AILSA CHANG, HOST:
Well, yesterday was primary day in Illinois. It's a solid blue state, meaning whoever wins the Democratic primary there is essentially on a glide path to Washington. And with some longtime Democrats set to retire this year, a handful of rare open seats have materialized in Congress. NPR political reporter Elena Moore was tracking the results and joins us now to talk about them. Hi, Elena.
ELENA MOORE, BYLINE: Hey there.
CHANG: OK. Let's start with the marquee matchup last night, that's the race to succeed Dick Durbin, longtime incumbent in the Senate. What struck you most about this race?
MOORE: Well, first off, the seat hasn't been open in 30 years.
CHANG: Yeah.
MOORE: So Durbin's decision to retire is a major change in itself. It was a crowded field, but in the end, the state's lieutenant governor, Juliana Stratton, came out on top. Stratton ran as a progressive, supporting things like Medicare for all and abolishing ICE. And like many Democrats running right now, she talked a lot about affordability. Her biggest competition came from Democratic Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, who ran more to the center of Stratton and had a ton of campaign cash and the backing of a powerful pro-crypto super PAC that dropped millions on this race.
CHANG: Wait. But Stratton also benefited from some serious outside money as well, right?
MOORE: Right. She had crucial support from the state's governor, JB Pritzker. He's a potential 2028 presidential candidate. He's also a billionaire and spent millions himself supporting Stratton. So her win may be a test of his political influence and popularity, frankly, with Democratic voters. And it honestly made me wonder how voters are differentiating between donations from a major industry like crypto, compared to someone like Pritzker. I asked David Axelrod about that. He's a former adviser to President Barack Obama.
DAVID AXELROD: There are billionaires, and there are billionaires. He's a billionaire the people of Illinois know and like. They don't think he's trying to buy influence, and I think people were willing to accept that.
CHANG: There are billionaires, and there are billionaires.
MOORE: Right.
CHANG: OK. Well, spending was also a big topic in other races, especially spending associated with AIPAC, that's, of course, the pro-Israel lobbying group. What do you think the results tell us about how the Democratic base is thinking about Israel right now?
MOORE: Well, individuals and groups aligned with AIPAC spent $21 million on these primary matchups in Illinois...
CHANG: Wow.
MOORE: ...Including four House races, winning two of them. But we know that Democrats' support for Israel is dropping, and that's being felt in how voters weigh candidates with AIPAC support. You know, Illinois' 9th Congressional District was a good example of the backlash to that. AIPAC-linked forces put money behind a candidate who ultimately lost, finishing third behind two progressives, Ailsa, who were more critical of AIPAC and of Israel.
CHANG: Well, this whole primary comes at a time when the Democratic Party, more broadly, is fielding calls for change. And so...
MOORE: Yeah.
CHANG: ...I'm wondering after last night in Illinois, are you seeing some of those changes in play?
MOORE: Well, you know, as a reminder, this is a solid blue state. So these voters aren't flipping seats, but...
CHANG: Right.
MOORE: ...They may highlight just broader dynamics in the party base. You know, take the state's 9th Congressional District again. This was one of the most closely watched races of the night. Daniel Biss, the mayor of Evanston, ultimately won. He was the front-runner pledging to fight for progressive policies and more forcefully protest against President Trump's agenda. He narrowly defeated 26-year-old first-time candidate Kat Abughazaleh, who ran to the left of Biss and on an even more populist anti-establishment message. And so we're seeing that message reshape the overall debate in a lot of these safe blue seats, places where Democrats, frankly, need to rebuild the enthusiasm they lost in 2024.
CHANG: That is NPR's Elena Moore. Thank you, Elena.
MOORE: Thanks, Ailsa. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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