Juliana Stratton Wins Illinois Senate Seat, Making History
Stratton, Illinois’ lieutenant governor, will succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, who has held the seat since 1996. Her victory marks the first time a trio of Black women will serve together in the U.S. Senate. She will join Democratic Sens. Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, neither of whom faced election this year.
Stratton’s campaign emphasized opposition to President Donald Trump. She has criticized his decision to deploy National Guard troops and federal immigration agents in Chicago. Her platform also includes support for Medicare for All, abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement and raising the federal minimum wage to $25 an hour.
A former mediator, Stratton was first elected to the Illinois House in 2016 and became lieutenant governor as Gov. JB Pritzker’s running mate in 2018. In that role, she helped lead state initiatives focused on racial disparities in maternal deaths, criminal justice and food security.
She prevailed in a crowded Democratic primary that included U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi and state Rep. Robin Kelly. Pritzker endorsed her and contributed $10 million to her primary campaign. Tracy, a lawyer and former Illinois Republican Party chairman, said his candidacy aimed to give the state’s millions of Republicans a voice.
Stratton’s win is part of a broader election-year change in the Senate’s membership. Other Democratic candidates could also make history if elected, including Native women in Minnesota and Alaska, and a Muslim candidate in Michigan.
Stratton’s Win Opens a New Chapter for Senate Representation
Juliana Stratton’s election is both a historic breakthrough and a victory for a candidate who campaigned against Donald Trump’s actions in Chicago. The Illinois lieutenant governor defeated Republican Don Tracy on November 3 and will succeed retiring Sen. Dick Durbin.
Her arrival means three Black women will serve in the Senate at the same time for the first time. Stratton joins Democratic Sens. Lisa Blunt Rochester and Angela Alsobrooks, expanding representation in a chamber where women have held only 27 of 100 seats.
Stratton has backed Medicare for All and proposed abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement and raising the federal minimum wage to $25 an hour. She has also criticized Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops and federal immigration agents in Chicago. Those positions put her in direct opposition to the president’s approach to immigration enforcement.
Her record as lieutenant governor included work on racial disparities in maternal mortality, criminal justice and food security. She won a competitive Democratic primary with Gov. JB Pritzker’s endorsement and a $10 million contribution to her campaign.
The result adds to a year of potential Senate firsts among Democratic candidates, including Native women in Minnesota and Alaska and a Muslim candidate in Michigan.
Stratton’s Senate Win Brings a Costly Progressive Agenda
Illinois voters have sent Juliana Stratton to the Senate with a platform that includes abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Medicare for All and a $25 hourly minimum wage. The lieutenant governor defeated Republican Don Tracy on November 3 and will replace retiring Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin.
Stratton also made history as the second Black woman to represent Illinois in the Senate. Her election ensures three Black women will serve in the chamber at once, alongside Democratic Sens. Lisa Blunt Rochester and Angela Alsobrooks.
Her campaign made opposition to President Donald Trump a central theme, including criticism of his decision to deploy National Guard troops and federal immigration agents in Chicago. That confrontational approach comes alongside an expansive federal agenda on health care, immigration enforcement and wages.
Gov. JB Pritzker endorsed Stratton and contributed $10 million to her primary campaign. She went on to defeat Tracy, a lawyer and former chair of the state Republican Party, in the general election. Tracy said he wanted to represent Illinois’ millions of Republicans.
The election adds to a year of changing Senate membership, with other Democratic candidates seeking historic firsts in Minnesota, Alaska and Michigan.
Reported by The 19th, Breitbart, PBS NewsHour, Chicago Sun-Times.
