Illinois' 17th Congressional District

Illinois' 17th Congressional District

Incumbent

Eric Sorensen

Assumed office: January 3, 2023

Illinois' 17th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives is represented by Eric Sorensen (D).

As of the 2020 Census, Illinois representatives represented an average of 754,279 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 714,688 residents.

Elections

• 2030
• 2028
• 2026
• 2024
• 2022
• 2020
• 2018

See also: Illinois's 17th Congressional District election, 2030

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois, 2028

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

See also: Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2026

General election

The primary will occur on March 17, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Incumbent Eric Sorensen (D) and Montez Soliz (D) are running in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 17, 2026.

		Candidate
		Eric Sorensen
		Montez Soliz

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Julie Bickelhaupt (R) and Dillan Vancil (R) are running in the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 17, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Julie Bickelhaupt
		Dillan Vancil

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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See also: Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2024

General election

General election for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Incumbent Eric Sorensen (D) defeated Joseph G. McGraw (R) in the general election for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eric Sorensen (D)	54.4	170,261
		Joseph G. McGraw (R)	45.6	142,567

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 312,828
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Incumbent Eric Sorensen (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eric Sorensen	100.0	28,533

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 28,533
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Joseph G. McGraw (R) defeated Scott Crowl (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Joseph G. McGraw	67.6	20,223
		Scott Crowl	32.4	9,696

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 29,919
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Ray Estrada (R)

See also: Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2022

General election

General election for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Eric Sorensen (D) defeated Esther Joy King (R) in the general election for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eric Sorensen (D)	52.0	121,186
		Esther Joy King (R)	48.0	111,931
		Other/Write-in votes	0.0%	6

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 233,123
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Natasha Thompson-Devine (Independent)

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eric Sorensen	37.7	14,702
		Litesa Wallace	23.3	9,103
		Jonathan Logemann	14.4	5,628
		Angie Normoyle	12.4	4,818
		Marsha Williams	6.9	2,701
		Jacqueline McGowan	5.2	2,040
		Other/Write-in votes	0.0%	14

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 39,006
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Linda McNeely (D)
• Spence Morris (D)
• Michael Swanson (D)

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Esther Joy King (R) defeated Charlie Helmick (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Esther Joy King	68.5	31,065
		Charlie Helmick	31.5	14,274

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 45,339
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Natasha Devine (R)

See also: Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2020

General election

General election for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Incumbent Cheri Bustos (D) defeated Esther Joy King (R) and General Parker (Independent) in the general election for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Cheri Bustos (D)	52.0	156,011
		Esther Joy King (R)	48.0	143,863
		General Parker (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	21

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 299,895
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Incumbent Cheri Bustos (D) defeated Spanky Edwards (D) in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 17, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Cheri Bustos	99.7	56,388
		Spanky Edwards (Write-in)	0.3	189

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 56,577
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• William Swisher (D)

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Esther Joy King (R) defeated Bill Fawell (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 17, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Esther Joy King	65.1	19,464
		Bill Fawell	34.9	10,423

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 29,887 (100% precincts reporting)
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Eugene Farrell (R)
• Charles William Helmick Jr. (R)
• Thomas Alvin Zastrow (R)

See also: Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2018

General election

General election for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Incumbent Cheri Bustos (D) defeated Bill Fawell (R) in the general election for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Cheri Bustos (D)	62.1	142,659
		Bill Fawell (R)	37.9	87,090

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 229,749
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Incumbent Cheri Bustos (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 20, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Cheri Bustos	100.0	42,964

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 42,964
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17

Bill Fawell (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 20, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Bill Fawell	100.0	38,411

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 38,411
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Previous election results

2016

See also: Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2016

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Democratic. Incumbent Cheri Bustos (D) defeated Patrick Harlan (R) in the general election on November 8, 2016. Bustos ran unopposed in the Democratic primary on March 15, 2016, while Harlan defeated Jack Boccarossa to win the Republican nomination.

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 General Election, 2016

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Cheri Bustos Incumbent	60.3%	173,125
	Republican	Patrick Harlan	39.7%	113,943
Total Votes				287,068
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 Republican Primary, 2016

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Patrick Harlan	75.7%	52,405
Jack Boccarossa	24.3%	16,805
Total Votes		69,210
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections

2014

See also: Illinois' 17th Congressional District elections, 2014

The 17th Congressional District of Illinois held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Cheri Bustos (D) defeated challenger Bobby Schilling (R) in the general election.

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 General Election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Cheri Bustos Incumbent	55.5%	110,560
	Republican	Bobby Schilling	44.5%	88,785
Total Votes				199,345
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections Official Results

General election candidates

• Bobby Schilling
• Cheri Bustos - Incumbent

March 18, 2014, primary results

Republican Primary

• Bobby Schilling: Former District 17 Representativea

Democratic Primary

• Cheri Bustos - Incumbenta

Withdrew from race

• Eric Reyes: 2012 Independent candidate for District 17

2012

See also: Illinois' 17th Congressional District elections, 2012

The 17th Congressional District of Illinois held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. Democrat Cheri Bustos won the election, beating incumbent Bobby Schilling.

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Cheri Bustos	53.3%	153,519
	Republican	Bobby Schilling Incumbent	46.7%	134,623
	Independent	Eric Reyes	0%	10
Total Votes				288,152
Source: Illinois Board of Elections "2012 General Election Official Vote Totals"

2010
On November 2, 2010, Bobby Schilling won election to the United States House. He defeated Phil Hare (D) and Roger K. Davis (G) in the general election.

