Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton is making a move for higher office. On Thursday, she announced her bid for the U.S. Senate, just one day after longtime Senator Dick Durbin—who has held the seat for nearly three decades—revealed he won’t seek reelection in 2026.
“I’m Juliana Stratton, and I’m running for United States Senate,” she declared in a two-minute video posted to social media.
I’m Juliana Stratton, and I’m running for United States Senate. pic.twitter.com/x93ZIml7WZ
— Juliana Stratton (@JulianaStratton) April 24, 2025
On Friday morning, she received a major endorsement from Illinois Governor JB Pritzker.
“At this perilous moment in Washington, Juliana’s fighting spirit and dedication to improving lives is exactly the type of representation Illinoisans need, and I’m proud to endorse her for the United States Senate,” Pritzker said in a statement provided through Stratton’s campaign, The Hill reports.
In her launch video, Stratton wasted no time outlining the stakes. She framed her candidacy as a direct response to former President Donald Trump and the GOP’s push for deep spending cuts and economic policies that she says are out of touch with everyday Americans.
“I’m running for Senate because the only way out of this mess is to bring new energy, new voices, and new leaders who understand the lives of working people,” Stratton said. “Join our campaign, and together, we can stop Trump and stand up for Illinois.”
Stratton didn’t mince words about the “chaos” she sees unfolding in Washington.
“Since Donald Trump took power, it’s been non-stop news, non-stop chaos, and non-stop crisis—and that’s not by accident,” she said. She also called out the former president and billionaire Elon Musk for working to “distract” the American public and “create such a mess that we don’t even know where to start.” In her view, “the old playbook isn’t working.”
Instead, she pointed to her record as lieutenant governor, highlighting her partnership with Pritzker as proof of what effective leadership can look like.
“While Trump and Republicans in D.C. have proposed cutting nearly a trillion dollars in health care in Illinois, we’ve wiped away medical debt. While their reckless tariffs make prices skyrocket, we’ve eliminated the grocery tax for families across Illinois,” she said.
Stratton also shared more about her personal journey—growing up on the South Side of Chicago as the daughter of a teacher and Navy veteran, raising four children, and caring for her mother after an Alzheimer’s diagnosis.
“My story isn’t that of a typical senator. Then again, typical isn’t what we need right now,” she said. “My journey to public service was inspired by serving as the primary caregiver for my mom when she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.”
She said her decision to enter politics was sparked by then-Gov. Bruce Rauner’s attempts to cut health care for seniors like her mom.
“So I decided to run for state representative, and I won,” Stratton said. “I brought the voices of working families with me.”
She also spotlighted key accomplishments during her time in office—from raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour and creating jobs through major infrastructure investments, to passing legislation on gun safety and abortion rights.
While Stratton had long been seen as a likely contender for Durbin’s seat, she’s now officially the first to jump into the race. Her candidacy is historic: if elected, she could join Senators Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland—and mark the first time three Black women serve in the Senate simultaneously.
TOPICS: black women in politics Illinois
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