New Illinois Republican Party Chair Katy Salvi speaks at the Illinois delegation breakfast in Milwaukee on Wednesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

Mundelein attorney Kathy Salvi will take the helm of the Illinois Republican Party on Friday and is imploring party members to put aside their differences to focus on winning races this fall.  

Former New York Republican member of Congress Lee Zeldin speaks to the Illinois RNC delegation on Tuesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

Illinois Republicans haven’t made a gubernatorial race close since former Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner won in 2014. On Tuesday they took some advice from a different candidate in another dark blue state who made headlines by narrowing the gap against an incumbent Republican governor. 

Former U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Taylorville) speaks at a Harvard Institute of Politics panel in Milwaukee on Tuesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

Former U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis, a Taylorville Republican, knows what it is like to be the target of political violence. Though not injured, Davis was present when a gunman opened fire on a group of Republican members of Congress in 2017 during a baseball practice before the annual congressional baseball game.  

Davis, who lost a 2022 primary to U.S. Rep. Mary Miller (R-Hindsboro), said he still thinks about that shooting every day, which injured now-House Majority Leader Steve Scalise. Speaking at an event in Milwaukee with the Harvard Institute of Politics where he is a fellow, Davis said he hopes the national feeling of the need to turn down the temperature in politics will last longer than it did in 2017. 

Illinois Republicans tell The Daily Line they are happy with former President Donald Trump’s running mate selection. And Cook County state’s attorney candidate Bob Fioretti is in Milwaukee to attend the Republican National Convention.  

U.S. Rep. Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro), left, and former Republican candidate Darren Bailey, right. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]  

Illinois Republicans have faced several story lines about division inside the party in recent years. They’ve squabbled about party chairs, embracing former President Donald Trump and some fought bitter elections against each other.

But kicking off the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee Monday, Illinois Republicans showed no signs of party divisions and are focused this week on backing their nominee for president of the United States.

Kathy Salvi speaks at a campaign event in Crystal Lake in 2022. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line] 

The Illinois Republican State Central Committee has named Kathy Salvi to be the party’s next chair as the GOP shakes up their leadership in the middle of the election cycle. 

Pace celebrates purchasing electric buses in April 2024. [Pace/X] 

Illinois received more than $400 million of grants last week to fund clean energy upgrades at public transportation agencies and kick start work at the Stellantis plant in Belvidere. 

Illinois Republican Day at the Illinois State Fair in 2023. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

The Illinois Republican Party will get a new leader this week as party Chair Don Tracy exits, citing too much time spent managing party infighting. But one thing Illinois Republicans at the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee will not disagree on next week is their support for former President Donald Trump as their party’s nominee.  

Meanwhile, Gov. JB Pritzker will be working behind the scenes and in front of the TV cameras to campaign for President Joe Biden in Milwaukee. 

U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider, an Illinois Democrat from Highland Park, became the second Illinois Democrat to call on President Joe Biden to step aside for a new nominee. And Gov. JB Pritzker explained a comment picked up by a hot mic on Wednesday. 

Gov. JB Pritzker signs the Healthcare Protection Act at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

Gov. JB Pritzker signed his top legislative priority into law on Wednesday to make a series of reforms to health insurance policy in Illinois that supporters hope will make it easier for consumers to access health without getting caught up in red tape.