U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ push for Illinois Democrats to redraw the state’s congressional map as a counter to President Donald Trump’s mid-decade redistricting project in GOP-led states has met a cool reception with state lawmakers.

Rick Heidner, a Barrington Hills real estate developer and the owner of Gold Rush Gaming, formed a gubernatorial campaign committee on Tuesday, according to a filing with the State Board of Elections.

By contrast, Krishnamoorthi’s two main rivals in the Democratic primary, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton and Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Matteson, have yet to spend a dime on television advertising.

Illinois’ Republican primary for governor is growing expensive as the party's 2022 nominee works to rebuild his campaign fund while another candidate receives support from one of the state’s wealthiest Republican donors.

The summaries offer a glimpse into the billionaire governor’s finances, although the campaign did not disclose the total income of trusts benefiting his family. Pritzker does not take a salary from the state and placed his assets in a “blind” trust when he became governor.

Bailey began the campaign in downstate Carterville before taking a helicopter owned and piloted by his son to Bloomington, then departing for his opening rally in suburban Oak Brook later in the evening.

In a launch video, Ald. Brendan Reilly touted his record as an independent member of the Chicago City Council and vowed to fight crime, build more housing and root out corruption.

The former state senator and farmer from Clay County would become the highest-profile Republican to enter the race, having lost the 2022 campaign against Gov. JB Pritzker and a close primary race in 2024 against U.S. Rep. Mike Bost for a downstate congressional seat.

 Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst has decided not to seek reelection to a third term, two people familiar with the decision say, and is poised to make an announcement next week.

In Illinois, there are numerous security checks in place to ensure the accuracy and security of mail-in voting, according to Matt Dietrich, a spokesperson for the state’s Board of Elections.

The Republican-controlled Texas House scheduled a vote for Wednesday on the new maps while California Democrats are retaliating by advancing their own new U.S. House boundaries ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

Texas Democrats said Monday that they were ending a two-week walkout that stalled Republican efforts to redraw congressional districts as part of a national partisan brawl over President Donald Trump’s desire to reshape U.S. House maps to his advantage.

A partisan move by Texas to redraw its congressional maps in the middle of the decade to secure five more GOP seats in the U.S. House set off a clamor to replicate the effort in statehouses controlled by both parties.

The meeting of party officials Thursday morning was a precursor to the annual Republican Day festivities at the Illinois State Fair, an event where the party showcases its major candidates for the next round of elections and tries to generate enthusiasm among its core base of voters.

Illinois Republicans held their annual events around the Illinois State Fair on Thursday, with former Illinois GOP Chair Don Tracy launching a U.S. Senate campaign and Ted Dabrowski announcing he will launch a campaign for governor in the coming weeks.

Judge Scott Larson said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton “failed to present a legal basis” for the Illinois court to consider civil arrest warrants filed in a different state.