Rep. Kathleen Willis, D-Addison, and Norma Hernandez of Melrose Park are competing in the Democratic primary in the 77th House District. [House Democrats and Norma Hernandez/Facebook]

Veteran Rep. Kathleen Willis (D-Addison) made headlines in 2021 when she was one of three Democratic women to publicly announce she was mounting a run for speaker against former House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago). Now Willis is fighting off a challenger to her own legislative career from Triton College Trustee Norma Hernandez of Melrose Park.

A mailer by the Democratic Party of Illinois describes Republican attorney general candidate Tom Devore. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

Democratic organizations have weighed into the Republican gubernatorial primary through TV commercials and direct mailers targeting Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin and highlighting Sen. Darren Bailey’s (R-Xenia) conservative credentials. Now the Democratic Party of Illinois is extending the tactic to weigh into the Republican attorney general primary.

More than 200,000 Illinoisians have already cast their ballot for the June 28 primary. [Mauricio Pena/Block Club Chicago]

With the June 28 primary less than a week away, more than 210,000 people have already cast their ballots in Illinois, which is less than half the number of people who voted early before the 2018 primary, records show.

Gregg Johnson, left, and Thurgood Brooks, right, are competing in the Democratic primary for the 72nd House District. [Campaign websites]  

A pair of East Moline Democrats and a former Rock Island mayoral candidate are vying for the Democratic nomination in the 72nd House District after Rep. Mike Halpin (D-Rock Island) decided to a pursue a seat in the Illinois Senate.

Former Sen. Tom Cullerton (D-Villa Park) was sentenced Tuesday to one year in prison after he pleaded guilty to multiple corruption charges. House Republicans are calling for a hearing into fraudulent unemployment payments made during the pandemic. Democratic House candidate Michael Rabbitt responds to his father and former Missouri House Speaker Richard Rabbitt’s 1977 corruption conviction. And the Illinois Fuel and Retail Association is making their own signed to comply with the state’s sticker requirement on gas pumps.

Former U.S. Attorney for Central Illinois John Milhiser, left, and Rep. Dan Brady (R-Bloomington), right, are running in the Republican primary for Secretary of State. [Milhiser and Brady websites] 

Modernizing and improving the public’s interactions with the Secretary of State’s office is the top priority for Republicans John Milhiser and Rep. Dan Brady (R-Bloomington) in their bids to replace Jesse White after over two decades of service.

Rep. Sam Yingling (D-Grayslake), left, and former Rep. Mary Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville), right, are facing off in the Democratic primary for the 31st Senate District. [Sam Yingling/Facebook and Mary Edly-Allen website]

Sen. Melinda Bush (D-Grayslake) decided to end her Senate career after 10 years in Springfield and is now backing former Rep. Mary Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville) to be her successor in a competitive primary against veteran lawmaker Rep. Sam Yingling (D-Grayslake).

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks during a bill signing ceremony at Rush University Medical Center Thursday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

Illinois lawmakers closed a major loophole in state law after Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill that ensures sexual assault victims can file charges against their abuser in cases when the victim drank voluntarily is too drunk to give consent.

Illinois’ film industry notched a record year of revenue in 2021 as the industry continues to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic. And a new study finds most governors have positive approval ratings in their states, but Gov. JB Pritzker’s popularity is among the lowest in the nation.

Kent Gray of Leland Grove, left, and Rep. Tim Butler (R-Springfield), right, are running in the Republican primary in the 95th House District. [Kent Gray/Facebook and Blue Room Stream] 

Rep. Tim Butler (R-Springfield) is facing his first challenge from a member of a major party since he was appointed to his House seat in 2015. Butler will face off against former President Donald Trump’s Illinois campaign manager Kent Gray in an almost entirely new district in the June 28 primary.