This St. Patrick’s Day, Kankakee County voters can head to the polls in addition to sampling a green beer.

March 17 marks the 2026 primary, where voters can pull a Democratic or Republican ballot to pick who appears on the ballot come November. All voters, partisan or not, can weigh in on referendum questions.

The deadline for candidates to file was Nov. 3.

Who has filed?

Illinois governor and lieutenant governor: Incumbent JB Pritzker, a Democrat, has filed to run for reelection. He has named Christian Mitchell as his running mate after Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton announced her intention to run for the U.S. Senate.

Conservative research group Wirepoints president Ted Dabrowski, DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick, former state Sen. Darren Bailey, Gregg Moore of Broadview, Gold Rush Gaming owner Rick Heidner of Barrington Hills, Max Solomon of Hazel Crest and Joseph Severino of Lake Forest have filed as Republicans. Patricia L. Tillman of Chicago has filed as a Democrat.

Illinois attorney general: Incumbent Kwame Raoul, a Democrat, has filed to run for another term. Former Chicago alderman Bob Fioretti and Andy Williams Jr. of Darien have filed to run as Republicans.

Illinois secretary of state: Alexi Giannoulias, an incumbent Democrat, has filed to run for reelection. Walter Adamczyk of Chicago and Joliet Junior College Trustee Diane M. Harris filed to run as Republicans.

Illinois comptroller: Incumbent Susana Mendoza, a Democrat, is not running again. State Sen. Karina Villa of West Chicago, Lake County Treasurer Holly Kim of Mundelein, state Rep. Margaret Croke of Chicago, state Rep. Stephanie Kifowit of Oswego and Champaign County Auditor George Danos have filed to run as Democrats and and Bryan Drew of Benton as a Republican. Former state Sen. Rickey Hendon has also said he is running as a Democrat.

Illinois treasurer: Incumbent Michael Frerichs, a Democrat, has filed to run for a fourth term.

U.S. Senate: Incumbent Dick Durbin, a Democrat, is not seeking reelection.

Casey Chlebek, former Illinois Republican Party Chair Don Tracy, R. Cary Capparelli of Chicago, CaSándra Claiborne of Chicago, Pamela Denise Long of Edwardsville, Jimmy Lee Tillman II of Chicago, Jeannie Evans of Chicago and John Goodman of Des Plaines have filed to run as Republicans.

Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton of Chicago, U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Schaumburg, Kevin Ryan of Chicago, U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly of Lynwood, Steve Botsford Jr. of Chicago, Jump Shepherd of North Riverside, Jonathan Dean of Chicago, Sean Brown of Orland Park, Bryan Maxwell of Urbana, Adam Delgado of Chicago, Anthony W. Williams of Dolton, Awisi A. Bustos of Springfield, Robert Palmer of Chicago and Christopher A. Swann of Chicago as Democrats. Independents Tyrone Muhammad and Austin J. Mink have also said they are running.

U.S. House of Representatives: All 17 members of Congress representing Illinois are up in 2026. To find what district you live in, go to congress.gov/members/find-your-member.

• District 1: Jonathan Jackson, a Democrat representing parts of Cook, Kankakee and Will counties, has filed to run for reelection. Marcus Lewis of Matteson and Christian Maxwell of Chicago have filed as Republicans.
• District 2: Robin Kelly, a Democrat representing parts of Champaign, Cook, Ford, Iroquois, Kankakee, Livingston, Vermilion and Will counties, is not seeking reelection and instead running for the U.S. Senate. Robert Peters of Chicago, Eric France of Lynwood, Donna Miller of Lynwood, Yumeka Brown of Matteson, Willie Preston of Chicago, Jesse Louis Jackson Jr. of Chicago, Patrick J. “PJK” Keating of Flossmoor, Toni C. Brown of Chicago Heights, Sidney Moore of Calumet City and Adal Regis of Chicago have filed to run as Democrats and Ashley Ramos of Clifton and Michael Scott Noack of Bonfield as Republicans.

Illinois State Senate: Like its federal counterpart, only some of its members are up for reelection this year. In Kankakee County, that includes:

• District 15: Napoleon Harris III, a Democrat representing Cook, Kankakee and Will counties, has filed to run for reelection. Kenneth “Ken” Henderson of Dixmoor filed to run as a Republican.
• District 17: Elgie R. Sims Jr., a Democrat representing Cook, Kankakee and Will counties, has filed to run for reelection. Frederick L. Walls of Crete filed to run as a Republican.

Illinois House of Representatives: All state representative seats are up every two years. Among some of the races in Kankakee County:

• District 27: Justin Slaughter, a Democrat representing Cook and Will counties, has filed to run for reelection
• District 29: Thaddeus Jones, a Democrat representing Cook, Kankakee and Will counties, has filed to run for reelection.
• District 34: Nicholas K. Smith, a Democrat representing Cook, Kankakee and Will counties, is not running for reelection. Cleopatra “Cleo” Cowley of Chicago and Aja Kearney of Chicago, and Antwon T. Russell of Burnham filed to run as Democrats.
• District 79: Jackie Haas, a Republican representing Cook, Grundy, Kankakee and Will counties, has filed to run for reelection. Robert S. Ellington-Snipes of Kankakee has filed to run as a Democrat.

County-level races: Also on the ballot will be County Board members, county clerks, treasurers, sheriffs, assessors, and regional superintendents. Some counties also elect their Boards of Review, sanitary districts, and forest preserve district commissioners and president.

Patricia High filed to run as a Republican for regional superintendent of Iroquois and Kankakee counties.

What judicial races will I get to vote on?

Three vacancies are up at the Illinois appellate court level, according to an Illinois State Board of Elections list as of Sept. 3. Voters will also get to vote on retentions.

The appellate vacancies include a seat on the Third Appellate District. The district sits in Ottawa and includes Bureau, La Salle, DuPage, Will, Grundy, Kankakee, and Iroquois counties. Margaret “Peggy” O’Connell of Lisle and John Pavich of Frankfort has filed to run as Democrats and Jason A. Helland of Mazon and Mark Senak of Glen Ellyn has filed as Republicans.

Important Dates

Oct. 27 to Nov. 3, 2025: Candidates in established parties can file the necessary documents either at the Springfield office for state-level candidates or at the County Clerk’s Office in the county where they’re running.

Among the paperwork required is a statement of candidacy and petitions signed by registered voters. The number of signatures required varies by office.

Nov. 10: Last day for objections challenging whether candidates can appear on the ballot to be filed.

Nov. 17 to 24: Filing period for candidates seeking to fill judicial vacancies.

Dec. 3: Deadline to file objections in judicial vacancy races.

Dec. 15: Deadline to file petitions for referendums to appear on the March ballot. This does not include referendum questions authorized by local governments, just ones submitted through voter-signed petitions.

Dec. 17: First day to apply for a vote-by-mail ballot.

Dec. 22: Deadline to file objections on referendum questions.

Dec. 29: Deadline for local government boards – like school boards and city councils – to adopt a resolution or ordinance for a binding referendum.

Jan. 8, 2026: Last day for a candidate to withdraw from the race.

Jan. 15: Last day for a candidate to file as a write-in.

Feb. 5: Early voting starts and county clerks begin mailing vote-by-mail ballots.

March 1: Last day to register to vote online through the State Board of Elections’ website. Grace period registration and voting continues through Election Day.

March 17: Election Day for the 2026 primary. Polls close at 7 p.m. Voters can request a partisan ballot with either Democratic or Republican candidates listed or a non-partisan ballot, which includes any referendums.