 | D
85 | 63.64% | 34.81% | D+28.8 | 60.90% | 33.45% | D+27.5 | D
86 | 65.21% | 33.17% | D+32 | 61.15% | 34.04% | D+27.1 | D
87 | 36.99% | 60.88% | R+23.9 | 30.62% | 63.34% | R+32.7 | R
88 | 40.02% | 57.84% | R+17.8 | 38.41% | 54.54% | R+16.1 | R
89 | 45.79% | 52.18% | R+6.4 | 35.99% | 57.98% | R+22 | R
90 | 42.91% | 55.12% | R+12.2 | 36.05% | 57.26% | R+21.2 | R
91 | 50.46% | 47.13% | D+3.3 | 37.74% | 55.81% | R+18.1 | R
92 | 63.44% | 34.67% | D+28.8 | 59.86% | 34.18% | D+25.7 | D
93 | 49.27% | 48.45% | D+0.8 | 36.82% | 57.40% | R+20.6 | R
94 | 37.54% | 60.67% | R+23.1 | 26.64% | 68.63% | R+42 | R
95 | 42.49% | 54.95% | R+12.5 | 28.84% | 65.74% | R+36.9 | R
96 | 58.74% | 39.47% | D+19.3 | 50.73% | 44.13% | D+6.6 | D
97 | 46.85% | 51.64% | R+4.8 | 47.31% | 46.94% | D+0.4 | R
98 | 59.53% | 39.10% | D+20.4 | 58.02% | 36.87% | D+21.2 | D
99 | 41.40% | 56.65% | R+15.3 | 41.34% | 52.43% | R+11.1 | R
100 | 37.26% | 60.42% | R+23.2 | 25.75% | 69.57% | R+43.8 | R
101 | 33.91% | 64.22% | R+30.3 | 28.70% | 65.31% | R+36.6 | R
102 | 33.32% | 64.74% | R+31.4 | 26.87% | 67.69% | R+40.8 | R
103 | 67.85% | 28.35% | D+39.5 | 71.56% | 20.92% | D+50.6 | D
104 | 46.02% | 52.10% | R+6.1 | 42.48% | 52.16% | R+9.7 | R
105 | 41.33% | 56.81% | R+15.5 | 45.19% | 47.11% | R+1.9 | R
106 | 29.26% | 68.84% | R+39.6 | 22.90% | 71.51% | R+48.6 | R
107 | 34.01% | 64.10% | R+30.1 | 22.81% | 72.62% | R+49.8 | R
108 | 34.28% | 63.51% | R+29.2 | 26.75% | 67.49% | R+40.7 | R
109 | 27.23% | 70.75% | R+43.5 | 17.21% | 79.13% | R+61.9 | R
110 | 37.75% | 60.20% | R+22.5 | 27.66% | 67.10% | R+39.4 | R
111 | 51.31% | 46.13% | D+5.2 | 39.05% | 55.40% | R+16.4 | D
112 | 48.97% | 48.87% | D+0.1 | 44.35% | 49.85% | R+5.5 | D
113 | 58.59% | 39.41% | D+19.2 | 53.73% | 41.03% | D+12.7 | D
114 | 63.89% | 34.84% | D+29.1 | 57.60% | 38.35% | D+19.3 | D
115 | 43.13% | 53.93% | R+10.8 | 33.20% | 61.29% | R+28.1 | R
116 | 41.16% | 56.77% | R+15.6 | 29.39% | 66.21% | R+36.8 | D
117 | 37.92% | 59.99% | R+22.1 | 26.42% | 69.38% | R+43 | R
118 | 39.86% | 58.03% | R+18.2 | 28.44% | 67.59% | R+39.2 | D
Total | 57.61% | 40.74% | D+16.9 | 55.96% | 38.85% | D+17.1 | \-
Source: Daily Kos

## Election history[edit]

# 2014[edit]

See also: Illinois Gubernatorial election, 2014

In the 2014 gubernatorial election, incumbent Pat Quinn (D) was defeated by Bruce Rauner (R).

Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Illinois, 2014

Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes
| Republican  | Bruce Rauner/Evelyn Sanguinetti | 50.3% | 1,823,627
| Democratic  |  Pat Quinn/Paul Vallas Incumbent | 46.3% | 1,681,343
| Libertarian  |  Chad Grimm/Alex Cummings | 3.4% | 121,534
| Nonpartisan  |  Write-in votes  | 0% | 1,186
Total Votes | 3,627,690
Election results via Illinois State Board of Elections

# 2010[edit]

See also: Illinois gubernatorial election, 2010

In the 2010 gubernatorial election, incumbent Pat Quinn (D) defeated Bill Brady (R).

Governor and Lt. Governor of Illinois, 2010

Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes
| Democratic  | Pat Quinn & Sheila Simon Incumbent | 46.8% | 1,745,219
| Republican  |  Bill Brady & Jason Plummer  | 45.9% | 1,713,385
| Independent  |  Scott Lee Cohen & Baxter Swilley  | 3.6% | 135,705
| Green  |  Rich Whitney & Don Crawford  | 2.7% | 100,756
| Libertarian  |  Lex Green & Ed Ruthledge  | 0.9% | 34,681
| None  |  Write-in  | 0% | 243
Total Votes | 3,729,989

## Wave election analysis[edit]

See also: Wave elections (1918-2016)

The term wave election is frequently used to describe an election cycle in which one party makes significant electoral gains. How many seats would Republicans have had to lose for the 2018 midterm election to be considered a wave election?

Ballotpedia examined the results of the 50 election cycles that occurred between 1918 and 2016—spanning from President Woodrow Wilson's (D) second midterm in 1918 to Donald Trump's (R) first presidential election in 2016. We define wave elections as the 20 percent of elections in that period resulting in the greatest seat swings against the president's party.

Applying this definition to gubernatorial elections, we found that Republicans needed to lose seven seats for 2018 to qualify as a wave election.

The chart below shows the number of seats the president's party lost in the 11 gubernatorial waves from 1918 to 2016. Click here to read the full report.

Gubernatorial wave elections

Year | President | Party | Election type | Gubernatorial seats change | Elections analyzed[145]
1970 | Nixon | R | First midterm | -12 | 35
1922 | Harding | R | First midterm | -11 | 33
1932 | Hoover | R | Presidential | -10 | 35
1920 | Wilson | D | Presidential | -10 | 36
1994 | Clinton | D | First midterm | -10 | 36
1930 | Hoover | R | First midterm | -9 | 33
1938 | Roosevelt | D | Second midterm | -9 | 33
1966 | Johnson | D | First midterm[146] | -9 | 35
1954 | Eisenhower | R | First midterm | -8 | 33
1982 | Reagan | R | First midterm | -7 | 36
2010 | Obama | D | First midterm | -7 | 33

## State overview[edit]

### Partisan control[edit]

This section details the partisan control of federal and state positions in Illinois heading into the 2018 elections.

#### Congressional delegation[edit]

* Following the 2016 elections, Democrats held both U.S. Senate seats in Illinois.
* Democrats held 11 of 18 U.S. House seats in Illinois.

#### State executives[edit]

* As of May 2018, Democrats held four of 7 state executive positions, Republicans held two, and the remaining position was officially nonpartisan.
* The governor of Illinois was Republican Bruce Rauner. The state held elections for governor and lieutenant governor on November 6, 2018.

#### State legislature[edit]

* Democrats controlled both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly. They had a 67-51 majority in the state House and a 37-22 majority in the state Senate.

#### Trifecta status[edit]

* Illinois was under divided government, meaning that the two parties shared control of the state government. Bruce Rauner (R) served as governor, while Democrats controlled the state legislature.

### 2018 elections[edit]

See also: Illinois elections, 2018

Illinois held elections for the following positions in 2018:

* 18 U.S. House seats
* Governor and lieutenant governor
* Four lower state executive positions
* 39 of 59 state Senate seats
* 118 state House seats
* Municipal elections in Cook County

### Demographics[edit]

Demographic data for Illinois

| Illinois| U.S.
Total population:| 12,839,047| 316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):| 55,519| 3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:| 72.3%| 73.6%
Black/African American:| 14.3%| 12.6%
Asian:| 5%| 5.1%
Native American:| 0.2%| 0.8%
Pacific Islander:| 0%| 0.2%
Two or more:| 2.2%| 3%
Hispanic/Latino:| 16.5%| 17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:| 87.9%| 86.7%
College graduation rate:| 32.3%| 29.8%
Income
Median household income:| $57,574| $53,889
Persons below poverty level:| 16.8%| 11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Illinois.

