Your monthly support provides voters the knowledge they need to make confident decisions at the polls. Donate today.

United States Senate election in Illinois, 2026 (March 17 Republican primary)

From Ballotpedia
Jump to: navigation, search



← 2020
U.S. Senate, Illinois
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: November 3, 2025
Primary: March 17, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in Illinois

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Democratic
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Solid Democratic
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
U.S. Senate, Illinois
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th • 11th • 12th • 13th • 14th • 15th • 16th • 17th
Illinois elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

A Republican Party primary takes place on March 17, 2026, in Illinois to determine which Republican candidate will run in the state's general election on November 3, 2026.

Candidate filing deadline Primary election General election
November 3, 2025
March 17, 2026
November 3, 2026


Heading into the election, the incumbent is Dick Durbin (Democrat), who was first elected in 1996.

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. In Illinois, state law provides for a closed primary where a voter must be affiliated with a party to vote in that party's primary. However, voters state their affiliation at the polls and any voter may change their affiliation on the day of the primary. A voter's eligibility to vote a party's ballot may be challenged.[1]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

This page focuses on Illinois' United States Senate Republican primary. For more in-depth information on the state's Democratic primary and the general election, see the following pages:

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Illinois

The following candidates are running in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Illinois on March 17, 2026.

Candidate
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Panagioti Bartzis
Image of Doug Bennett
Doug Bennett
Image of R. Cary Capparelli
R. Cary Capparelli Candidate Connection
Image of Casey Chlebek
Casey Chlebek
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Jeannie Evans
Image of John Goodman
John Goodman Candidate Connection
Image of Lloyd Jones
Lloyd Jones
Image of Pamela Denise Long
Pamela Denise Long Candidate Connection
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Januario Ortega
Image of Jimmy Lee Tillman II
Jimmy Lee Tillman II
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Don Tracy

There are no incumbents in this race.

Candidate Connection = 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.

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

R. Cary Capparelli

Image of R. Cary Capparelli

WebsiteFacebook

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "R. Cary Capparelli is an International businessman and educator. Capparelli is the son of the late Ralph C. Capparelli who served in the Illinois House of Representatives, as a moderate Democrat, for seventeen (17) consecutive terms. Much of the younger Capparelli’s professional career spanned the globe including organizing the first motorsports competitions between the United States and the former Soviet Union, international boxing matches, international bicycle racing, and also developing a vineyard in Argentina. “I am not a politician,” stressed Capparelli. “However, I am a hard working individual with the experience and ability to function as an effective ‘America First’ lawmaker.” The candidate holds four (4) university degrees: BAJ from Drake University, MSJ from Northwestern University, MA in geography from Northeastern Illinois University and a PhD in geography from the University of London. “Washington has plenty of lawyers but lacks common sense economists, geographers, and those from other important disciplines that form domestic and world opinion,” added Capparelli. He continues to operate his Chicago-area based management/marketing firm, and has instructed cultural and regional geography courses at South Dakota State University the past eight (8) years."

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

'Common-Sense' policies that strengthen both all domestic and world issues.

'America First' policies that effect every American economically and socially (fighting crime and support law enforcement).

And, the absolute 'America First' policy in support of our national defense and protection of global interests.

John Goodman

Image of John Goodman

WebsiteFacebookTwitter

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

We the People — not parties, not politics. The heartbeat that hums beneath every hometown, every voice that refuses to be forgotten. We are the chorus, the builders, the dreamers who still believe in better. We rise for unity, not division; for purpose, not power. Together, we write the next verse of the American story — one that belongs to everyone, from every walk, every creed, every corner. Because in the end, it’s still us: We the People.

Still of the people. Still by the people. Always for the people — every voice, every heart, every person who dares to care. Because a person’s a person, no matter how small, how loud, or how late to the call. We rise not for power, but for purpose. Not for party, but for promise. From city streets to country roads, from dreamers to doers — we stand together, hand in hand, shaping tomorrow in the only way that ever worked: of the people, by the people, for us all.

