A general election was held in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

on November 6, 2018. The elections for Illinois's 18 congressional districts,

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, statewide constitutional officers,

Illinois Senate The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the I ...

, and Illinois House were held on this date. Primaries were held March 20, 2018. The

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

made gains, including picking up the state's governorship and flipping two of its U.S. House seats. After the election, all executive offices and control of the

Illinois General Assembly The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1 ...

was held by the Democratic Party. Conversely the Republican Party experienced what was regarded to be their worst defeat in the state since at least 2006.

Election information

2018 was a

midterm election Apart from general elections and by-elections, midterm election refers to a type of election where the people can elect their representatives and other subnational officeholders (e.g. governor, members of local council) in the middle of the ter ...

year in the United States.

Turnout

Primary election

For the primary election, turnout was 26.48%, with 2,103,634 votes cast. ;Turnout by county

General election

For the general election, turnout was 57.23%, with 4,635,541 votes cast. The Illinois State Board of Elections reported that this general election turnout rate was the third-highest for a midterm election over the past forty years. The Illinois State Board of Elections also reported that the total number of votes cast set a record high. Voter registration, at 8.1 million, also sat at a record high. Turnout was considered high in the United States during the

2018 midterm elections The 2018 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2018. These midterm elections occurred during Republican Donald Trump's term. Democrats made a net gain of 41 seats in the United States House of Representatives, gaining a maj ...

, with it being the highest national midterm turnout since

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It also saw the first airline to provide schedule ...

. ;Turnout by county

Federal elections

United States House

All of Illinois' 18 seats in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together the ...

were up for election in 2018. The Democratic Party flipped two Republican-held seat, making the composition of Illinois' House delegation 13 Democrats and 5 Republicans.

Governor and Lieutenant Governor

Incumbent

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or again ...

Bruce Rauner Bruce Vincent Rauner (; born February 18, 1956) is an American businessman, philanthropist, and politician who served as the 42nd governor of Illinois from 2015 to 2019. Prior to his election, he was the chairman of R8 Capital Partners and cha ...

ran for re-election to a second term, but was defeated by

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

venture capitalist and billionaire

J. B. Pritzker Jay Robert "J. B." Pritzker (born January 19, 1965) is an American billionaire businessman, philanthropist, and politician serving as the 43rd governor of Illinois since 2019. A member of the wealthy Pritzker family, which owns the worldwide h ...

Democratic primary

Republican primary

General election

Attorney General

Incumbent Democratic

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

Lisa Madigan Lisa Murray Madigan (born July 30, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, she served as Attorney General of the U.S. state of Illinois from 2003 to 2019, being the first woman to hold that position. She is t ...

, who served since 2003, chose not to run for re-election to a fifth term. Democratic state Senator

Kwame Raoul Kwame Raoul (, born September 30, 1964) is an American lawyer and politician who has been the 42nd Attorney General of Illinois since 2019. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Raoul represented the 13th district in the Illinois Senate from ...

defeated Republican

Erika Harold Erika Natalie Louise Harold (born February 20, 1980) is an American attorney, politician, and former Miss America. Harold was Miss Illinois 2002 and Miss America 2003. Her pageant platform was combating bullying. In 2014, she was a candidate ...

Democratic primary

Republican primary

General election

Secretary of State

Incumbent Democratic Secretary of State Jesse White, who has been in office since 1999, initially announced in August 2015 that he would retire. On August 17, 2017, White reversed this decision and announced that he would run for re-election to a sixth term.

Governing magazine ''Governing'' is a website, edited and published in Washington, D.C., that covers state and local government in the United States. Originally a national monthly magazine, it was published in print 1987 and 2019. It covers policy, politics, and the ...

projected the race as "safe Democratic".

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Declared

= * Jesse White, incumbent Secretary of State

=Withdrew

= * Mike Hastings, state senator

=Declined

= *

Walter Burnett Jr. Walter Burnett Jr. has served as the alderman for Chicago's 27th ward since his first election in 1995. The 27th ward includes the West Loop, Greektown, East Garfield Park, Near North Side, Old Town, West Humboldt Park, West Town, Goose Is ...

Alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members them ...

for Chicago's 27th ward

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Declared

= *Jason Helland, Grundy County State’s AttorneyRauner faces war on two fronts as Republican challenger Ives attacks
, ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...

'', December 4, 2017. Retrieved December 5, 2017.

=Declined

= *J.C. Griffin, Iraq War veteran

Results

Endorsements

General election

Results

Comptroller

Incumbent Republican

Judy Baar Topinka Judy Baar Topinka (January 16, 1944 – December 10, 2014) was an American politician and member of the Republican Party from the U.S. State of Illinois. Originally a journalist, Topinka served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1981 ...

died on December 10, 2014, after being re-elected to a second term in office. A

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

was held in 2016 for the remainder of the term, with Democratic

City Clerk of Chicago The City Clerk of Chicago is in charge of record-keeping for the city of Chicago and its elections. When the Chicago City Council is in session, the City Clerk serves as council secretary. This position is a citywide elected office, one of three ...

Susana Mendoza Susana A. Mendoza is an American politician. She is the 10th Comptroller of Illinois, serving since December 2016. A member of the Democratic Party, she formerly served as Chicago City Clerk and as an Illinois State Representative, representing t ...

defeating appointed Republican Comptroller

Leslie Munger Leslie Geissler Munger(January 5, 2015) "Rauner to Appoint Leslie Munger as Next Illinois Comptroller" ''WGNtv.com''. Retrieved January 12, 2015. (born September 5, 1956) is an American politician and business executive who served as the Illinoi ...

. Mendoza won a full term.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Declared

= *

, incumbent Illinois Comptroller

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Declared

= *

Darlene Senger Darlene J. Senger (born July 28, 1955) is an American politician. She was a member of the Naperville, Illinois City Council, where she served from 2002 to 2008,"State Rep. Senger may run for Congress". ''The Naperville Sun'', July 17, 2013, page ...

, former state representative and nominee for

Illinois's 11th congressional district The 11th congressional district of Illinois is represented by Democrat Bill Foster. Geographic boundaries 2011 redistricting From 1865 to 1867, the district included Bureau, LaSalle, Livingston and Woodford counties. From 1901 until 1947 t ...

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Results

Third parties and independents

Candidates

=Declared

= *Claire Ball (Libertarian), certified public accountant

General election

Results

Treasurer

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Declared

= *

Mike Frerichs Michael W. Frerichs (; born July 28, 1973) is an American politician serving his third term as the State Treasurer of Illinois, after first taking office on January 12, 2015. Before being elected treasurer, he was a Democratic member of the Ill ...

, incumbent State Treasurer

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Declared

= *Jim Dodge,

Orland Park Orland Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, with a small portion in Will County. The village is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, Orland Park had a population of 58,703. Located 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Chica ...

Village Trustee and candidate for Illinois Comptroller in

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

Results

General election

Results

State Senate

One-third of the seats of the

were up for election in 2018.

State House of Representatives

All of the seats in the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

were up for election in 2018.

Judicial elections

Judicial elections were held, consisting of both partisan and retention elections, including those for one seat in the

Supreme Court of Illinois The Supreme Court of Illinois is the state supreme court, the highest court of the State of Illinois. The court's authority is granted in Article VI of the current Illinois Constitution, which provides for seven justices elected from the five ...

and five seats in the

Illinois Appellate Court The Illinois Appellate Court is the court of first appeal for civil and criminal cases rising in the Illinois Circuit Courts. Three Illinois Appellate Court judges hear each case and the concurrence of two is necessary to render a decision. The ...

Local elections

Local elections took place, including county elections such as the Cook County elections.

Notes

References

External links

Candidates
at

Vote Smart Vote Smart, formerly called Project Vote Smart, is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States. It covers candidates and elected officials in si ...

Candidates
at

Ballotpedia Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...

Campaign finance
at

OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks data on campaign finance and lobbying. It was created from a merger of the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) and the National Institute on Money in Politics (NIMP) ...

{{2018 United States elections