* * *

**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

As of July 2016, Illinois' three largest cities were Chicago (pop. est. 2.7 million), Aurora (pop. est. 200,000), and Joliet (pop. est. 150,000).[147][148]

## State election history[edit]

This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Illinois from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Illinois State Board of Elections.

### Historical elections[edit]

#### Presidential elections, 2000-2016[edit]

This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Illinois every year from 2000 to 2016.

Election results (President of the United States), Illinois 2000-2016

Year  |  First-place candidate  |  First-place candidate votes (%)  |  Second-place candidate  |  Second-place candidate votes (%)  |  Margin of victory (%)
2016 |  Hillary Clinton | 55.8% |  Donald Trump | 38.8% | 17.0%
2012 |  Barack Obama | 57.6% |  Mitt Romney | 40.7% | 16.9%
2008 |  Barack Obama | 61.9% |  John McCain | 36.8% | 25.1%
2004 |  John Kerry | 54.8% |  George W. Bush | 44.5% | 10.3%
2000 |  Al Gore | 54.6% |  George W. Bush | 42.6% | 12.0%

#### U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016[edit]

This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Illinois from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.

Election results (U.S. Senator), Illinois 2000-2016

Year  |  First-place candidate  |  First-place candidate votes (%)  |  Second-place candidate  |  Second-place candidate votes (%)  |  Margin of victory (%)
2016 |  Tammy Duckworth | 54.9% |  Mark Kirk | 39.8% | 15.1%
2014 |  Dick Durbin | 53.5% |  Jim Oberweis | 42.7% | 10.8%
2010 |  Mark Kirk | 48.0% |  Alexander Giannoulias | 46.4% | 1.6%
2008 |  Dick Durbin | 67.8% |  Steve Sauerberg | 28.5% | 39.3%
2004 |  Barack Obama | 70.0% |  Alan Keyes | 27.0% | 43.0%
2002 |  Dick Durbin | 60.3% |  Jim Durkin | 38.0% | 22.3%

#### Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016[edit]

This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Illinois.

Election results (Governor), Illinois 2000-2016

Year  |  First-place candidate  |  First-place candidate votes (%)  |  Second-place candidate  |  Second-place candidate votes (%)  |  Margin of victory (%)
2014 |  Bruce Rauner | 50.3% |  Pat Quinn | 46.3% | 4.0%
2010 |  Pat Quinn | 46.8% |  Bill Brady | 45.9% | 0.9%
2006 |  Rod Blagojevich | 49.8% |  Judy Baar Topinka | 39.3% | 10.5%
2002 |  Rod Blagojevich | 52.2% |  Jim Ryan | 45.1% | 7.1%

#### Congressional delegation, 2000-2016[edit]

This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Illinois in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.

Congressional delegation, Illinois 2000-2016

Year  |  Republicans  |  Republicans (%)  |  Democrats  |  Democrats (%)  |  Balance of power
2016 |  7 | 38.9% |  11 | 61.1% | D+4
2014 |  8 | 44.4% |  10 | 55.6% | D+2
2012 |  6 | 33.3% |  12 | 66.7% | D+6
2010 |  11 | 57.9% |  8 | 42.1% | R+3
2008 |  7 | 36.8% |  12 | 63.2% | D+5
2006 |  9 | 47.4% |  10 | 52.6% | D+1
2004 |  9 | 47.4% |  10 | 52.6% | D+1
2002 |  10 | 52.6% |  9 | 47.4% | R+1
2000 |  10 | 50.0% |  10 | 50.0% | Even

#### Trifectas, 1992-2017[edit]

A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.

Illinois Party Control: 1992-2021
Fifteen years of Democratic trifectas • Two years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year  |  92  |  93  |  94  |  95  |  96  |  97  |  98  |  99  |  00  |  01  |  02  |  03  |  04  |  05  |  06  |  07  |  08  |  09  |  10  |  11  |  12  |  13  |  14  |  15  |  16  |  17  |  18  |  19  |  20  |  21

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Governor |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  R |  R |  R |  R |  D |  D |  D
Senate |  D |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  R |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D
House |  D |  D |  D |  R |  R |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D |  D

## Recent news[edit]

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Illinois governor election 2018. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Illinois gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018 - Google News

