


Incumbent Democratic candidate for Governor in Illinois
General Election
Voters choose the office holder.
Current prediction-market probability for the candidate, updated as market prices change.
JB Pritzker is trading at 94% to win the Illinois Governor winner? on prediction markets.
Key details about the candidate’s background, party, office sought and current campaign.
Current roleGovernor
PartyDemocratic
Political ideologyProgressive Democrat
Age61 years old (Jan 19, 1965)
GenderMale
LocationIllinois
BackgroundPolitician
EducationDuke University
Notable personal detailsJay Robert (J.B.) Pritzker is an American politician, lawyer, and businessman who has served as the 43rd governor of Illinois since 2019, after being elected in 2018 and reelected in 2022. He is a Democrat and has been active in early childhood education and philanthropic initiatives, including support for the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. He is married to Mary Kathryn “MK” Pritzker and they have two children.
JB Pritzker has advocated replacing Illinois’s flat income tax with a progressive “Fair Tax” that would raise taxes on the wealthiest residents while leaving most taxpayers the same or paying less, and he has proposed using higher revenues to expand state spending on education, infrastructure and social programs. As governor he has also proposed targeted tax changes on businesses and specific goods (for example, increasing sportsbook and certain business-related taxes) to help fund spending increases while ruling out broad-based income tax rate hikes in some budgets.
Supports expanding and protecting Medicaid, strengthening insurance consumer protections, and expanding access to care through state-level reforms and investments. Has enacted and promoted legislation to curb predatory insurer practices, eliminate Medicaid application backlogs, expand Medicaid-covered services and pursue Medicaid demonstrations that address social drivers of health. Does not publicly advocate for single‑payer/Medicare for All in the cited materials.
Supports protecting non‑criminal undocumented residents and refugee resettlement while endorsing deportation of convicted violent criminals; advocates expanding humanitarian relief (e.g., TPS, services for refugees and DACA recipients) and has pushed the federal government for more border coordination and resources. Opposes mass deportation operations that bypass legal protocols and has pledged Illinois will limit state and local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement consistent with state law.
Supports broad legal access to abortion and has signed multiple laws expanding and protecting reproductive health care in Illinois, including shields for out-of-state patients and protections for providers; describes reproductive care as essential and affirms trust in women to make medical decisions.
The candidate supports aggressive clean-energy and emissions-reduction policies, including statewide targets to transition to carbon-free power and major investments in renewable energy, electric vehicles, and clean-energy workforce development. As governor he signed and implements the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA), which creates renewable procurement targets, accelerates EV adoption and charging infrastructure, and directs substantial funding for equitable clean-energy programs.
As governor of Illinois J.B. Pritzker has backed and signed multiple major gun-safety laws including an assault-weapons ban, limits on high-capacity magazines, expanded background checks, a ban on ghost guns, firearm restraining-order (red flag) provisions, and safe-storage requirements. His administration also created an Office of Firearm Violence Prevention and supported measures to regulate guns and gun-industry practices.
JB Pritzker is drawing attention for openly discussing a possible 2028 presidential run, though he says he has not decided yet. He is also being watched as a potential Democratic contender as he appears at events aimed at courting Black voters and activists ahead of the next presidential cycle. In Illinois, his backing of Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton in the Senate primary has been seen as a test of his political influence. He has also been speaking out against President Trump and saying threats tied to his Judaism have increased.
Recent polling results and the candidate's current average in the race.


Aggregation source: FiftyPlusOne
New updates coming soon
We're monitoring and will update when new data impacts the race.