State Rep. Nabeela Syed announces campaign for Illinois Senate
Democratic state Rep. Nabeela Syed of Inverness will run for the Illinois Senate in 2026, setting up a legislative contest that could be one of the hottest in the Northwest suburbs.
Syed likely will face off for the 26th Senate seat against Republican incumbent Darby Hills of Barrington Hills, who was appointed to the seat earlier this year. No other candidates have announced plans to run.
In her campaign announcement to the media, Syed said the district “deserves a leader who will fight to make a difference and has a proven track record of standing up for our community on critical issues like health care, education and strengthening our economy.
“People are tired of the partisan games,” Syed added. “They want someone who shows up, listens and delivers. That’s the record I’ve built in the House, and it’s exactly what I’ll bring to the Senate.”
While Hills hasn’t made a formal campaign announcement yet, she intends to keep the seat.
“Let’s be clear, I’m in,” Hills said through a campaign representative Thursday.
“Families in our community deserve leaders who put people before politics,” Hills added. “That means standing up to tax hikes and reckless spending so we can protect the future our kids deserve.”
A former political organizer, Syed defeated incumbent Republican Chris Bos of Lake Zurich to win the 51st state House seat in 2022. She was the first Muslim woman and the first South Asian woman elected to the General Assembly.
Two years later, Syed knocked off challenger Tosi Ufodike of Hawthorn Woods to win a second term.
“Now, I’m running for Illinois State Senate in the district I’ve called home my whole life to deliver the bold leadership our community deserves,” Syed said Thursday on X, the social media platform formerly called Twitter.
Because she’s running for the Senate, Syed must give up her House seat in January 2027.
The 26th District encompasses much of southern, central and western Lake County and smaller portions of Cook, Kane and McHenry counties. The seat long has been held by Republicans.
Hills, who also serves as a Barrington Hills trustee, was appointed to the Senate seat by Republican leaders after state Sen. Dan McConchie of Hawthorn Woods resigned to run a nonprofit organization.
The appointment process was a bit rocky.
Hills was first chosen for the state Senate seat from a field of four applicants in mid-February. But Algonquin Republican Brittany Colatorti sued to stop Hills’ appointment, claiming the meeting wasn’t properly advertised to the public. Colatorti also alleged Hills was ineligible to be appointed because she lacked qualifying GOP activity.
To settle the complaint, the nominating group reopened the application process and voted again in late February. No new applicants stepped up.
Since then, Hills has been a much more aggressive fundraiser than Syed.
Hills’ campaign committee started April with nearly $302,000 in the bank, and it nearly doubled that sum by raising more than $293,000 over the next three months — including $100,000 from North Barrington entrepreneur and philanthropist Vincent Foglia, Illinois State Board of Elections records show. After nearly $110,000 in expenditures, the campaign finished the quarter on June 30 with more than $485,000 in the bank.
Syed’s campaign started April with less than $76,000 and raised less than $6,000 in the quarter, records show. After spending about $4,100, Team Syed ended the quarter with less than $78,000 saved for the battle ahead.