Homewood-Flossmoor 2026 Primary Election Guide: Who's Running, What You Need To Know

HOMEWOOD-FLOSSMOOR, IL — On Tuesday, March 17 Illinois voters will have a chance to cast their ballots in the primary election.

Both Democratic and Republican candidates are making their final pushes in hopes of being chosen to represent their party in November's General Election.

Polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. If you're not sure if you're registered to vote, you can check online. If you're not registered, even though online voter registration has closed, you can still register in person the same day you vote.

To register in person, you'll need to bring two forms of ID or proof of residency, including a passport, driver's license, lease or mortgage. At least one form of ID must list your current address.

Unsure of your polling place? Find it here.

Homewood Polling Locations

Bloom Township precinct 2 and 40 will be held at Salem Lutheran Church located at 18324 Ashland Ave.

Bloom Township precinct 19, 20, 30, and 34 will be held at Winston Churchill School located at 1300 190th St.

Thornton Township precinct 24 and 25 will be held at Homewood Public Library located at 17917 Dixie Hwy.

Thornton Township precinct 23, 67, and 80 will be held at the School District 153 Office / James Hart School located at 18205 Aberdeen St.

Thornton Township precinct 53 will be held at Freedom Village located at 935 Maple Ave.

Rich Township precincts 11, 31, and 34 will be held at The Clubhouse at Dolphin Lake located at 2700 W. 183rd St.

Bremen Township precinct 36 will be held at The Clubhouse at Dolphin Lake located at 2700 W. 183rd St. and precinct 26 will be held at H-F Racquet and Fitness Club located at 2920 183rd St.

WHAT'S ON THE BALLOT

There are a number of statewide races being contested in the primary, including governor, U.S. Senate, Secretary of State and Comptroller. Check out our IL 2026 Primary Election Guide for more on those races.

The list below is not comprehensive. Click here to see your sample ballot via the Cook County Clerk.

2nd Congressional District

U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly’s bid to replace outgoing Sen. Dick Durbin has set the stage for a 10-person race in the March 17 2nd Congressional District Democratic primary. Early voting is already underway.

Kelly held the seat since 2013. Those vying for the Democratic nod are: seeking his political comeback, Jesse Jackson Jr.; Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller, State Sen. Robert Peters, state Sen. Willie Preston; Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Board member Yumeka Brown; Adal Regis, who formerly worked for Kelly; Eric France; attorney Patrick “PJK” Keating; Toni C. Brown and Sidney Moore.

The winner will face Republican Mike Noack, the sole Republican on the March 17 ballot.

2nd Congressional District Democratic Primary

U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly’s bid to replace outgoing Sen. Dick Durbin has set the stage for a 10-person race in the March 17 2nd Congressional District Democratic primary. Early voting is already underway.

Kelly held the seat since 2013. Those vying for the Democratic nod are: seeking his political comeback, Jesse Jackson Jr.; Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller, State Sen. Robert Peters, state Sen. Willie Preston; Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Board member Yumeka Brown; Adal Regis, who formerly worked for Kelly; Eric France; attorney Patrick “PJK” Keating; Toni C. Brown and Sidney Moore.

The winner will face Republican Mike Noack, the sole Republican on the November ballot.

The 2nd Congressional District includes the far southeast side of Chicago (including Hyde Park); Cook County suburbs of Blue Island, Calumet City, Chicago Heights, Country Club Hills, Dolton, Flossmoor, Glenwood, Harvey, Hazel Crest, Homewood, Lansing, Matteson, Olympia Fields, Park Forest, Richton Park, Sauk Village, South Holland, and Steger; Crete, Monee, Peotone, and University Park in Will County; Aroma Park, Bourbonnais, Bradley, Kankakee, Manteno, and Momence in Kankakee County; portions of southern Will and Kankakee counties, including Pembroke Township.

Candidates include:

• Jesse Jackson Jr.
• Donna Miller
• Robert Peters
• Willie Preston
• Yumeka Brown
• Adal Regis
• Eric France
• Patrick J. Keating
• Toni C. Brown
• Sidney Moore

Referenda

“Shall Thornton Township create a Public Medical Health District for the purposes of supporting public health and medical services for residents in the Township?”

“Shall Thornton Township expand the scope and services of the Thornton Assistance Program (TAP) to include snow plowing and snow removal services for seniors within the Township?”

