Raja Krishnamoorthi Enters Democratic Primary for U.S. Senate Seat in Illinois
Krishnamoorthi starts the contest with a $19 million war chest.
The Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Illinois is forming as expected. Today, U.S. Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi has officially entered the contest. His launch video can be found here. He becomes the third candidate to enter the Democratic primary after Senator Dick Durbin, a fellow Democrat, opted to retire after five terms in office.
The 2026 Senate cycle will see 35 contested races - 33 regular elections and 2 special elections. Republicans currently hold 22 of these seats while Democrats represent the remaining 13. So far, five incumbent Senators have announced their retirements. Meanwhile, Krishnamoorthi becomes the 12th retirement from the U.S. House of Representatives this cycle, the seventh Democrat to do so, and the tenth leaving to run for another office.
Krishnamoorthi, 51, has served Illinois’ 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives since January 2017. The district is based in Cook County, taking in the western outer suburbs of Chicago - including Elgin, Schaumburg and Des Plaines. It also takes in parts of DuPage and Kane Counties.
A graduate of Harvard Law School, Krishnamoorthi clerked for U.S. District Judge Joan B. Gottschall in the Northern District of Illinois. He then worked on Barack Obama’s unsuccessful 2000 campaign to the U.S. House of Representatives and his successful 2004 campaign for the U.S. Senate. That was followed by an appointment to the Illinois Housing Development Authority and service as a Special Assistant Attorney General where he formed the state’s anti-corruption unit under Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan. From 2007 to 2009, he was Deputy State Treasurer under Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias. And finally, he was Vice Chair of the Illinois Innovation Council and President of several high-tech small businesses in Chicago until his congressional career.
In 2010, Krishnamoorthi competed in the Democratic primary for Illinois State Comptroller. He lost 46.7-45.7 against David E. Miller - a margin of just 8,609 votes. In 2012, he sought the Democratic nomination to face Republican incumbent Joe Walsh in the 8th District. He lost 66.2-33.8 against Tammy Duckworth, who went on to flip the seat. In 2016, Duckworth successfully ran for the state’s other U.S. Senate seat. Krishnamoorthi once again entered the primary and prevailed 57.0-29.1-13.9 against State Senator Michael Noland and Villa Park Mayor Deb Bullwinkel. In the general election, he held the seat for Democrats 58.3-41.7 against Republican Peter DiCianni. He was served for five terms in this office.
Since February 2023, Krishnamoorthi has been the Ranking Member on the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party. During the 119th Congress, he also serves on the House Committees on Intelligence; and Oversight and Government Reform. Furthermore, he is the Ranking Member on the Oversight Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services. He becomes the third member leaving the Oversight panel - joining Republican Andy Biggs of Arizona and Democrat Gerry Connolly of Virginia. He’s also the second member departing the China panel - alongside fellow Democrat Haley Stevens of Michigan.
Speculation commenced on who would run to succeed Durbin in the Senate for months before he made his retirement announcement. The field largely consisted of four names: Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton and U.S. Representatives Robin Kelly, Krishnamoorthi and Lauren Underwood. Stratton and Kelly have already entered the Democratic primary. Underwood has not yet made her final decision. Stratton is running with the support of Duckworth and Governor J.B. Pritzker. However, Krishnamoorthi has stockpiled a $19 million war chest in his House campaign account - which he can immediately transfer to his Senate campaign. No major candidates have yet launched campaigns for the Republican nomination.
To date, only one name has been suggested for the Democratic primary to succeed Krishnamoorthi in the 8th District: State Senator Cristina Castro. While Democrats have held this seat since Duckworth flipped it, competitive primaries for both Democrats and Republicans could form here. No candidates for either party have officially filed yet. Ambitious Illinois Democrats have the chance to run for three open seats in the U.S. House in 2026 - as 9th District incumbent Jan Schakowsky is also retiring.
Under the current lines, Democrat Kamala Harris won Illinois’ 8th Congressional District with a 52.8-45.9 finish against Republican Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election. That came as Harris was carrying the state 54.4-43.5 in her ultimately unsuccessful national campaign. On the same ballot, Krishnamoorthi over-performed with a 57.1-42.9 victory against Republican Mark Rice for his final term in the U.S. House.