## See also[edit]

Illinois government:

* Illinois state executive offices
* Illinois State Legislature
* Illinois courts

Elections:

* Illinois state executive official elections, 2018
* Gubernatorial elections, 2018
* Lieutenant gubernatorial elections, 2018
* Attorney General elections, 2018
* Secretary of State elections, 2018
* State executive official elections, 2018, 2017, 2016

Ballotpedia exclusives:

* State executives compensation
* State of the state addresses
* Trifecta control of state government

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## External links[edit]

|  Suggest a link

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* Governor of Illinois official website

## Footnotes[edit]

1. ↑ Illinois State Board of Elections, "Contributions Search - By Candidates," accessed August 27, 2018
2. ↑ CBS Chicago, "Primary Sets Up Expensive Showdown Between Billionaires Rauner And Pritzker," March 21, 2018
3. ↑ JB for Governor, "Home," accessed September 16, 2018
4. ↑ JB for Governor, "Meet JB," accessed September 16, 2018
5. ↑ JB for Governor, "JB’s Plan to Resist Trump," accessed September 16, 2018
6. ↑ Herald & Review, "Gov. Bruce Rauner: 'We have to change the system slowly. It takes time.'" September 14, 2018
7. ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Outside Spending," accessed September 22, 2015
8. ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Total Outside Spending by Election Cycle, All Groups," accessed September 22, 2015
9. ↑ National Review.com, "Why the Media Hate Super PACs," November 6, 2015
10. ↑ WGN 9, "Super PAC tied to Trump’s Illinois Campaign Finance Chair Jumps into Race for Governor," July 2, 2018
11. ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
12. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
13. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
14. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
15. ↑ Chicago Sun-Times, "ENDORSEMENT: J.B. Pritzker for governor, to get Illinois moving again," October 12, 2018
16. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "Re-elect Gov. Bruce Rauner to give Illinois a fighting chance," October 5, 2018
17. ↑ Crain's Chicago Business, "J.B. Pritzker for governor," October 5, 2018
18. ↑ The News-Gazette, "For governor: Bruce Rauner," October 3, 2018
19. ↑ Rockford Register Star, "Our View: J.B. Pritzker is best choice for Illinois governor," November 3, 2018
20. ↑ Crain's Chicago Business, "Past divisions forgotten, Obama endorses J.B. Pritzker," August 20, 2018
21. ↑ Chicago Sun-Times, "Business groups put weight behind Rauner," September 19, 2018
22. ↑ Central Illinois Proud, "FOP endorses Pritzker for Illinois governor," June 29, 2018
23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Crain's Chicago Business, "J.B. Pritzker collects senators' support," December 8, 2017
24. ↑ Kennedy for Illinois, "SUN-TIMES: KENNEDY LANDS ENDORSEMENT FROM DANNY K. DAVIS," November 21, 2017
25. ↑ Illinois Capitol Fax, "Quigley endorses Pritzker," October 30, 2017
26. ↑ Week.com, "Bustos endorses JB Pritzker for governor," October 9, 2017
27. ↑ Belleville News-Democrat, "Former congressman Jerry Costello makes endorsement in Democratic gubernatorial race," October 4, 2017
28. ↑ WSIL 3, "EXCLUSIVE: Former Illinois congressman Glenn Poshard endorses J.B. Pritzker for governor," September 21, 2017
29. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "CONGRESSWOMAN ROBIN KELLY ENDORSES DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR," August 17, 2017
30. ↑ NBC Chicago, "Congressman Bobby Rush Endorses Chris Kennedy for Illinois Governor," June 19, 2017
31. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "ADLAI STEVENSON III ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," January 18, 2018
32. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "LES LEOPOLD ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," January 6, 2018
33. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "LAWRENCE LESSIG ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," November 28, 2017
34. ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 JB for Governor, "Legislative leaders unite behind JB Pritzker," March 16, 2018
35. ↑ Biss Wallace for Illinois, "Who's on Team Biss?" accessed March 17, 2018
36. ↑ NBC Chicago, "J.B. Pritzker Lands High-Profile Endorsement From Sen. Toi Hutchinson," February 18, 2018
