* 8th CD candidate Melissa Bean…

Today, United States Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) endorsed Melissa Bean in the race for Illinois’ 8th Congressional District seat. Duckworth represented IL-08 from 2013-2017 before being elected to the U.S. Senate.

Statement from Senator Tammy Duckworth:

“For 20 years, I’ve been proud to call Melissa Bean a friend – and today, I’m proud to endorse her campaign to represent IL-08 in Congress. Melissa has proven time and again to be a hard working and effective leader who knows how to deliver real results. As a member of Congress, she helped pass the Affordable Care Act, hold Wall Street accountable and support our small businesses – legislation that made a real impact for families across Illinois. The people of Illinois’s 8th District deserve steady, proven leadership in Washington, D.C., and Melissa is the best person for the job.”

Statement from Melissa Bean:

“Senator Tammy Duckworth is one of Illinois’ fiercest advocates and most trusted leaders who has devoted her career to defending American families and values – first in the Illinois Army National Guard, then in Congress, and now in the United States Senate. I’m so grateful for her continued friendship and support, and I couldn’t be more thankful to have her in my corner as I fight to protect our legacy of progress for the families of IL-08.”

Today’s endorsement is another sign of the campaign’s building momentum, following an early endorsement from Congressman Bill Foster and a strong first fundraising quarter. Polling shows that Bean has an edge over her opponents in a competitive primary, and that when voters are reminded of her record, her lead continues to expand.

Click here for more on that poll. Melissa Bean reported a $540K fundraising haul for Q3, but 299K was self funded.

* Capitol News Illinois…

Since early July, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi has been a familiar face on Illinois television screens, with the Schaumburg Democrat telling the state’s voters in a set of biographical ads to “just call me Raja” as he campaigns for retiring Sen. Dick Durbin’s seat.

Krishnamoorthi’s campaign spent an average of more than $450,000 per week on television ads between July and September to maintain that constant presence, according to his quarterly campaign finance report, filed earlier this week.

By contrast, Krishnamoorthi’s two main rivals in the Democratic primary, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton and Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Matteson, have yet to spend a dime on television advertising. And the pair were once again significantly outraised by Krishnamoorthi, whose massive campaign war chest is six times larger than both of theirs combined and has helped him secure frontrunner status in the race […]

This structural disadvantage continued last quarter, with Stratton raising $1 million and having $919,774 on hand at the end of September — an amount that would cover only two weeks of Krishnamoorthi’s ad campaign.

More from the Tribune…

Stratton spent $747,314, largely on fundraising, consultants and staff, and she had $919,774 in her campaign fund to start this month.

Kelly spent $500,795, leaving her with $1.98 million in cash available to begin October.

Steve Botsford, who made an unsuccessful bid for the Chicago City Council in 2023, announced his U.S. Senate candidacy on Thursday after filing a campaign finance report showing he had given himself $101,791.

On the Republican side, former GOP state Chair Don Tracy of Springfield reported having just over $2 million in cash on hand, largely his own money.

* Evanston RoundTable…

Supporters, political action committees and candidates themselves put another $4.7 million into the crowded race for Illinois’ 9th Congressional District seat over the last three months, according to new disclosure reports, leaving two neck-and-neck front-runners and a pack of others seeking to close the cash gap as candidates work to qualify for the March primary ballot in a few weeks. […]

Abughazaleh and Biss maintain lead: Taking up the front in both fundraising and overall war chests are Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss and content creator Kat Abughazaleh, who virtually tied in both measures over the third quarter. Biss recorded raising $620,809.19 against Abughazaleh’s $620,152.83, while Abughazaleh had $1,012,275.28 available at the quarter’s end against Biss’ $1,010,267.72. These two are the only candidates to reach the seven-figure mark, setting them financially apart the rest of the field, though a few candidates aren’t far behind.

