Policy / March 18, 2026
Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton was buoyed by millions spent by Gov. JB Pritzker, but she won a tough race on her own merit.
(Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg via Getty Images) Juliana Stratton, Lieutenant Governor of Illinois is set to become the third black woman to serve as senator next year (and only the sixth in history), winning a widely watched primary against two congressional opponents on Tuesday evening. For most media outlets, what stands out most is the role of billionaire Gov. JB Pritzker, who spent a lot of money on Stratton and campaigned for her across the state. Pritzker’s role is seen as another milestone on his road to the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028.
But it crowded out Stratton’s own achievement. More progressive than the governor, Stratton renewed his calls to “abolish ICE” in his victory speech. She also supports a $25 minimum wage and has said she will not vote for Chuck Schumer to be Senate leader when she visits Washington. Her profile rose as she fought alongside Pritzker during ICE’s “Operation Midway Blitz” last year. Pritzker’s focus also obscured what some call a victory for the black community, which saw two highly qualified black women – Stratton take on Rep. Robin Kelly in the primary, with some observers agonizing over the possibility of the two women splitting the black vote and clearing a path for centrist Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, backed by AI and crypto interests.
“Congratulations to Juliana Stratton on her victory. Tuesday reflects what is possible when Black women are supported to lead,” Glynda C. Carr, president and CEO of Higher Heights for America PAC, a group that fights for Black women in leadership, said in a statement Tuesday evening. “Seeing two dynamic Black women competing at this level is not a challenge, it is a sign of progress. It is a testament to the growth of a strong, capable and ready pipeline.”
Still, the race was at times bitter between Stratton and Kelly, with the Congressional Black Caucus firmly behind Kelly. Maryland Senator Angela Alsobrooks was the only black member of Congress to support Stratton, even though she had the support of Senators Tammy Duckworth, Elizabeth Warren and Tina Smith. Duckworth praised Stratton for her work on maternal health and child care, issues she said Krishnamoorthi never tried to get involved in. Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, who is expected to succeed Stratton as senator next year as the first indigenous female senator, hailed his victory. “Congratulations to my friend Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton on her big victory last night. Outside private interests funneled millions into Illinois, but in the end, people power won. Lt. Governor Stratton proves that when the many take the money, we win,” she wrote in a statement.
Krishnamoorthi raised between $30 million and $2.8 million from Stratton (she was backed by millions of dollars from Pritzker and allied PACs) and $5 million from Kelly. He was seen as the favorite, with early television advertisements and some polls raising his profile beyond his rivals. But he also spent money to strengthen Kelly and attack Stratton, in an effort to divide the black vote that was not well received. Fairshake, a cryptocurrency-backed group, slammed Stratton with about $10 million in ads, seen as revenge for Pritzker’s pledge to regulate crypto in Illinois. Meanwhile, the CBC criticized Pritzker for going all-in for Stratton. “Frankly, his behavior in this race will not soon be forgotten by any of us,” CBC President Yvette Clarke said in a statement, an apparent nod to his 2028 candidacy.
Nonetheless, as of Wednesday morning, the coverage of the campaign was all about Pritzker, and most of it was positive.
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“Stratton’s victory strengthens Pritzker’s influence,” read Political playbook morning title. Bloomberg went with “Stratton wins Illinois Senate primary in favor of Pritzker”.
“There is no campaign without [Pritzker]”, David Axelrod, a longtime Democratic activist and Obama ally, told the New York Times. “Juliana is in many ways a political creation of JB Pritzker.” It’s hard to imagine a more dismissive view of Stratton’s talent. She challenged a conservative Democrat for a seat in the House of Representatives in 2016 and won, with the support of Barack Obama. Pritzker chose her as his running mate in 2018.
At the end of the race, Stratton gained national attention with an ad featuring his supportersincluding Tammy Duckworth, declaring “Fuck Trump! Vote for Juliana.”
“They said it, I didn’t,” she says slyly to the camera. Predictably, the Republican National Committee fired back: “Juliana Stratton is a defund-the-police radical who would rather let criminals run wild than make Chicago safer.” » There’s no way to measure the impact of advertising, but since Krishnamoorthi spent so much more than she did, Stratton certainly got a lot of local and national earned media. As Democrats nationally debate whether to center Trump in their ads, Stratton made a clear choice — and voters rewarded her for it.
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Jeanne Walsh Joan Walsh, national affairs correspondent for The nationis co-producer of The sit-in: Harry Belafonte hosts the Tonight Show and the author of What’s wrong with white people? Finding our way in the next America. His new book (with Nick Hanauer and Donald Cohen) is Corporate Bullsh*t: Exposing the lies and half-truths that protect profit, power and wealth in America.