37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 37.2 37.3 37.4 37.5 Kennedy for Illinois, "#StandwithKennedy," accessed March 17, 2018
38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 38.2 38.3 38.4 38.5 Belleville News-Democrat, "Democratic metro-east legislators announce their choice for governor," December 18, 2017
39. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "WILL DAVIS ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," December 15, 2017
40. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "STATE SENATOR BILL CUNNINGHAM ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," December 8, 2017
41. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "STATE REP. THERESA MAH ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," December 5, 2017
42. ↑ GoPride, "Rep. Harris endorses Pritzker for governor," December 2, 2017
43. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "STATE SENATOR LAURA MURPHY ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," November 17, 2017
44. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "CAROL AMMONS IS JOINING OUR FIGHT," November 15, 2017
45. ↑ The News-Gazette, "UPDATE: Ammons, Frerichs endorse different gubernatorial candidates," November 15, 2017
46. ↑ Illinois Channel, "JB Pritzker is Endorsed by Sen Andy Manar for Governor," November 10, 2017
47. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "SENATOR JOHN MULROE ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," November 10, 2017
48. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "SENATOR DON HARMON ENDORSES DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR," November 3, 2017
49. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "ANN WILLIAMS ENDORSES DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR," October 23, 2017
50. ↑ The State Journal-Register, "Pritzker picks up endorsement from Mendoza in governor’s race," September 27, 2017
51. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "STEVE STADELMAN ENDORSES DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR," September 19, 2017
52. ↑ Quad-City Times, "House endorses Pritzker," September 13, 2017
53. ↑ Twitter, "Donna Miller," August 26, 2017
54. ↑ Capitol Fax, "Sheila Simon endorses Biss," August 25, 2017
55. ↑ Chicago Sun-Times, "Pritzker nabs another endorsement: Secretary of State Jesse White," August 23, 2017
56. ↑ August 8, 2017, "SENATOR PAT MCGUIRE ENDORSES DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR," August 8, 2017
57. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "STATE SENATOR OMAR AQUINO ENDORSES DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR," July 21, 2017
58. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "STATE SENATOR DAVID KOEHLER ENDORSES DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR," July 6, 2017
59. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "STATE REPRESENTATIVE KELLY CASSIDY ENDORSES DANIEL," June 28, 2017
60. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "STATE REPRESENTATIVE WILL GUZZARDI ENDORSES DANIEL," June 16, 2017
61. ↑ Biss Wallace for Illinois, "Daniel Biss announces endorsement of Alderwoman Sue Sadlowski Garza," February 12, 2018
62. ↑ Facebook, "Debra Shore," accessed March 17, 2018
63. ↑ Chicago Sun-Times, "County Board President Toni Preckwinkle endorses J.B. Pritzker for governor," February 7, 2018
64. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "DICK SIMPSON ENDORSES DANIEL BISS, HOSTS FACEBOOK LIVE TO DISCUSS GOOD GOVERNMENT REFORMS," December 12, 2017
65. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "CHICAGO ALDERMAN SCOTT WAGUESPACK ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," November 29, 2017
66. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "CHICAGO ALDERMAN ROBERTO MALDONADO ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," November 20, 2017
67. ↑ 67.0 67.1 Illinois Capitol Fax, "Dem candidates announce endorsements," November 14, 2017
68. ↑ 68.0 68.1 Biss for Illinois, "CHICAGO ALDERMAN JOHN ARENA ENDORSES DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR," November 7, 2017
69. ↑ Kennedy for Illinois, "JESUS “CHUY” GARCIA ENDORSES KENNEDY FOR GOVERNOR," September 28, 2017
70. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "TARI RENNER ENDORSES DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR," July 26, 2017
71. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `maroonendorse`
72. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `qctendorse`
73. ↑ JB for Governor, "In the News: Shaw Media endorses JB Pritzker for governor," March 14, 2018
74. ↑ 74.0 74.1 74.2 Biss Wallace for Illinois, "Multiple Indivisible Chicago neighborhood groups endorse Daniel Biss," March 13, 2018
75. ↑ The Columbia Chronicle, "Gubernatorial endorsement: Daniel Biss is the governor Illinois needs," March 12, 2018
76. ↑ The Daily Northwestern, "Editorial: For governor, vote Biss. More importantly, just vote." March 9, 2018
77. ↑ St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Editorial: Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democrat J.B. Pritzker are our choices in the Illinois gubernatorial primary," March 8, 2018
78. ↑ Peoria Journal Star, "Endorsement: Kennedy for governor, Democrats," March 2, 2018
79. ↑ Chicago Sun-Times, "ENDORSEMENT: J.B. Pritzker and the future of Illinois," February 25, 2018
80. ↑ The News-Gazette, "For the Democrats: Chris Kennedy," February 25, 2018
81. ↑ The Pantagraph, "Pantagraph endorsement: Biss is best choice among Democrats," February 25, 2018
82. ↑ Facebook, "Berwyn United on February 22, 2018," accessed March 17, 2018
83. ↑ Chicago Sun-Times, "City Council veterans caucus endorses Pritzker, urges reforms," February 22, 2018
84. ↑ Capitol Fax, "National 'Our Revolution' endorses Biss," February 22, 2018
85. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "For the Democrats, Chris Kennedy," February 21, 2018
86. ↑ Biss Wallace for Illinois, "Sierra Club endorses Daniel Biss for Illinois governor," February 20, 2018
87. ↑ Daily Herald, "Endorsement: Kennedy for governor in Democratic primary," February 16, 2018
88. ↑ Common Dreams, "People’s Action and Reclaim Chicago Endorse Daniel Biss for Illinois Governor," February 15, 2018
89. ↑ Facebook, "Illini Democrats on February 8, 2018," accessed March 17, 2018
90. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "DANIEL BISS EARNS ENDORSEMENT OF NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SOCIAL WORKERS ILLINOIS," February 7, 2018
91. ↑ Crain's Chicago Business, "Gay rights group singles out Pritzker," February 6, 2018
92. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "DANIEL BISS RECEIVES THE ENDORSEMENT OF BLACKROOTS RESISTANCE," January 30, 2018
93. ↑ NBC Chicago, "Biss Lands Major Progressive Group's Endorsement," January 29, 2018
94. ↑ CBS Chicago, "Planned Parenthood Endorses Three For Governor," January 25, 2018
95. ↑ WVIK, "Daniel Biss Lands MoveOn.org Endorsement For Illinois Governor," January 25, 2018
96. ↑ 96.0 96.1 Daniel Biss for Governor, "NATIONAL NURSES UNITED AND RECLAIM CHICAGO ENDORSE DANIEL BISS FOR GOVERNOR OF ILLINOIS," January 22, 2018
97. ↑ Evanston Now, "DPOE Endorses Biss for Governor," January 22, 2018
98. ↑ The Daily Northwestern, "New Trier Democrats endorse Biss for governor," January 15, 2018
99. ↑ Capitol Fax, "Personal PAC endorses Pritzker," January 11, 2018
100. ↑ NBC Chicago, "Illinois Education Association Endorsing Pritzker for Governor," January 10, 2018
101. ↑ Capitol Fax, "IFT endorses Pritzker," December 9, 2017
102. ↑ Biss Wallace for Illinois, "Northside DFA overwhelmingly endorses Daniel Biss," November 9, 2017
103. ↑ Biss for Illinois, "THE INDO-AMERICAN DEMOCRATIC ORGANIZATION ENDORSES DANIEL BISS," November 6, 2017
104. ↑ Labor Tribune, "Pritzker adds Laborers’ endorsement, promotes jobs plan," September 25, 2017
105. ↑ Kennedy for Illinois, "ARAB DAILY NEWS: AMERICAN ARABS ENDORSE KENNEDY FOR GOVERNOR," September 15, 2017
106. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "Pritzker endorsed by Cook County Democrats," August 11, 2017
107. ↑ Facebook, "Champaign County Young Democrats on July 31, 2017," accessed March 17, 2018
108. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "Illinois labor group endorses Pritzker, cementing Democratic front-runner status," June 6, 2017
109. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "Morning Spin: Union that endorsed Democrat J.B. Pritzker gives Conservative Party candidate Sam McCann nearly $80K," accessed July 13, 2018
110. ↑ Belleville News-Democrat, "St. Clair County Democrats endorse Pritzker in governor’s race," May 9, 2017
111. ↑ Kennedy for Illinois, "KENNEDY RECEIVES ENDORSEMENT OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS DEMOCRATIC COUNTY CHAIRMEN’S ASSOCIATION," March 1, 2017