“Shall the State of Illinois, which has the second highest property taxes in the nation, deliver annual property tax rebates to more than three million residential property taxpayers in Illinois, as provided for in the Illinois Property Tax Relief Fund Act of 2019?”

U.S. Senate

A crowded field of Democrats looks to replace longtime Sen. Dick Durbin, the House Minority Whip, who is not seeking reelection after over 40 years in Washington.

"I truly love the job of being a United States Senator," said 81-year-old Durbin, who is the longest-serving senator ever elected to the body from Illinois. "But in my heart, I know it’s time to pass the torch." And there are plenty of candidates vying to step up and take it.

The Democratic primary ballot includes Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, who is backed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, as well as U.S. Reps. Robin Kelly of Lynwood and Raja Krishnamoorthi of Schaumburg.

Other candidates are Awisi Bustos, daughter-in-law of former U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, as well as Steve Botsford Jr., Sean Brown, Jonathan Dean, Bryan Maxwell, Kevin Ryan and Christopher Swann, as well as write-in Adam Delgado.

On the Republican side are former Illinois Republican Party chairman Don Tracy, attorney Jeannie Evans and Polish-born entrepreneur Casey Chlebek, as well as R. Cary Capparelli, Pamela Denise Long and Jimmy Lee Tillman II.

Governor

Incumbent Gov. J.B. Pritzker is seeking a third term and is unopposed in the Democratic primary. With Stratton vying for the U.S. Senate seat, this time Pritzker's ticket includes former deputy governor and state Rep. Christian Mitchell as his running mate.

Four candidates are vying for the Republican nomination, including former state Sen. Darren Bailey, who ran unsuccessfully against Pritzker in 2022.

Bailey, with running mate Aaron B. Del Mar, remained in the race after tragedy struck when his son, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren were killed in a Montana helicopter crash in October.

Bailey's Republican primary opponents include Wirepoints president Ted Dabrowski, as well as DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick and Gold Rush Gaming owner Rick Heidner.

Secretary of State

Incumbent Democrat Alexi Giannoulias is unopposed in his primary.

Two candidates are facing off in the Republican primary: Republican committeeman Walter Adamczyk and Diane Harris, a Joliet small business owner and former teacher.

Comptroller

Four Democrats are vying to replace Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza, who announced in July that she would not seek a fourth term.

They include Illinois State Sen. Karina Villa, State Rep. Stephanie Kifowit, Mendoza-backed Lake County Treasurer Holly Kim and Pritzker-backed State Rep. Margaret Croke.

Southern Illinois attorney Bryan Drew is running unopposed in the Republican primary.

Other statewide primary races are a foregone conclusion. In the Illinois Attorney General's race, Democratic incumbent Kwame Raoul and Republican Robert W. Fioretti are unopposed in their primaries. In the treasurer's race, Democrat Michael Frerichs is unopposed in his primary, and there are no Republican primary candidates on the ballot.

Other Races To Watch

But there are still some hot races to watch.

In Illinois' 8th Congressional District, with incumbent Krishnamoorthi running for U.S. Senate, eight Democrats are vying to take his place.

Junaid Ahmed, Yasmeen Bankole, Melissa Bean, Sanjyot Dunung, Neil Khot, Kevin Morrison, Dan Tully and Ryan Vetticad are seeking the Democratic nomination.

Whoever wins will face off against the winner of the Republican primary in November. Republican candidates include Kevin Ake, Jennifer Davis, Herbert Hebein and Mark Rice.

In the 9th Congressional District, which includes parts of the north side of Chicago as well as the suburbs of Evanston, Skokie, Glenview and Buffalo Grove, longtime Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky is also not seeking reelection.

Fifteen Democrats are hoping to take her place, including Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, former journalist and political content creator Katherine “Kat” Abughazaleh and state Sen. Laura Fine.

Also on the ballot are Bushara Amiwala, Phil Andrew, Patricia Brown, Jeff Cohen, Justin Ford, Mark Fredrickson, Illinois state Rep. Hoan Huynh, Bethany Johnson, Sam Polan, Nick Pyati, Howard Rosenblum and state Sen. Mike Simmons.

On the Republican primary ballot are Rocio Cleveland, John Elleson, Paul Friedman and Mark Su.

The winners of each primary will go on to run in the Nov. 3 general election.

The November midterm elections are being watched closely nationwide as Democrats look to take control of the House — and possibly, but less likely, the Senate.