Democratic Candidate · Illinois U.S. Senate 2026
U.S. Representative, Illinois 8th Congressional District (since 2017)
Raja Krishnamoorthi was born in New Delhi, India, and grew up in Normal, Illinois. He earned a B.S.E. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Princeton University (1995) and a J.D. from Harvard Law School (2000). [Krishnamoorthi House bio]
Before Congress, he worked as a patent lawyer and served as Special Assistant Illinois Attorney General under Lisa Madigan, and later as a Deputy State Treasurer under Rod Blagojevich. He ran unsuccessfully for Illinois Comptroller in 2010 before winning election to represent the 8th District in 2016. He has been re-elected by comfortable margins in every cycle since.
Krishnamoorthi represents the northwestern Chicago suburbs—covering Schaumburg, Hoffman Estates, Hanover Park, and parts of Cook and DuPage counties. The district has a large South Asian American population, and his election in 2016 made him one of the first Indian Americans elected to Congress from the Midwest.
He announced his Senate candidacy in late April/early May 2025, shortly after Senator Dick Durbin announced his retirement, filing with the FEC and immediately drawing attention as an early frontrunner given his existing campaign infrastructure. [FEC candidate filing]
Krishnamoorthi serves on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) and the House Oversight and Accountability Committee. He also served on the bipartisan House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, where he became one of the committee's most prominent Democratic members and a frequent voice on supply-chain security, fentanyl trafficking, and technology competition with China. [Committee assignments]
Krishnamoorthi has positioned his national security and China expertise as a primary differentiator. He has been one of the most active Democratic members on countering Chinese economic and technological competition, co-leading select committee work on supply chains, fentanyl trafficking by Chinese criminal networks, and TikTok. [Campaign issue page]
Focuses on domestic manufacturing and competitiveness. Supported the CHIPS Act, the Inflation Reduction Act's clean energy investments, and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. His district includes significant suburban business communities and he has cultivated support from both labor and business constituencies.
Consistent supporter of the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion. Supports lower prescription drug costs and has backed legislation to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices—a provision included in the Inflation Reduction Act.
Strong supporter of abortion rights. Has voted repeatedly for federal legislation to protect access to abortion and has consistently opposed attempts to restrict it. [Voting record]
Voted for the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (2022), background check legislation, and red flag law frameworks. Supports universal background checks and assault weapons restrictions.
Supports comprehensive immigration reform, a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, and reducing the citizenship backlog—particularly relevant given his personal background as the son of immigrants.
Krishnamoorthi's campaign has emphasized an anti-Trump message, framing him as a watchdog against executive overreach. His intelligence and oversight committee work give him credibility on this message. [Politico, May 2025]
Krishnamoorthi has been on the defensive across multiple debates over two issues: a House resolution he voted for that congratulated ICE (which he says primarily condemned antisemitism), and a $29,300 donation from an executive at Palantir, a company holding an ICE contract. His response has been consistent: [STLPR, Jan. 2026]
Stratton's sharpest riposte: "No matter what you say now, you already demonstrated that you're not gonna show up when it matters." [STLPR]
Stratton has mocked his congressional record as only "renaming post offices." Krishnamoorthi has pushed back, saying he has passed 76 bills when counting legislation enacted in partnership with other members, and noting his work on the CHIPS Act, Infrastructure Law, and Inflation Reduction Act. [STLPR, Jan. 2026]
When Stratton attacked him for the Palantir donation (Feb. 16 debate), Krishnamoorthi went on offense: pointing out that Stratton's supporting super PAC, Illinois Future PAC, received funds from CoreCivic — a private prison contractor — calling it "very disturbing." He also noted the super PAC had not disclosed its donors despite running advertising. [Fox 32, Feb. 2026]
In the League of Women Voters forum on WTVP, Krishnamoorthi drew on his family's immigrant story and the role public programs played in their lives, warning that public benefits are "on the chopping block." He focused heavily on economic policy: opposing the Kroger-Albertsons monopoly merger, a 10% housing credit for first-time homebuyers, and clean energy tax credits. He joined Kelly and Stratton in unanimously opposing Trump's tariffs and the Trump budget bill, which he labeled the "Large Lousy Law." [WGLT/NPR Illinois, Feb. 26, 2026]
Krishnamoorthi expressed support for greater government disclosure on unidentified anomalous phenomena: "I believe in more disclosure, more transparency... Sunlight is the best disinfectant." [Fox 32]