CHICAGO (Azat TV) – Democratic Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton won election on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, to the U.S. Senate representing Illinois, defeating Republican opponent Don Tracy, as reported by PBS News. Stratton, 61, will succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, who has held the seat since 1996, and will serve alongside Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth.
The Associated Press declared Stratton the winner immediately after polls closed at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. With early returns showing a commanding lead, celebrations erupted at the Ramova Theatre where Stratton delivered her victory speech, emphasizing her progressive agenda and her commitment to representing all state residents.
A Historic Milestone in Federal Politics
Stratton’s victory marks multiple historic milestones at both the state and national levels. She becomes only the second Black woman to represent Illinois in the U.S. Senate, following former U.S. Senator Carol Moseley Braun, as noted by WBEZ. Furthermore, her election marks the first time in U.S. history that three Black women will serve simultaneously in the U.S. Senate, joining Democratic Senators Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland. Illinois also becomes the first state to have two women of color representing it concurrently in the upper chamber.
During her campaign, Stratton leaned into a fiercely progressive platform, advocating for affordable healthcare, reproductive freedom, voting rights, and workers’ rights while opposing federal immigration enforcement actions in urban centers like Chicago. Her campaign benefited from a contentious primary field and substantial backing from Governor JB Pritzker, whose administration she has shared as lieutenant governor since 2018.
Transition and Legislative Priorities
As she prepares to transition to Washington, D.C., Stratton steps into a legacy defined by decades of seasoned leadership under Durbin, who praised her and Duckworth as a formidable legislative team. Stratton’s legislative agenda includes pushing for a $25 federal minimum wage, expanding maternal healthcare access through initiatives modeled on her state-level Birth Equity work, and advancing restorative criminal justice programs.
Her Republican opponent, Don Tracy, ran on giving a voice to the state’s conservative electorate. Tracy, a Springfield attorney and former chairman of the Illinois Republican Party, acknowledged the state’s entrenched political leanings where Republicans have not won a statewide seat in 12 years. Meanwhile, Stratton enters federal office backed by a newly reshaped Illinois congressional delegation, ready to take her fiery message directly to Capitol Hill.