It’s not about left or right — it’s about all of us united as one nation. Building, a future, that ensures safety, equality, and the pursuit of happiness for all.

Pamela Denise Long

Image of Pamela Denise Long

WebsiteFacebookTwitterYouTube

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "I'm a 7th+ generation American, mother, pet parent, occupational therapist, first-generation college graduate, political writer, member of a 150+ years farming family of Illinois, and Republican since the Obama era. I'm running for U.S. Senate because I grew tired of the voice of Illinoisans being ignored when it came to mass immigration. I’m done with partisanship, extremism, and inconsistent criminal justice. I think government needs to slow down and start listening again to The People. I’m running for Senate because activism on the bench needs to be held accountable. As senator, I will confirm judges that apply historical understanding and originalism to their analysis of law and their rulings/opinions about the cases before them. I never wanted to be a politician, but I’ve decided to become the type of public servant that I and The People have been asking for."

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

Implement an Americans First native-born labor sourcing pipeline and talent management strategy. There are over 20 million Americans who are not participating in the labor force. Including seven million men of working age. In the late 1980’s, the U.S. government prepared The Workforce 2000: Work and Workers for the 21st Century report with the interests of businesses in mind. It identifies mass immigration (among other things) as a solution. I will investigate the hiring practices that keep Americans (especially men) out of the labor force. I will advocate for an executive order that ensures American workers are prioritized for hiring for new jobs. Immigrant labor is not bad nor unwelcomed. It should simply be a labor source of last resort.

Public safety and consistent criminal justice. We often fail to strike a balance between compassion, personal responsibility, and ensuring that incarceration prepares people to become more productive members of society. I would fund local police while ensuring transparency, support victims’ rights, use trauma-informed policy (and habilitation/rehabilitation) to reduce repeat offenses, apply trauma-informed care to law enforcement officers to address vicarious trauma and burnout from day-to-day interactions on the job. Most officers who use excessive force are themselves repeat offenders and should be decertified. Fund community policing, crisis intervention teams, and increase community health workers for nonviolent calls/wellness checks.

Investigate the Implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act. Senators (and executives) should submit their proposed major federal actions to full analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1970. Doing so would identify in advance the potential impacts a proposed action could have on the human environment (social, cultural, economic, historical, etc.) and minimize negative impacts for people and their communities. Historically, immigration policy and criminal justice laws were not subjected to a preemptive analysis of impacts on people and their environment. The Supreme Court ruled in 2024 that immigration policy MUST BE subjected to NEPA analysis. EPA practices/NEPA use on agribusiness should be investigated.

Voting information

See also: Voting in Illinois

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.

Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Panagioti Bartzis Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Doug Bennett Republican Party $13,000 $16,154 $1,548 As of September 30, 2025
R. Cary Capparelli Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Casey Chlebek Republican Party $25,000 $11,505 $13,495 As of June 30, 2025
Jeannie Evans Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
John Goodman Republican Party $28,555 $22,856 $5,700 As of September 30, 2025
Lloyd Jones Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Pamela Denise Long Republican Party $8,631 $4,009 $4,623 As of June 30, 2025
Januario Ortega Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Jimmy Lee Tillman II Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Don Tracy Republican Party $2,062,222 $9,970 $2,052,252 As of September 30, 2025

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.
*** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

Ballot access

This section will contain information on ballot access related to this state's elections when it is available.

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Illinois General Assembly, "Ill. Rev. Stat. ch. 10, § 5/7–59," accessed October 20, 2025


Illinois' current delegation to the United States Congress
Senators
Tammy Duckworth (D)
Dick Durbin (D)
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
District 7
District 8
District 9
District 10
District 11
District 12
Mike Bost (R)
District 13
District 14
District 15
District 16
District 17
Democratic Party (16)
Republican Party (3)


Retrieved from "https://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php?title=United_States_Senate_election_in_Illinois,_2026_(March_17_Republican_primary)&oldid=10487823"