U.S. Senate · Illinois

Statewide, Illinois

General election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

✓ Fact-checked 2026-09-25: 20 claims re-checked against their sources

A second, independent research pass re-opened every cited source for this race and corrected or removed anything the source didn’t support.

On the ballot · 3 candidates

Where they stand — side by side

Only positions documented in a cited source are shown. Where an officeholder’s recorded votes speak to an issue, the votes set the position (marked “votes”). A dash means we found no clear public position — not that the candidate has none.

ISSUEJuliana Stratton
D
Don Tracy
R
Whitfield Harrington Jr.
American Center Party
Raise taxes on high earners or corporations—Opposes[1]—
Expand public health coverageSupports[1]——

The candidates, in full

Juliana Stratton

DLieutenant Governor of Illinois (since 2019)

Won the March 17, 2026 Democratic primary

Stratton is the Lieutenant Governor of Illinois, elected alongside Gov. J.B. Pritzker in 2018, and previously served one term in the Illinois House of Representatives (2017-2019). She is campaigning on her record in Illinois state government.[1]

Basic profile — the most important sourced facts we found.

Positions on the issues

  • SupportsExpand public health coverage

    Said she supports Medicare for All.[1]

In their words — priorities

  • "To me, Illinois is the blueprint. What Governor Pritzker and I have done here in Illinois is the blueprint that I want to take to Washington, D.C., and I want to fight for Illinoisans just like I've done for seven years."[1]
  • Released an economic plan that she said "includes pathways to lowering the cost of housing, healthcare, and everyday prices while building an economy for working people."[1]
  • "What I'm just seeing is that the old playbook in Washington, D.C., isn't working. People aren't... looking for people to just talk. They want to see real action, and that's exactly what we've done in our administration."[1]

Background

  • Earned a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1987 and a J.D. from DePaul University in 1992.[1]
  • Worked as a video producer for the city of Chicago, as an attorney, in various city of Chicago departments, and as an adjunct professor.[1]
  • Served in the Illinois House of Representatives, 2017-2019, before becoming Lieutenant Governor.[1]

Campaign money

Raised $5.9M · spent $4.8M · $1.1M cash on hand (through 2026-06-30) FEC filing ↗

Don Tracy

RAttorney, Brown, Hay & Stephens; former chair of the Illinois Republican Party

Won the March 17, 2026 Republican primary

Tracy is a Springfield attorney and former chair of the Illinois Republican Party running to represent, in his words, all 102 Illinois counties rather than just Chicago and Cook County.[1]

Basic profile — the most important sourced facts we found.

Positions on the issues

  • OpposesRaise taxes on high earners or corporations

    Says Illinois suffers under "the highest tax burden in the nation" and criticizes what he calls "tax-and-spend policies," opposing further tax increases.[1]

    “With the cost-of-living continuing to rise, life is simply unaffordable for working families — especially in Illinois, where we suffer under the highest tax burden in the nation and endure an economy that lags the rest of the Midwest because of tax-and-spend Democrats.”

In their words — priorities

  • "I'm Don Tracy, and I'm running for U.S. Senate because the American Dream is slipping away for too many working families here in our state... My top priority: lower costs so families can thrive again."[1]
  • Says he will be a voice for all 102 Illinois counties, not just Chicago.[1]
  • Says he wants to find solutions to lower the cost of living, citing utility, housing, gas, grocery, and health-care costs.[1]

Background

  • Born in Urbana, raised in Mt. Sterling, and raised his own family in Springfield, Illinois, in his own account.[1]
  • Worked in his family's business starting at age 10 and later ran a small business, by his own account.[1]
  • Attorney at Brown, Hay & Stephens; former chair of the Illinois Republican Party.[1]

Campaign money

Raised $2.5M · spent $947K · $1.5M cash on hand (through 2026-06-30) FEC filing ↗

Whitfield Harrington Jr.

American Center PartyPastor, Prayer City of Chicago Church

Harrington is a pastor and former banking/insurance professional running on the American Center Party line, describing his campaign as an independent, centrist alternative to the two major parties.[1]

Basic profile — the most important sourced facts we found.

In their words — priorities

  • "Renovate the American Dream" platform addresses cost of living through job creation, manufacturing, affordable homeownership pathways, lower health-care costs, and tax changes.[1]
  • Running as an independent "Move to the Middle" candidate, saying he wants to focus on "practical problem-solving, congressional and government reform, and consideration of policies based on their results rather than their party origin."[1]
  • Platform proposals include expanding Direct Primary Care, making the first year of community college free, supporting domestic manufacturing, and protecting farmers' right to repair equipment.[1]

Background

  • Born in Belzoni, Mississippi; earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Delta State University.[1]
  • Moved to Chicago in 2013 and serves as a pastor of Prayer City of Chicago Church.[1]
  • Career experience in banking, insurance, and financial services, including operating his own insurance practice.[1]

Campaign money

Raised $101K · spent $97K · $3,751 cash on hand (through 2026-06-30) FEC filing ↗

Research notes & limits

Candidate statements and biographical details are drawn from Ballotpedia's compiled profiles, including Candidate Connection survey submissions for Tracy and Harrington. Independent primary sources (campaign sites, news coverage) were not individually verified beyond Ballotpedia's citations due to the BASIC research budget.

Sources · 1

Researched 2026-09-25. Green citations are official government records.

  1. 1.United States Senate election in Illinois, 2026 · Ballotpedia · 2026-09-25 Reference