Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2026
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The terms of eight Illinois intermediate appellate court judges will expire on December 7, 2026. Five seats are up for retention election on November 3, 2026. Another three seats are up for partisan election on November 3, 2026. The primary election for the partisan races is March 17, 2026. The filing deadline for major party candidates to run in the partisan election was November 3, 2025. If a vacancy occurred on the court between October 13 and November 3, 2025, a special filing deadline was set for November 24, 2025. The filing deadline for judges to file for retention is May 3, 2026. Independent and new party candidates have until May 26, 2026, to file for partisan races.
Candidates and results
Illinois First District Appellate Court
Bertina Lampkin's seat
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
Thomas Hoffman vacancy
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 election
Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court
Judy Rice is running in the Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on March 17, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Judy Rice | |
| ||||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Illinois Third District Appellate Court
Adrienne W. Albrecht vacancy
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
Joseph Hettel's seat
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 election
Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court
Margaret O'Connell and John Pavich are running in the Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on March 17, 2026.
Candidate | ||
| Margaret O'Connell | ||
| John Pavich | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court
Jason Helland and Mark Senak are running in the Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on March 17, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Jason Helland | |
| Mark Senak | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Illinois Fourth District Appellate Court
James Knecht's seat
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
Illinois Fifth District Appellate Court
James Moore's seat
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
John Barberis' seat
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
James Hackett's seat
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.
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court
Amy Sholar is running in the Republican primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court on March 17, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Amy Sholar | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Judges not on the ballot
- Adrienne W. Albrecht (3rd District)
- Thomas Hoffman (1st District)
- Mary McDade (3rd District)
- Thomas Welch (5th District)
Voting information
- See also: Voting in Illinois
Selection
Judges on the appellate court are chosen by popular vote in partisan elections and serve 10-year terms, after which they must compete in uncontested, nonpartisan retention elections to remain on the court.[1]
Qualifications
To serve on the appellate court, a judge must be:
Presiding judge
The judges of each division select a presiding judge by peer vote to serve a one-year term.[1]
Vacancies
In the event of a midterm vacancy, the Illinois Supreme Court is responsible for appointing an interim judge. If a judge is appointed more than 60 days before the next primary election, the judge must run in a partisan election in the next general or judicial election to remain on the court. The appointed judge's term will end on the first Monday in December after their election. If a judge is appointed less than 60 days before the next primary election, the judge will have to run in a partisan election to remain on the court in the second general election. The appointed judge's term will end on the first Monday in December after their election.[1]
See also
External links
Footnotes
Federal courts:
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois
State courts:
Illinois Supreme Court • Illinois Appellate Court • Illinois Circuit Court
State resources:
Courts in Illinois • Illinois judicial elections • Judicial selection in Illinois