112. ↑ 112.0 112.1 112.2 Chicago Tribune, "Rauner recruits neighboring governors to rip Madigan on tax hike," October 24, 2017
113. ↑ 113.0 113.1 113.2 113.3 113.4 My Stateline, "Republican Legislators Including Rep. Tim Bivins Endorse Ives for Governor," January 24, 2018
114. ↑ 114.0 114.1 114.2 114.3 114.4 114.5 114.6 114.7 114.8 Bruce Rauner, "DuPage County Elected Leaders Endorse Governor Rauner," January 22, 2018
115. ↑ Ives for Illinois, "GOP Rep. McSweeney: 'The ‘fringe candidate’ is Bruce Rauner. He stands for nothing.'," December 11, 2017
116. ↑ Belleville News-Democrat, "McCarter endorses Republican for governor — and it’s not Rauner," November 17, 2017
117. ↑ WJBC, "Brady opponent backs Ives to oust Rauner," November 15, 2017
118. ↑ The News-Gazette, "Tom Kacich: Rauner primary threat 'awkward' for some," November 1, 2017
119. ↑ The News-Gazette, "Tom Kacich: Rauner primary threat 'awkward' for some," November 1, 2017
120. ↑ Northwest Herald, "State Rep. Allen Skillicorn announces support for Rep. Jeanne Ives over Rauner for governor," October 31, 2017
121. ↑ National Review, "Jeanne Ives for Governor," March 16, 2018
122. ↑ Chicago Sun-Times, "ENDORSEMENT: Bruce Rauner for governor in the Republican primary," February 20, 2018
123. ↑ Kankakee Daily Journal, "Who is Jeanne Ives?" February 17, 2018
124. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "For the Republicans, Bruce Rauner," February 16, 2018
125. ↑ Daily Herald, "Endorsement: Rauner for governor in Republican primary," February 16, 2018
126. ↑ Breitbart, "Pro-Life Susan B. Anthony List Endorses Illinois Conservative Governor Candidate Jeanne Ives," February 16, 2018
127. ↑ Daily Herald, "Palatine Township GOP endorses Rauner," February 13, 2018
128. ↑ Prairie State Wire, "FRC Action PAC endorses Ives for governor," February 12, 2018
129. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "Morning Spin: Rauner gets backing over Ives from Cook County Republicans," February 7, 2018
130. ↑ Daily Northwestern, "Local Republicans endorse Rauner for governor ahead of March primary," February 11, 2018
131. ↑ Taxpayers United of America, "Tax Accountability Endorses Jeanne Ives in Illinois’ GOP Gubernatorial Primary," January 16, 2018
132. ↑ Illinois Capitol Fax, "Chicago GOP follows its leader and endorses Ives," January 11, 2018
133. ↑ Lake County Gazette, "Fremont Township GOP backing Ives' governor bid," January 8, 2018
134. ↑ The Herald-News, "Wheatland Township Republicans endorse Jeanne Ives for governor," November 15, 2017
135. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "Former President Barack Obama in Chicago today for J.B. Pritzker, Kwame Raoul and other Democrats," November 4, 2018
136. ↑ ABC 7 Chicago, "Hillary Clinton campaigns for governor hopeful JB Pritzker," October 1, 2018
137. ↑ Chicago Tribune, "Rauner calls Pritzker attack ad about Trump immigration policy 'dishonest'," July 11, 2018
138. ↑ Politico, "Democrats meddle in Illinois GOP primary," March 15, 2018
139. ↑ WGN TV, "Pritzker, Rauner clash in final showdown during Quincy debate," October 11, 2018
140. ↑ 140.0 140.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
141. ↑ JB Pritzker for Governor, "Issues Archives," accessed September 13, 2018
142. ↑ Bruce Rauner for Governor, "Issues," accessed September 13, 2018
143. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
144. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
145. ↑ The number of gubernatorial seats up for election varies, with as many as 36 seats and as few as 12 seats being up in a single even-numbered year.
146. ↑ Lyndon Johnson's (D) first term began in November 1963 after the death of President John F. Kennedy (D), who was first elected in 1960. Before Johnson had his first midterm in 1966, he was re-elected president in 1964.
147. ↑ Illinois Demographics, "Illinois Cities by Population," accessed December 11, 2017
148. ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "Quickfacts Illinois," accessed December 11, 2017

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Governors

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Lieutenant Governors

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State of Illinois
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2018 state executive official elections

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State executive offices

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