Pritzker, Duckworth hold strong leads in Illinois: poll

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) and Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) are on a glide path to reelection in November, according to a new Emerson College Polling/WGN-TV/The Hill survey released Wednesday that showed both Democrats breaking 50 percent support among voters in their state.

Pritzker, a scion of the wealthy Pritzker family, leads his Republican opponent, state Sen. Darren Bailey, 51 percent to 36 percent, according to the poll. Only 5 percent say they plan to vote for someone else in November.

Duckworth, meanwhile, holds an even larger lead over her Republican challenger Kathy Salvi, with 50 percent saying they plan to vote for the incumbent Democrat and only 31 percent supporting Salvi.

Of course, Bailey and Salvi were already fighting uphill battles in a state where heavily Democratic Chicago holds outsized voting power. Neither race is considered particularly competitive; the Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan election handicapper, rates both contests as likely Democratic.

The economy remains the top concern for voters, despite Democrats’ efforts to push abortion rights and the fate of American democracy as the biggest issues of the midterm elections.

Thirty-five percent of Illinois voters pointed to the economy as their top issue, while 17 percent said threats to democracy are their chief concern. Another 14 percent said abortion access is their No. 1 issue, while 10 percent of voters are most concerned about crime.

President Biden’s approval rating is also above water in the state. Forty-nine percent of Illinois voters give the president positive marks for his job performance, while 44 percent say they disapprove, the poll found.

Likewise, Biden holds a sizable lead over his predecessor, former President Trump, in a hypothetical 2024 rematch. A majority of voters — 51 percent — say they would back Biden for a second term, compared to 38 percent who would vote for Trump.

The Emerson College Polling/WGN-TV/The Hill poll surveyed 1,000 likely voters from Sept. 21-23. It has a credibility interval — similar to a poll’s margin of error — of plus or minus 3.02 percentage points.