Voters across Illinois are experiencing a stark sense of political deja vu as the state’s 2026 midterm governor race mirrors the exact candidate matchup from four years prior. Incumbent Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker and Republican challenger Darren Bailey are once again locking horns for the state’s top office, reviving a bitter contest that previously saw Pritzker secure a victory by a margin of nearly 13 points in 2022.
Polls across the state are scheduled to close at 7 p.m., with initial election returns expected to begin rolling in roughly thirty minutes later. As the state decides who is winning the governor race in Illinois, both campaigns have spent the final stretch of the election cycle delivering contrasting closing arguments to an electorate weighing economic concerns and national political currents.
Pritzker, while maintaining a cautious stance on his own electoral standing during the closing days of the campaign, used a rally in Collinsville to pivot his message toward Washington, D.C. The governor predicted that Democrats would capture both the U.S. House and Senate, pointing to high early turnout numbers.
You can see in the voter turnout that we’ve seen across the country that young people, Black voters, Latino voters and working families are showing up in numbers we haven’t seen really since before 2018,
Pritzker said during the Collinsville event. That was a huge year. This one seems to be even bigger.
Challenger Push and Economic Focus in Chicago
On the opposing side, Bailey is mounting an aggressive bid to flip the governor’s mansion red for the first time since former Gov. Bruce Rauner left office in 2019. Speaking to reporters in downtown Chicago, Bailey training his fire squarely on the incumbent’s tenure.
JB Pritzker’s had eight years. Look at where we’re at,
Bailey said during his Monday morning press appearance.
Bailey enters Election Day backed by an endorsement from President Donald Trump, tapping into a broader wave of voter desire for change at the federal level. His final-stretch pitch in Chicago carried a notable undertone, returning to the city he notoriously labeled a hellhole
throughout his previous gubernatorial run while attempting to broaden his coalition.
Some of you out there have never voted for a Republican before. Some of you have questions about me and some of you obviously disagree with me. I respect that,
Bailey told voters.
To address cost-of-living pressures directly, Bailey has pledged to suspend the state gas tax for six months and roll back recent toll increases on his very first day in office. When questioned about affordability measures, the Pritzker campaign highlighted legislative actions already signed into law, pointing to the near-doubling of the state minimum wage and the complete elimination of the state grocery tax.