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 General Election, 2010
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Robert T. Schilling	52.6%	104,583
	Democratic	Phil Hare incumbent	43%	85,454
	Green	Roger K. Davis	4.5%	8,861
Total Votes				198,898

2008
On November 4, 2008, Phil Hare won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Mark Edward Lioen (Write-in) in the general election.

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 General Election, 2008
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Phil Hare incumbent	99.8%	220,961
	Write-in	Mark Edward Lioen	0.2%	517
Total Votes				221,478

2006
On November 7, 2006, Phil Hare won election to the United States House. He defeated Andrea Zinga (R) in the general election.

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 General Election, 2006
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Phil Hare	57.2%	115,025
	Republican	Andrea Zinga	42.8%	86,161
Total Votes				201,186

2004
On November 2, 2004, Lane Evans won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Andrea Lane Zinga (R) in the general election.

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 General Election, 2004
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Lane Evans incumbent	60.7%	172,320
	Republican	Andrea Lane Zinga	39.3%	111,680
Total Votes				284,000

2002
On November 5, 2002, Lane Evans won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Peter Calderone (R) in the general election.

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 General Election, 2002
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Lane Evans incumbent	62.4%	127,093
	Republican	Peter Calderone	37.6%	76,519
Total Votes				203,612

2000
On November 7, 2000, Lane Evans won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Mark Baker (R) in the general election.

U.S. House, Illinois District 17 General Election, 2000
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Lane Evans incumbent	54.9%	132,494
	Republican	Mark Baker	45.1%	108,853
Total Votes				241,347

District map

Redistricting

2020-2021

See also: Redistricting in Illinois after the 2020 census

Illinois enacted a congressional map on November 24, 2021, after Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) signed the proposal into law. The Illinois State Senate voted 41-18 in favor of the map on October 28, 2021, followed by the Illinois House of Representatives voting 71-43 in favor on October 29, 2021.

How does redistricting in Illinois work? The Illinois General Assembly is responsible for drawing both congressional and state legislative district lines. Both chambers of the state legislature must approve a redistricting plan. The governor may veto the lines drawn by the state legislature.

In the event that both chambers of the state legislature do not approve a legislative redistricting plan, a backup commission must draw the lines. The majority and minority leaders of each chamber must appoint two members each to the commission (one legislator and one general citizen). Of the eight commission members, no more than four may belong to the same political party. In the event that these eight members cannot approve a plan, the Illinois Supreme Court must select two individuals (from different political parties) as potential tiebreakers. The secretary of state must then appoint one of these individuals to the backup commission to break the tie.

The Illinois Constitution requires that state legislative districts be "contiguous and reasonably compact." There are no such requirements in place for the state's congressional districts.

State law also mandates the establishment of state legislative districts "that allow racial or language minority communities to elect--or influence the election of--the candidates of their choice, even if no comparable district would be required by the federal Voting Rights Act."

2020

2024

2010-2011

This is the 17th Congressional District of Illinois after the 2001 redistricting process.

See also: Redistricting in Illinois after the 2010 census

In 2011, the Illinois State Legislature re-drew the congressional districts based on updated population information from the 2010 census.

District analysis

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

See also: FiveThirtyEight's elasticity scores

2026

Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is D+3. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 3 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Illinois' 17th the 188th most Democratic district nationally.

2024

Heading into the 2024 elections, based on results from the 2020 and 2016 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was D+2. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 2 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Illinois' 17th the 198th most Democratic district nationally.

Daily Kos calculated what the results of the 2020 presidential election in this district would have been following redistricting. Joe Biden (D) would have defeated Donald Trump (R) 52.7%-44.9%.

2022

Heading into the 2022 elections, based on results from the 2020 and 2016 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was D+2. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 2 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Illinois' 17th the 196th most Democratic district nationally.

Daily Kos calculated what the results of the 2020 presidential election in this district would have been following redistricting. Joe Biden (D) would have received 52.7% of the vote in this district and Donald Trump (R) would have received 44.9%.

2018

Heading into the 2018 elections, based on results from the 2016 and 2012 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was D+3. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 3 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Illinois' 17th Congressional District the 181st most Democratic nationally.

FiveThirtyEight's September 2018 elasticity score for states and congressional districts measured "how sensitive it is to changes in the national political environment." This district's elasticity score was 0.97. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 0.97 points toward that party.

See also

• Redistricting in Illinois
• Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2024
• Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2022
• Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2020
• Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2018

External links

• GovTrack District 17

Footnotes

[show]

Illinois' current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Tammy Duckworth (D)

Dick Durbin (D)

Representatives

District 1

Jonathan Jackson (D)

District 2

Robin Kelly (D)

District 3

Delia Ramirez (D)

District 4

Jesus Garcia (D)

District 5

Mike Quigley (D)

District 6

Sean Casten (D)

District 7

Danny Davis (D)

District 8

Raja Krishnamoorthi (D)

District 9

Jan Schakowsky (D)

District 10

Brad Schneider (D)

District 11

Bill Foster (D)

District 12

Mike Bost (R)

District 13

Nikki Budzinski (D)

District 14

Lauren Underwood (D)

District 15

Mary Miller (R)

District 16

Darin LaHood (R)

District 17

Eric Sorensen (D)

Democratic Party (16)

Republican Party (3)