First day of petition filing reveals crowded races in two congressional districts
As anticipated, Democratic voters in Illinois’ largely suburban 9th Congressional District will have plenty of options when they cast primary ballots next spring.
Fourteen 9th District hopefuls — 13 of them Democrats — turned in candidate petitions at the Illinois State Board of Elections office in Springfield on Monday, the first day of filing. The seat is open; Democratic U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Evanston isn’t seeking reelection to the 9th District seat she’s held since 1999.
While no other congressional race in the state came close to drawing that many candidates Monday, the race for Illinois’ 8th Congressional District seat will be a crowded affair, too. Seven Democrats and two Republicans submitted petitions Monday.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Schaumburg is giving up the 8th District post he’s held since 2017 to run for the U.S. Senate.
The deadline for submitting petitions is Nov. 3. Formal objections to those petitions, which can knock a candidate out of contention if upheld by the elections board, can be filed through Nov. 10.
9th District
These Democrats filed candidate petitions in the 9th District: Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss; state Sens. Laura Fine of Glenview and Mike Simmons of Chicago; Skokie resident Bushra Amiwala; Evanston residents Patricia A. Brown, Bethany Johnson, Jeff Cohen and Nick Pyati; Chicagoans Kat Abughazaleh, Bruce Leon, Justin Ford and Sam Polan; and Wilmette resident Phil Andrew.
All of them have been campaigning and fundraising. Abughazaleh has been on the trail since March, even before Schakowsky announced she wouldn’t run again. She led the pack in fundraising as of Sept. 30, with more than $1.5 million in receipts and about $1 million cash on hand after expenses, federal records show.
Biss has put up similar fundraising totals; Leon and Andrew both reported totals in the high six figures, but only after each made significant personal contributions to their campaign coffers.
Republican John Elleson of Arlington Heights also filed to run in the 9th on Monday. Elleson lost to Schakowsky in 2018, and he was removed from the 2022 GOP primary ballot for a shortage of legitimate signatures.
Elleson hadn’t previously publicized a 2026 congressional bid. Neither of the two Republicans who have been publicly campaigning, Chicago’s Mark Su and Island Lake’s Rocio Cleveland, filed Monday.
The 9th District includes parts of Cook, Lake and McHenry counties.
8th District
The Democratic candidates who filed petitions for the 8th District seat on Monday are: Junaid Ahmed and Ryan Vetticad of South Barrington; former U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean of Barrington; Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison of Mount Prospect; Neil Khot of Hoffman Estates; Hanover Park Trustee Yasmeen Bankole; and Carol Stream resident Dan Tully.
Republicans Mark Rice of Chicago and Jennifer Davis of the Huntley area also filed petitions. Rice lost to Krishnamoorthi in 2024.
The 8th District includes parts of Cook, DuPage and Kane counties.
Other districts
In the largely West suburban 3rd District, Democratic U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez of Chicago and Republican Angel Oakley of Wheaton filed petitions.
In the 5th District, Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley and Republican challenger Tommy Hanson, both of Chicago, filed. The district includes parts of Cook and Lake counties.
In the 6th District, Democratic U.S. Rep. Sean Casten of Downers Grove and three-time Republican candidate Niki Conforti of Glen Ellyn turned in petitions. The district includes parts of Cook and DuPage counties.
In the 10th District, Democratic U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider of Highland Park filed. The District includes parts of Cook, Lake and McHenry counties.
In the 11th District, Democratic U.S. Rep. Bill Foster of Naperville filed, as did Republicans Jeff Walter — Elburn’s mayor — and Naperville resident Michael Pierce. The 11th has parts of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Will, DeKalb and Boone counties.
In the 14th District, Democratic U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood of Naperville filed, as did Republicans Jim Marter of Oswego and Gary Vician of Naperville. The 14th District encompasses parts of Kane, Will, DeKalb, Kendall, LaSalle, Bureau and Putnam counties.