Niki Conforti

According to her campaign website, Conforti is a lifelong resident of Chicago's western suburbs, a single mother and a member of a family of military veterans.[2] She grew up in a family-owned business and later owned her own staffing business.[1][2] She graduated from the University of Chicago School of Economics and earned an M.B.A. in healthcare administration from George Washington University.[1][2]

Conforti spent about 12 years on the administration side of large health systems, including as a director, and says she wrote corporate policy there.[2][5] She now works as an energy consultant; WTTW's voter guide lists that as her occupation since 2017.[1][2][8] According to her campaign website, she has been involved in philanthropic efforts through her church and with International Orthodox Christian Charities and Mothers2Mothers.[2]

Conforti first ran for this seat in 2022, finishing third in the June Republican primary with 11.4% of the vote; Keith Pekau won the nomination.[1] She won the March 2024 Republican primary and lost the November general election to Sean Casten, 54.2% to 45.8%.[1] On March 17, 2026, she won the Republican primary with 82.2% of the vote over Skylar Duensing, setting up a November rematch with Casten.[1][3] She received 37.2% of the vote to Sean Casten's 62.8%, according to unofficial results reported by NBC News.[4]