Tom Lally, a Republican, is running for Illinois State Senate District 9 in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election. He faces Democrat Patrick Hanley.
Lally said he was approached by the Illinois District 9 Republican Organization to represent the party in spring 2026, according to his campaign website. He ran unopposed in the Republican primary on March 17, 2026, receiving 3,766 votes, according to Ballotpedia.
Lally said his overarching goal is to bring "Common Sense back to Illinois politics," make the state a safe and affordable place to live, and combat what he called cronyism, fraud and high taxes.
Candidate information
- Party: Republican
- Race: Illinois State Senate, District 9
- Election date: Nov. 3, 2026
- Hometown: Lally said he grew up in North Evanston and Wilmette. He attended elementary and high school in Wilmette and played sports in several North Shore communities, according to his campaign website.
- Family background: Lally said his grandfather opened West End Florist in 1908. He described it as a fourth-generation family-owned business. Lally said he delivered flowers throughout the North Shore at a young age.
Experience and public service
Lally described himself as retired, with a career centered on three areas: insurance, sales and national defense.
In insurance, Lally said he worked in systems design, telemarketing and direct mail at Allstate, CNA and the Ryan Insurance Group. In sales, he said he worked with clients and publishing firms. In national defense, Lally said he worked in compliance at Northrop Grumman Corporation.
On the issues
The following positions are based on Lally's responses on his campaign website.
Property taxes: Lally said he supports property tax exemptions based on income level and age, with assessment limits. He said these measures would provide relief to homeowners and help stem population flight from Illinois.
Taxes and government spending: Lally called for freezing taxes, reducing state spending and government waste, and assisting the private sector to bring business to Illinois and create jobs.
Education: Lally said he supports auditing teachers unions and implementing pension rules tied to student test scores. Under his proposal, increased scores would receive greater funding allocation and poor scores would result in less money. He also said he supports allowing parents to attend classes once per semester.
Public safety: Lally said he supports reinforcing local police to combat road rage, speeding and cut-through traffic to protect families. He called for increased consequences for young drivers and their parents.
Workforce development: Lally said he supports recreating public works programs to train young people in the trades.
Lally's positions are drawn from his campaign website responses. The Evanston Wire did not interview the candidate for this profile.
