2022 Illinois gubernatorial election

For related races, see 2022 United States gubernatorial elections.

The 2022 Illinois gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 2022, to elect the governor of Illinois, concurrently with the 2022 Illinois general election. Gubernatorial candidates ran on tickets with candidates for lieutenant governor. The incumbent governor and lieutenant governor, first-term Democrats JB Pritzker and Juliana Stratton, sought re-election together against Republican nominees Illinois State Senator Darren Bailey and his running mate Stephanie Trussell.

2022 Illinois gubernatorial election

← 2018 November 8, 2022 2026 →
Turnout	50.96% 5.19 pp
Nominee JB Pritzker Darren Bailey Party Democratic Republican Running mate Juliana Stratton Stephanie Trussell Popular vote 2,253,748 1,739,095 Percentage 54.91% 42.37%
County results Congressional district results Township results Precinct results Pritzker:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Bailey:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Tie:      40–50%      50%      No votes
Governor before election JB Pritzker Democratic Elected Governor JB Pritzker Democratic

On election day, Pritzker won re-election with 54.9% of the vote, 0.4% higher than his 2018 performance, and the best raw vote percentage for a Democrat for governor since 1960. However, his margin of victory declined from 15.7% in 2018 to 12.5% in 2022. Pritzker's victory was once again the result of a strong performance in the Chicago metropolitan area—containing a majority of the state's population—winning a lopsided victory in strongly Democratic Cook County, the home of Chicago, as well as winning all but one of the neighboring collar counties. Bailey improved upon former Republican governor Bruce Rauner's performance in 2018 by just under 4%, largely due to the absence of a strong third-party conservative candidate that appeared in 2018. Subsequently, Bailey was able to flip the counties of Alexander, Fulton, Jackson, Knox, and Winnebago, which Pritzker had previously won, while Pritzker managed to flip McLean county, marking the first time since 1948 that it has voted for a Democrat in a gubernatorial election.

Pritzker was the first Illinois governor to serve a full term and be reelected for a second since Rod Blagojevich in 2006. If Pritzker serves the entirety of his term, he will become the first Democratic governor in the state's history to serve two full four-year terms, as every other Democratic governor had either been impeached, died or resigned before finishing their second term.

Background

The primaries and general elections coincided with those for federal congressional races, the state's U.S. Senate race, and those for other state offices. The election was part of the 2022 Illinois elections.

The primary election was held on June 28.^[1] The general election was held on November 8, 2022.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• JB Pritzker, incumbent governor^[2]
  • Running mate: Juliana Stratton, incumbent lieutenant governor^[2]

Eliminated in primary

• Beverly Miles, U.S. Army veteran, registered nurse and activist^[3]
  • Running mate: Karla Shaw^[4]

Endorsements

JB Pritzker

Organizations

• Equality Illinois^[5]

Newspapers

• Daily Herald^[6]

Labor unions

• Illinois AFL–CIO^[7]
• International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150^[8]

Results

Results by county

  Pritzker

•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   70–80%
•   80–90%
•   90–100%

Democratic primary results^[9][10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	JB Pritzker (incumbent) Juliana Stratton (incumbent)	810,989	91.88%
	Democratic	Beverly Miles Karla Shaw	71,704	8.12%
Total votes			882,693	100.0%

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Darren Bailey, state senator^[11]
  • Running mate: Stephanie Trussell, former radio talk show host^[12] from Lisle, Illinois

Eliminated in primary

• Richard Irvin, mayor of Aurora^[13]
  • Running mate: Avery Bourne, state representative^[13]
• Gary Rabine, businessman^[14]
  • Running mate: Aaron Del Mar, Palatine Township Republican Committeeman^[15]
• Paul Schimpf, former state senator and nominee for Attorney General in 2014^[16]
  • Running mate: Carolyn Schofield, McHenry County Board member^[17]
• Max Solomon, Attorney^[4]
  • Running Mate: Latasha Fields^[18]
• Jesse Sullivan, venture capitalist^[19][20][21]
  • Running mate: Kathleen Murphy, former director of communications for state representative Jeanne Ives^[22]

Removed from ballot

• Emily Johnson^[23]
• Keisha Smith^[24]