Self-funding boosts: Technically, neither Biss nor Abughazaleh actually received the most funding this quarter — that honor instead goes to former FBI agent Phil Andrew, who logged $726,034.73 after jumping into the race at the start of the quarter. However, Andrew boosted his total by loaning his campaign $200,000 of his own money on Sept. 30, the final day of the reporting period. Joining him in ponying up personal funds are economist Jeff Cohen, who gave himself $200,000, Army veteran Sam Polan, who gave himself $275,000, and 50th Ward Democratic Committeeman Bruce Leon, who pitched in another $190,000 on top of the $610,000 he’d already given himself at the end of June.

* Evanston Now…

Over 270 donors, many of whom have backed dozens of Republican politicians and the nation’s largest pro-Israel lobbying group, donated over $319,000 to State Sen. Laura Fine’s [9th CD] campaign since May, campaign records show. […]

One donor, a physician from Fort Myers, Florida, donated $500 to Fine’s campaign on Sept. 18, just three days after a fundraising email from AIPAC calling her opponents, Kat Abughazaleh and Daniel Biss “dangerous detractors” from AIPAC’s mission. The donor had previously donated tens of thousands of dollars to Republicans, including over $20,000 to two of Donald Trump’s largest super PACs in 2024.

Of the over 740 individual donations Fine received since launching her campaign, over 270 came from donors with strong links to AIPAC, which has often been criticized for targeting critics of the Jewish state, previously supported candidates directly through AIPAC, Evanston Now’s analysis of hundreds of records shows. […]

Among the list are groups like the Republican Jewish Coalition PAC and, in over a dozen instances, controversial figures like Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.), who introduced a bill in Congress that would allow Secretary of State Marco Rubio to revoke U.S. passports of citizens critical of Israel.

Many of the donors had supported Democratic candidates, too, sometimes donating to both Republicans and Democrats at the same time, so long as the candidates were pro-Israel. Some of the Democratic candidates include Rep. Haley Stevens in Michigan, who’s now running for U.S. Senate, Rep. Wesley Bell in Missouri and dozens supporting Rep. Chris Pappas in New Hampshire, also running for Senate in 2026.

As of Sept. 30, Fine had raised over $660,000 in total, with over 90% being from large-dollar donors ($200 or more).

* Playbook…

U.S. Senate race: Steve Botsford is joining the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, vowing “to make life more affordable for working families and to build a future worthy of America,” according to his launch statement.

In IL-02: State Sen. Robert Peters has been endorsed by Congresswoman Delia Ramirez (IL-03) and Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller is out with a list of endorsements, including from suburban mayors. The full list is here.

* US Rep. Bill Foster…

Today, Congressman Bill Foster (D-IL) announced that he will once again donate his Congressional pay earned during the government shutdown to the Northern Illinois Food Bank. Foster also donated his paycheck to the food bank during previous Republican Shutdowns in 2013 and 2019.

“It is unacceptable that federal employees are going without a paycheck, health insurance costs are skyrocketing, and families are seeing SNAP benefits threatened, while House Republicans stay out on vacation and refuse to come back to Washington and negotiate a bipartisan funding bill,” said Foster. “Republicans control the House, Senate, and the White House, and they remain totally committed to cutting health care and children’s food assistance to preserve tax cuts for their billionaire donors. Until they do their job and work with Democrats to protect vulnerable families and reopen the government, I will be donating my Congressional pay to the Northern Illinois Food Bank.”

* More…

* The Telegraph | Seven questions with Senate candidate Robin Kelly: Kelly says that her time representing the second district, which stretches from Chicago to Danville and Pontiac and includes a mix of urban, suburban, and rural parts of the state, gives her the perspective she needs to fully understand the needs of all Illinoisans. “I have 4,500 farms,” she said. “You can go to urban, suburban, and rural areas, and they will tell you they have delivered in every part of my district.”

* Daily Herald | Two newcomers in 6th Congressional District race: Two political newcomers are running for Illinois’ 6th Congressional District seat, a post now held by Democrat Sean Casten of Downers Grove. Chicagoan Joseph “Joey” Ruzevich has filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission indicating he’ll challenge Casten in the Democratic primary. Additionally, Shorewood resident Skylar Duensing is seeking the Republican nomination.