Illinois’ statewide offices could end up Tuesday where they have been for decades — with a full slate of Democrats taking the reins.
The state hasn’t seen a Republican as secretary of state in nearly 30 years, as attorney general in more than 20 years or as comptroller for at least a decade.
A win by Alexi Giannoulias, however, would come with the complication that he’s also considered a front-runner for the fifth floor of City Hall. If he wins both races, it would allow fellow Tuesday night candidate Gov. JB Pritzker to appoint a secretary of state for the better part of a full term.
Giannoulias has focused on maintaining “momentum on modernization” on the campaign trail, while touting the introduction of online appointments for secretary of state office visits and the installation of DMV kiosks.
He faces Diane M. Harris, who unsuccessfully ran for State Senate as the Republican nominee in 2022 but landed the Republican nod for secretary of state by six points. Giannoulias and Harris split on age-based testing for drivers, as he rolled back testing requirements for elder drivers while she’s in favor of tests for all age groups.
On license plate readers, Harris said she would ensure the office followed state laws, while Giannoulias seeks to make his office’s audits of the technology more proactive. He also said he wants to establish pathways for accountability following searches of state data by federal immigration authorities searched state data and alleged abused by police.
His campaign has been propped up by millions of dollars in funds, being left with $21.85 million in cash on hand in the second quarter, with more pouring in as he announced his mayoral run. Harris raised more than $6,000 in the same span, nearly the same amount Giannoulias spent to hold a single fundraiser in April.
But no amount of money, nor his track record, allowed him to outrun the lingering question of his simultaneous run for mayor.
“The people deserve someone who’s committed to serving this state’s office,” Harris jabbed in a Sun-Times candidate questionnaire response.
Former two-term 2nd Ward Ald. Robert Fioretti has an uphill battle against incumbent Attorney General Kwame Raoul, who won both his elections to the seat by a more than 11-point margin.
Raoul has served an elevated role in his second term. He, along with other states’ attorneys general, has successfully won the release of millions of dollars in federal dollars the Trump administration has tried to retract over sanctuary city policies, including funding for disaster relief funding and transportation.
Other lawsuits from his office have restored medical research funding cut by the Trump administration and reversed a Trump administration attempt to cut federal funding from medical institutions providing gender affirming care to patients under 19.
Fioretti meanwhile hasn’t held office since his second term in City Council ended in 2015, and has since unsuccessfully ran twice for mayor and Cook County state’s attorney, as well as a failed run at Cook County board president.
Fioretti cites his courtroom experience with the City of Chicago corporation counsel office, as well as his time as an assistant Illinois attorney general and alderman, as his qualifications for the state’s highest legal office.
Incumbent Susana Mendoza decided to put her efforts solely behind the Chicago mayor’s race, leaving an uncontested Republican Bryan Drew up against Democratic State Rep. Margaret Croke for the state’s chief financial office.
Croke, who was backed by a contingent of Springfield Democrats, including Gov. JB Pritzker, landed nearly 35% of the vote in a four-way split, beating out more progressive candidates. She pointed to her statehouse ties as a positive for the office, and cited her time on the House Revenue and Finance Committee and as chair of the Financial Institutions Committee as strengths heading into the state’s head financial office.
She raised $1.8 million in the primary, but has taken criticism from Drew for accepting money from Pritzker and billionaire business executive Michael Sacks. Drew, a private attorney and cafe owner, ended the first quarter of fundraising with just more than $54,000.
Both candidates called for increased transparency in the office with suggestions for new data sharing systems that allow people to track where their tax dollars are spent.
In response to the recent investigation of a South Side funeral home for mishandling of human remains, Croke backed moving the regulation of funeral home licensing solely under the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
