The 2022 Illinois gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 2022, to elect the governor of Illinois, concurrently with the 2022 Illinois general election. Gubernatorial candidates ran on tickets with candidates for lieutenant governor. The incumbent governor and lieutenant governor, first-term Democrats JB Pritzker and Juliana Stratton, sought re-election together against Republican nominees Illinois State Senator Darren Bailey and his running mate Stephanie Trussell.
On election day, Pritzker won re-election with 54.9% of the vote, 0.4% higher than his 2018 performance, and the best raw vote percentage for a Democrat for governor since 1960. However, his margin of victory declined from 15.7% in 2018 to 12.5% in 2022. Pritzker's victory was once again the result of a strong performance in the Chicago metropolitan area—containing a majority of the state's population—winning a lopsided victory in strongly Democratic Cook County, the home of Chicago, as well as winning all but one of the neighboring collar counties. Bailey improved upon former Republican governor Bruce Rauner's performance in 2018 by just under 4%, largely due to the absence of a strong third-party conservative candidate that appeared in 2018. Subsequently, Bailey was able to flip the counties of Alexander, Fulton, Jackson, Knox, and Winnebago, which Pritzker had previously won, while Pritzker managed to flip McLean county, marking the first time since 1948 that it has voted for a Democrat in a gubernatorial election.
Pritzker was the first Illinois governor to serve a full term and be reelected for a second since Rod Blagojevich in 2006. If Pritzker serves the entirety of his term, he will become the first Democratic governor in the state's history to serve two full four-year terms, as every previous Democratic governor elected to such a second term had either been impeached and removed, died, or resigned before finishing their second term.
Background
The primaries and general elections coincided with those for federal congressional races, the state's U.S. Senate race, and those for other state offices. The election was part of the 2022 Illinois elections.
The primary election was held on June 28. The general election was held on November 8, 2022.
Democratic primary
Candidates
Nominee
- JB Pritzker, incumbent governor
- Running mate: Juliana Stratton, incumbent lieutenant governor
Eliminated in primary
- Beverly Miles, U.S. Army veteran, registered nurse and activist
Endorsements
JB Pritzker
Republican primary
Candidates
Nominee
- Darren Bailey, state senator
- Running mate: Stephanie Trussell, former radio talk show host from Lisle, Illinois
Eliminated in primary
- Richard Irvin, mayor of Aurora
- Running mate: Avery Bourne, state representative
- Gary Rabine, businessman
- Running mate: Aaron Del Mar, Palatine Township Republican Committeeman
- Paul Schimpf, former state senator and nominee for Attorney General in 2014
- Running mate: Carolyn Schofield, McHenry County Board member
- Max Solomon, Attorney
- Running Mate: Latasha Fields
- Jesse Sullivan, venture capitalist
- Running mate: Kathleen Murphy, former director of communications for state representative Jeanne Ives
Removed from ballot
- Emily Johnson
- Keisha Smith
Declined
- Rodney Davis, U.S. representative for Illinois's 13th congressional district (ran for re-election)
- Kirk Dillard, chair of the Regional Transportation Authority, former state senator, and candidate for governor in 2010 and 2014
- Adam Kinzinger, U.S. representative for Illinois's 16th congressional district
- Todd Ricketts, finance chair of the Republican National Committee, member of the TD Ameritrade Board of Directors, and co-owner of the Chicago Cubs
Endorsements
Richard Irvin
U.S. senators
- Mark Kirk, former U.S. senator from Illinois (2010–2017) and former U.S. representative from Illinois's 10th congressional district (2001–2010)
- Tim Scott, U.S. senator from South Carolina (2013–present) and former U.S. representative from South Carolina's 1st congressional district (2011–2013)
U.S. representatives
- John Shimkus, former U.S. representative from Illinois's 15th congressional district (2013–2021)
U.S. Attorneys
- Dan Webb, former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois (1981–1985), prosecutor in Operation Greylord
Statewide officeholders
- Leslie Munger, former Illinois Comptroller (2015–2016)
- Evelyn Sanguinetti, former lieutenant governor of Illinois (2015–2019)
State legislators
- Jim Durkin, Minority Leader of Illinois House of Representatives
- Jim Oberweis, former state senator, nominee for U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, and candidate for Illinois governor
- Mark Batinick, state representative
- Adam Brown, state representative
- Tim Butler, state representative
- Tim Ozinga, state representative
- Dan Ugaste, state representative
Local officials
- Bob Berlin, DuPage County State's Attorney
- Mike Downey, Kankakee County Sheriff
- Patrick Kenneally, McHenry County State's Attorney
- Sean Morrison, Cook County Commissioner and Chair of the Cook County Republican Party
Individuals
- Kenneth Griffin, entrepreneur and investor
Organizations
- Americans for Prosperity Action
- Fraternal Order of Police Chicago Lodge 7
- Illinois Trooper Lodge 41
Newspapers
Labor unions
- International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150
Gary Rabine
Paul Schimpf
Polling
Graphical summary
Libertarian convention
Candidates
Nominee
- Scott Schluter, veteran, diesel technician, and chair of the Southern Illinois Libertarian Party
- Running mate: John Phillips
Withdrew
- Jon Stewart, former professional wrestler and candidate in 2018
Other parties and independents
Independents
Declared but never filed
- Mancow Muller, radio personality
Removed from ballot
General election
Post-primary endorsements
JB Pritzker (D)
Polling
Aggregate polls
Results
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
- Alexander (largest city: Cairo)
- Fulton (largest city: Canton)
- Jackson (largest city: Carbondale)
- Knox (largest city: Galesburg)
- Winnebago (largest city: Rockford)
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
- McLean (largest city: Bloomington)
By congressional district
Pritzker won 14 of 17 congressional districts.