Declined

• Rodney Davis, U.S. representative for Illinois's 13th congressional district (ran for re-election)^[25]
• Kirk Dillard, chair of the Regional Transportation Authority, former state senator, and candidate for governor in 2010 and 2014^[26]
• Adam Kinzinger, U.S. representative for Illinois's 16th congressional district^{[27][28][29][30][31]}
• Todd Ricketts, finance chair of the Republican National Committee, member of the TD Ameritrade Board of Directors, and co-owner of the Chicago Cubs^[32]

Endorsements

Darren Bailey

U.S. Executive Branch officials

• Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States (2017–2021)^[33]

U.S. representatives

• Mary Miller, U.S. representative from Illinois's 15th congressional district (2021–present)^[34]

State legislators

• Jeanne Ives, former state representative (2013–2019), candidate for governor in 2018 and nominee for Illinois's 6th congressional district in 2020^[35]
• Chris Miller, state representative (2019–present)^[34]

Organizations

• Illinois Citizens for Life^[36]
• Illinois Family Action^[37]
• Illinois Federation for Right to Life^[36]

Richard Irvin

U.S. senators

• Mark Kirk, former U.S. senator from Illinois (2010–2017) and former U.S. representative from Illinois's 10th congressional district (2001–2010)^[38]
• Tim Scott, U.S. senator from South Carolina (2013–present) and former U.S. representative from South Carolina's 1st congressional district (2011–2013)^[38]

U.S. representatives

• John Shimkus, former U.S. representative from Illinois's 15th congressional district (2013–2021)^[38]

U.S. Attorneys

• Dan Webb, former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois (1981–1985), prosecutor in Operation Greylord^[6]

Statewide officeholders

• Leslie Munger, former Illinois Comptroller (2015–2016)^[38]
• Evelyn Sanguinetti, former lieutenant governor of Illinois (2015–2019)^[38]

State legislators

• Jim Durkin, Minority Leader of Illinois House of Representatives^[38]
• Jim Oberweis, former state senator, nominee for U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, and candidate for Illinois governor^[38]
• Mark Batinick, state representative^[38]
• Adam Brown, state representative^[38]
• Tim Butler, state representative^[38]
• Tim Ozinga, state representative^[38]
• Dan Ugaste, state representative^[38]

Local officials

• Bob Berlin, DuPage County State's Attorney^[38]
• Mike Downey, Kankakee County Sheriff ^[38]
• Patrick Kenneally, McHenry County State's Attorney ^[38]
• Sean Morrison, Cook County Commissioner and Chair of the Cook County Republican Party^[38]

Individuals

• Kenneth Griffin, entrepreneur and investor^[39]

Organizations

• Americans for Prosperity Action^[40]
• Fraternal Order of Police Chicago Lodge 7^[41]
• Illinois Trooper Lodge 41^[42]

Newspapers

• Daily Herald^[6]

Labor unions

• International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150^[8]

Gary Rabine

U.S. Executive Branch officials

• Michael Flynn, former U.S. National Security Advisor and former Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency^[43]

Local officials

• Mark Curran, former Lake County Sheriff and nominee for U.S. Senate in 2020^[44]
• Bill Prim, McHenry County Sheriff^[44]

Paul Schimpf

Newspapers

• Chicago Tribune^[45]

Jesse Sullivan

State legislators

• Chris Bos, state representative^[46]
• Michael Connelly, former state senator^[46]
• Norine Hammond, state representative^[46]
• Tony McCombie, state representative^[46]
• Ryan Spain, state representative^[46]

Organizations

• Lake County Republican Party^[47]
• Republicans of Wheeling Township^[48]

Polling

Graphical summary

Source of poll aggregation	Dates administered	Dates updated	Darren Bailey	Richard Irvin	Gary Rabine	Paul Schimpf	Max Solomon	Jesse Sullivan	Other [a]	Margin
Real Clear Politics[49]	June 6–13, 2022	June 15, 2022	35.0%	18.5%	7.0%	4.5%	1.5%	11.5%	22.0%	Bailey +16.5

