CHICAGO — And the race is officially on.
One day after longtime Sen. Dick Durbin announced he would retire and not seek re-election, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton launched her bid for his seat.
She is the first contender to enter what Democrats here are expecting to be a jam-packed field for a senatorial seat that hasn't been vacant in nearly 30 years.
Stratton has served at JB Pritzker's side since the billionaire businessman launched his bid for governor in 2017. In 2018, she became the first Black woman to hold the position of lieutenant governor in the state.
Stratton for months signaled her interest in seeking Durbin's seat, launching the Level Up PAC in January, specifically to support a future bid for the post.
Durbin, first elected to his position in 1996, said on Wednesday that he would not seek re-election at the end of his term.
"I know it’s time to pass the torch," Durbin, 80, said, noting he has "given over half of my life to House and Senate congressional service."
In 2016, Stratton won a state legislative seat with the help of then- President Barack Obama, who himself had once served in the Illinois Legislature. In a rare instance, Obama filmed a TV ad in a state legislative race to boost her candidacy.
As lieutenant governor, Stratton can tout advancing key initiatives alongside Pritzker, from raising the minimum wage to eliminating the state's tax on groceries to protecting reproductive rights, as red states surrounding Illinois shuttered abortion facilities.
In recent months, Stratton has served as an opposing voice to President Donald Trump's administration, including in advocating for additional funding for education in the state amid announced federal cuts.
