JB Pritzker’s Illinois Political Clout Faces Test

“Gov. JB Pritzker is expected to cruise to an easy victory in the March 17 Democratic primary in Illinois as he seeks a third term. The party’s U.S. Senate primary might give him heartburn,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“The billionaire and potential 2028 presidential candidate is backing his lieutenant governor to succeed Sen. Dick Durbin, who is set to retire, and she is struggling to outshine two main rivals. The winner of the primary in the deeply blue state is likely to be its next senator.”

“The election is a test of Pritzker’s clout in a state where he has leveraged his wealth to dominate the Democratic Party—donating tens of millions of dollars to candidates and committees—in a way that has some similarities to the control President Trump exerts on the Republican Party nationally. A loss for Juliana Stratton would be a potential embarrassment for him as he works to raise his national profile.”