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	Darren Bailey	Richard Irvin	Gary Rabine	Paul Schimpf	Max Solomon	Jesse Sullivan	Other	Undecided
Ogden & Fry (R)[50]	June 24, 2022	518 (LV)	± 4.4%	38%	13%	9%	3%	1%	17%	–	20%
Fabrizio Lee & Associates (R)[51][A]	June 20–22, 2022	500 (LV)	± 4.4%	37%	14%	7%	4%	<1%	17%	1%[c]	18%
Remington Research Group (R)[52][B]	June 14–15, 2022	889 (LV)	± 3.0%	27%	13%	8%	6%	3%	27%	–	26%
The Trafalgar Group (R)[53]	June 10–13, 2022	1,075 (LV)	± 2.9%	38%	20%	8%	5%	1%	12%	–	16%
Ogden & Fry (R)[54]	June 11–12, 2022	662 (LV)	± 3.9%	31%	17%	8%	3%	1%	11%	–	30%
Public Policy Polling (D)[55]	June 6–7, 2022	677 (LV)	± 3.8%	32%	17%	6%	4%	2%	11%	–	27%
Fabrizio Lee & Associates (R)[56][A]	June 1–2, 2022	600 (LV)	± 3.5%	27%	20%	12%	3%	–	13%	–	24%
1892 Polling (R)[57][C]	May 24–25, 2022	700 (LV)	± 3.7%	25%	31%	8%	2%	1%	11%	–	22%
Emerson College[58]	May 6–8, 2022	1,000 (LV)	± 3.0%	20%	24%	8%	2%	2%	7%	–	37%
Cor Strategies (R)[59]	April 29 – May 2, 2022	671 (LV)	± 3.8%	21%	33%	7%	2%	3%	10%	–	25%
Cor Strategies (R)[60][D]	April 18–21, 2022	536 (LV)	± 4.2%	13%	30%	4%	1%	2%	9%	2%[d]	38%
Cor Strategies (R)[60][D]	~February 11, 2022	– (LV)	–	23%	10%	6%	5%	1%	11%	–	44%
Ogden & Fry (R)[61]	October 3–4, 2021	404 (LV)	± 5.0%	33%	–	5%	3%	–	6%	3%	49%

Results

Results by county

  Bailey

•   40–50%
•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   70–80%
•   80–90%
•   90–100%

  Sullivan

•   50–60%

  Schimpf

•   40–50%

Republican primary results^[9][62]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Darren Bailey Stephanie Trussell	458,102	57.48%
	Republican	Jesse Sullivan Kathleen Murphy	125,094	15.70%
	Republican	Richard Irvin Avery Bourne	119,592	15.00%
	Republican	Gary Rabine Aaron Del Mar	52,194	6.55%
	Republican	Paul Schimpf Carolyn Schofield	34,676	4.35%
	Republican	Max Solomon Latasha H. Fields	7,371	0.92%
Total votes			797,029	100.0%

Libertarian convention

Candidates

Nominee

• Scott Schluter, veteran, diesel technician, and chair of the Southern Illinois Libertarian Party^[63]
  • Running mate: John Phillips^[64]

Withdrew

• Jon Stewart, former professional wrestler and candidate in 2018^[65]

Other parties and independents

Independents

Declared but never filed

• Mancow Muller, radio personality^[66]

Removed from ballot

• Tommy Belg^[67]

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report[68]	Solid D	March 4, 2022
Inside Elections[69]	Solid D	March 4, 2022
Sabato's Crystal Ball[70]	Safe D	June 29, 2022
Politico[71]	Likely D	April 1, 2022
RCP[72]	Lean D	October 26, 2022
Fox News[73]	Solid D	August 22, 2022
538[74]	Solid D	June 30, 2022
Elections Daily[75]	Safe D	November 7, 2022

Post-primary endorsements

JB Pritzker (D)

U.S. Executive Branch officials

• Joe Biden, 46th president of the United States (2021–2025)^[76]
• Kamala Harris, 49th vice president of the United States (2021–2025)^[77]
• Barack Obama, 44th president of the United States (2009–2017)^[78]

Statewide officials

• Jesse White, Illinois Secretary of State (1999–2023)^[79]

Local officials

• Lori Lightfoot, Mayor of Chicago (2019–2023)^[80]

Organizations

• 47th Ward Democrats^[81]
• Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois^[82]
• Cook County Democratic Party^[83]
• Democratic Governors Association^[84]
• Everytown for Gun Safety^[85]
• Giffords^[86]
• Gun Violence Prevention PAC^[86]
• Human Rights Campaign^[87]
• National Organization for Women – Illinois^[85]
• Personal PAC^[85]
• Planned Parenthood Illinois Action^[85]

Labor unions

• American Federation of Teachers – Illinois^[85]
• Chicago Federation of Labor^[85]
• Communications Workers of America^[85]
• Laborers' International Union of North America^[82]
• National Education Association^[88]
• Service Employees International Union – Illinois^[85]
• United Mine Workers^[89]

