Juliana Stratton, the lieutenant governor of Illinois, is running as a Democrat for U.S. Senate in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election. She is certified for the ballot, according to BallotReady.
Stratton won the Democratic primary on March 17, 2026, with 40.4% of the vote, or 507,689 votes, defeating U.S. Representatives Raja Krishnamoorthi and Robin Kelly, among others, as The 19th first reported. She faces Republican Don Tracy and American Center candidate Whitfield Harrington Jr. in the general election.
Candidate information
- Party: Democratic
- Office sought: U.S. Senate, Illinois
- Born: Sept. 8, 1965, in Chicago
- Raised: Pill Hill neighborhood, Chicago's South Side
- Education: Bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (1987); juris doctor, DePaul University (1992)
Stratton is the first African American woman to serve as lieutenant governor of Illinois.
Experience and public service
Stratton has served as lieutenant governor since 2019. Before that, she represented District 5 in the Illinois House of Representatives from 2017 to 2019.
She served as executive director of the Cook County Justice Advisory Council from 2011 to 2014. She directed the Center for Public Safety and Justice at the University of Illinois at Chicago from 2015 to 2017. She founded JDS Mediation Services in 1997.
On the issues
The following positions are drawn from Stratton's campaign website and public statements as compiled by BallotReady and other public sources. They reflect the candidate's own claims and framing.
Healthcare: Stratton says she supports securing Medicare for All.
Economy and wages: Stratton says she supports raising the federal minimum wage and fighting for a $25 minimum wage. She also says she supports investing in grant programs for small business owners. On taxes, she says she backs a middle-class tax cut paid for by a tax increase on those making more than a million dollars a year.
Education: Stratton says she supports expanding federal support for trade schools and technical education. She also says she supports restoring the Department of Education.
Abortion and gun safety: Stratton says she supports restoring the abortion protections established by Roe v. Wade and passing common-sense gun safety laws.
Senate rules: Stratton says she supports abolishing or significantly reforming the Senate filibuster, arguing the current 60-vote threshold blocks progress on reproductive rights, gun safety and voting rights. "Illinoisans need their next Senator to stand up and act," Stratton said in campaign statements.
Endorsements
Stratton's endorsements include Gov. JB Pritzker, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Carol Moseley-Braun, the AFL-CIO, the Illinois Federation of Teachers, Cook County Democrats, End Citizens United and Personal PAC, according to BallotReady and other public sources.
Candidate positions and issue responses are based on information compiled by BallotReady, the candidate's campaign website and public records. The Evanston Wire does not endorse candidates.
