Secretary of State of Illinois
Diane Harris
CandidateR
- Race
- Secretary of State of Illinois
- Election
- 2026-11-03
- Opponent
- Alexi Giannoulias (D)
- Research
- Basic
Party linenone
No recorded floor votes — not a current legislator in our records.
Said vs. did0 statements · 0 votes
Diane Harris is the Republican nominee for Illinois Secretary of State. A Joliet Junior College trustee who describes herself as an entrepreneur, she retired from ComEd and was the Republican nominee for the 43rd State Senate district in 2022.[1][2][3]
On the ballotSecretary of State
2026-11-03
| Alexi Giannoulias D | incumbent |
| Diane Harris R | challenger |
Won the March 17 Republican primary over Walter Adamczyk, 53.0% to 47.0%.
Biography
Diane Harris is the Republican nominee for Illinois Secretary of State. A Joliet Junior College trustee who describes herself as an entrepreneur, she retired from ComEd and was the Republican nominee for the 43rd State Senate district in 2022.[1][2][3]
Basic profile — the most important sourced facts we found.
Harris earned an associate degree from Joliet Junior College and a bachelor's degree from the University of Phoenix.[4] She retired from ComEd and, for several years, owned a clothing boutique in downtown Joliet.[3]
She ran for mayor of Joliet in 2011 and was elected to the Joliet Junior College board in 2023.[3] In 2022 she was the Republican nominee for the State Senate and lost.[2]
Harris won the Republican primary for secretary of state on March 17, 2026.[1][3] In a Sun-Times questionnaire she criticized her opponent for running for mayor of Chicago and secretary of state at the same time, saying that "the people deserve someone who's committed to serving this state's office."[2]
In their own words
Priorities
- Ensure the office follows state law on license plate readers.[5]
- Require driving tests for all age groups, differing from Giannoulias's rollback of testing for elderly drivers.[5]
- Criticized Giannoulias for seeking the mayoralty and the office at the same time: 'The people deserve someone who's committed to serving this state's office.'[5]
Campaign moneyNo FEC filing summary matched — state candidates file with their state, not the FEC.
Profile: /people/diane-harris
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Sources cited in this profile
- 1.Illinois Secretary of State election, 2026 · Ballotpedia · 2026-10-19 Reference
- 2.What to know about the Illinois secretary of state race between Alexi Giannoulias and Diane Harris · Chicago Sun-Times / WBEZ · 2026-10-01 News report
- 3.Joliet woman GOP candidate for Illinois secretary of state · The Herald-News (Shaw Local) · 2026-03-21 News report
- 4.Diane Harris · Ballotpedia Reference
- 5.What to know about the Illinois secretary of state race between Alexi Giannoulias and Diane Harris · Chicago Sun-Times / WBEZ · 2026-10-01 News report