Newspapers

• Chicago Tribune^[90]
• eNews Park Forest^[91]
• Finger Lakes Times^[92]

Darren Bailey (R)

U.S. representatives

• Tulsi Gabbard, former U.S. representative from Hawaii's 2nd congressional district (2013–2021)^[93] (Independent)

State legislators

• Dan McConchie, minority leader of the Illinois Senate (2021–2023) and state senator (2016–present)^[94]

Organizations

• A Brotherhood Aimed Towards Education of Illinois^[95]
• Illinois Fraternal Order of Police^[96]

Polling

Aggregate polls

Source of poll aggregation	Dates administered	J.B Pritzker (D)	Darren Bailey (R)	Scott Schluter (L)	Margin
FiveThirtyEight[97]	June 21– November 8, 2022	56.1%	39.9%	4.8%	Pritzker +16.2

Graphical summary

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	JB Pritzker (D)	Darren Bailey (R)	Scott Schluter (L)	Other	Undecided
Victory Research (R)[98]	November 5–7, 2022	1,208 (LV)	± 2.8%	49%	42%	5%	–	4%
Research Co.[99]	November 4–6, 2022	450 (LV)	± 4.6%	56%	37%	2%	–	5%
Civiqs[100]	October 22–25, 2022	659 (LV)	± 4.3%	56%	39%	–	3%[e]	1%
Emerson College[101]	October 20–24, 2022	1,000 (LV)	± 3.0%	50%	41%	3%	2%[f]	4%
				52%	42%	3%	3%[g]	–
University of Illinois Springfield[102]	October 17 – 25, 2022	1,000 (LV)	± 3.5%	55%	40%	5%	–	–
Osage Research (R)[103][E]	October 13–15, 2022	600 (LV)	± 4.0%	44%	42%	4%	–	10%
Public Policy Polling (D)[104]	October 10–11, 2022	770 (LV)	± 3.5%	49%	34%	8%	–	9%
Research America[105]	October 5–11, 2022	1,000 (RV)	± 3.1%	50%	28%	6%	4%[h]	13%
Fabrizio, Lee & Associates (R)[106][A]	September 25–27, 2022	800 (LV)	± 3.5%	50%	45%	–	–	5%
				48%	40%	3%	–	8%
Emerson College[107]	September 21–23, 2022	1,000 (LV)	± 3.0%	51%	36%	–	5%[i]	8%
Osage Research (R)[108][E]	September 8–10, 2022	500 (LV)	± 4.4%	44%	37%	8%	–	13%
Victory Research (R)[109]	August 30 – September 1, 2022	1,208 (LV)	± 2.8%	47%	36%	2%	–	15%
Victory Geek (D)[110]	August 25–28, 2022	512 (LV)	± 4.3%	56%	38%	–	–	6%
Fabrizio, Lee & Associates (R)[106][A]	August, 2022	800 (LV)	± 3.5%	50%	38%	3%	–	10%
				52%	42%	–	–	6%
Victory Research (R)[111]	July 17–19, 2022	1,208 (LV)	± 2.8%	49%	39%	2%	–	10%
Fabrizio Lee & Associates (R)[112][A]	June 20–21, 2022	800 (LV)	± 3.5%	50%	43%	–	–	7%
Victory Research (R)[113]	January 18–20, 2022	1,208 (LV)	± 2.8%	55%	27%	–	–	17%

Hypothetical polling

JB Pritzker vs. Richard Irvin

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	JB Pritzker (D)	Richard Irvin (R)	Undecided
Victory Research (R)[113]	January 18–20, 2022	1,208 (LV)	± 2.8%	53%	22%	25%

JB Pritzker vs. Gary Rabine

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	JB Pritzker (D)	Gary Rabine (R)	Undecided
Victory Research (R)[113]	January 18–20, 2022	1,208 (LV)	± 2.8%	52%	28%	19%

JB Pritzker vs. Paul Schimpf

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	JB Pritzker (D)	Paul Schimpf (R)	Undecided
Victory Research (R)[113]	January 18–20, 2022	1,208 (LV)	± 2.8%	56%	22%	22%

JB Pritzker vs. Jesse Sullivan

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	JB Pritzker (D)	Jesse Sullivan (R)	Undecided
Victory Research (R)[113]	January 18–20, 2022	1,208 (LV)	± 2.8%	53%	22%	25%

JB Pritzker vs. generic Republican

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	JB Pritzker (D)	Generic Republican	Undecided
Victory Geek (D)[114]	November 8–10, 2021	800 (LV)	± 3.5%	49%	41%	10%

JB Pritzker vs. generic opponent

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	JB Pritzker (D)	Generic Opponent	Undecided
Victory Research (R)[111]	July 17–19, 2022	1,208 (LV)	± 2.8%	47%	47%	6%
Fabrizio Lee & Associates (R)[115][A]	June 20–21, 2022	800 (LV)	± 3.5%	47%	50%	3%

Generic Democrat vs. generic Republican

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	Generic Democrat	Generic Republican	Undecided
Fabrizio Lee & Associates (R)[115][A]	June 20–21, 2022	800 (LV)	± 3.5%	46%	44%	10%

Debates

2022 Illinois gubernatorial debates

No.	Date	Host	Moderator	Link	Democratic	Republican
P  Participant   A  Absent   N  Non-invitee   I  Invitee  W  Withdrawn
					JB Pritzker	Darren Bailey
	October 6, 2022	Illinois State University		YouTube	P	P
	October 18, 2022	NewsNation		YouTube	P	P

Results

Swing by county

Legend

•   Democratic — +15-20%
•   Democratic — +10-15%
•   Democratic — +5-10%
•   Democratic — +0-5%
•   Republican — +0-55%
•   Republican — +5-10%
•   Republican — +10-15%
•   Republican — +15-20%
•   Republican — +20-25%
•   Republican — +25-30%
•   Republican — +>30%

Trend by county

Legend

•   Democratic — +15-20%
•   Democratic — +10-15%
•   Democratic — +5-10%
•   Democratic — +0-5%
•   Republican — +0-55%
•   Republican — +5-10%
•   Republican — +10-15%
•   Republican — +15-20%
•   Republican — +20-25%
•   Republican — +25-30%
•   Republican — +>30%

2022 Illinois gubernatorial election^[116]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	JB Pritzker (incumbent) Juliana Stratton (incumbent)	2,253,748	54.91%	+0.38%
	Republican	Darren Bailey Stephanie Trussell	1,739,095	42.37%	+3.54%
	Libertarian	Scott Schluter John Phillips	111,712	2.72%	+0.32%
	Write-in		81	0.0%	-0.01%
Total votes			4,104,636	100.0%
Turnout				%
	Democratic hold

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

• Alexander (largest city: Cairo)
• Fulton (largest city: Canton)
• Jackson (largest city: Carbondale)
• Knox (largest city: Galesburg)
• Winnebago (largest city: Rockford)

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

• McLean (largest city: Bloomington)

By congressional district

Pritzker won 14 of 17 congressional districts.^[117]

District	Pritzker	Bailey	Representative
1st	68%	30%	Bobby Rush (117th Congress)
			Jonathan Jackson (118th Congress)
2nd	66%	32%	Robin Kelly
3rd	68%	29%	Marie Newman (117th Congress)
			Delia Ramirez (118th Congress)
4th	68%	29%	Chuy García
5th	70%	28%	Mike Quigley
6th	53%	44%	Sean Casten
7th	85%	13%	Danny Davis
8th	55%	42%	Raja Krishnamoorthi
9th	72%	26%	Jan Schakowsky
10th	61%	36%	Brad Schneider
11th	55%	42%	Bill Foster
12th	25%	73%	Mike Bost
13th	54%	43%	Nikki Budzinski
14th	52%	45%	Lauren Underwood
15th	28%	69%	Mary Miller
16th	36%	61%	Darin LaHood
17th	50%	47%	Cheri Bustos (117th Congress)
			Eric Sorensen (118th Congress)

Notes

1. Calculated by taking the difference of 100% and all other candidates combined.
2. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear
3. Johnson with 1%, Smith with <1%
4. Johnson with 2%
5. "Someone else" with 3%
6. "Someone else" with 1%
7. "Someone else" with 3%
8. "Other" with 0%; "None" with 4%
9. "Someone else" with 5%

Partisan clients

1. This poll was sponsored by People Who Play by the Rules PAC, which supports Bailey
2. This poll was sponsored by Sullivan's campaign
3. This poll was sponsored by Irvin's campaign
4. Poll conducted for an undisclosed client
5. Poll conducted for Bailey's campaign.