Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker discussed the 2026 midterm election, preserving democracy and the national guard pulling out of Chicago in an interview with Washington Post Chief Political Correspondent Karen Tumulty at the Cap Times Idea Fest Saturday.
Preserving democracy and midterm elections
In today's political climate, Pritzker said people have two choices: team “fight” or team “cave.” Slowly, elected officials are choosing team fight, he said, acknowledging that governors have issues to worry about — like federal funding — that make speaking out against the Trump administration difficult.
“You've got to understand that if you do not stand up and speak out and activate people and join team fight, what is 2026 going to look like? What is 2028 going to look like?,” Pritzker said. “You may not have democracy at the end of this.”
Pritzker highlighted the importance of voters fighting alongside Democratic political leaders, saying two things he considers “vital” for everyone to understand are the significance of peaceful protest and registering and voting in elections.
“Show up, protest, make your voices heard peacefully,” Pritzker told the Cardinal. “It really does matter. It makes a difference to the elections in 2026 and to what the Republicans do from now until that time, because the more activism they see, the more concerned they are.”
Pritzker pointed specifically to young people saying they protest better than anyone, urging them to use their voices.
“Because honestly, we should be following you,” Pritzker told The Daily Cardinal. “We have problems in this country that are not being addressed by the current leadership in Washington. We need more young people running for office, but we need your voices in the election to elect people who reflect your views.”
With the rise of political violence, Pritzker said he worries it will keep people from protesting or speaking out but said he wants to remind everyone these are “targeted assassinations” and not aimed at protesters.
“We need to bring the temperature down,” Pritzker told the Cardinal. “As riled up as everybody is on both sides… people just need to take a beat here and recognize that this is the whole reason you have a democracy is to avoid violence in politics.”
Mid-decade redistricting
Pritzker said he “hates” the mid-decade redistricting currently going on, adding that President Donald Trump is clearly trying to “manipulate” the system, which directly goes against what the framers intended.
Recently, Trump encouraged gerrymandering legislative maps in Texas, where re-drawn maps favoring Republicans passed the Texas House, resulting in similar conversations in California, where Gov. Gavin Newsom is now working to offset Trump's efforts.
Pritzker said he believes independent commissions should make congressional maps but it must be universal. If it comes down to it he said Democratic states need to counter gerrymandering to keep fairness.
“If Missouri does it, Maryland is going to need to do it. If Indiana does it, it may be that Illinois has to do it,” Pritzker said. “That may be what happens now that you know they're going to take advantage of every opportunity they've got. I don't like any of this again. I don't want to do it… But it can't just be the good Democrats that are doing independent commissions.”
National Guard threat in Chicago
Pritzker talked about Trump’s recent threats to send the National Guard to Chicago, saying he’s “pleased” to report that troops are not coming to the city.
This comes after weeks of national discourse between the two leaders over federal troop deployment to combat crime in various U.S. cities.
“It is a mass effort on the part of leadership in Chicago and in Illinois to push back, fight back, and collectively, we beat him,” Pritzker said. “For now, I might add. We have three and a half years of the war left.”
Trump shifted his focus on Monday, signing an order authorizing the use of the National Guard in Memphis. Today, Trump said he plans to send troops to Chicago “against Pritzker.”
Pritzker said the only way to stop Trump from militarizing cities is to take him to court and make sure they “keep him out.”
“We can only go to courts,” Pritzker said. “Our goal is to keep them from federalizing the National Guard and sending them into any city in any state. If they do it in Illinois we will take them to court and we are winning in court on this issue.”
Pritzker credited Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul for his response to the recent national guard threat. Raoul pledged to combat any deployment in court, saying there is no legal basis and called it an overreach of power that would violate Illinois’ sovereignty.
Pritzker also praised the business leaders, non-profit organizations and elected officials across Chicago for continuing to speak out everyday against the threat. He warned about the potential for deployment of troops in democratic-led cities in the 2026 election, saying blue states with blue governors will continue to fight in court.
“I guarantee you, in about five minutes, we will get this into a federal court and they will recognize that it is unconstitutional to send troops in, certainly,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker announced his bid for reelection in June. When asked about a potential presidential run in 2028, Pritzker did not indicate his plans but said Democrats need to build a brand around their future nominee, especially with “such a great bench” of potential candidates.
Shane Colpoys is a sports editor for The Daily Cardinal. She has written in-depth on the Wisconsin women's hockey team beat.
Clara Strecker is the state news editor for The Daily Cardinal. She previously served as copy chief. Clara has written in-depth on the 2025 Wisconsin Supreme Court race, the 2024 presidential election and abortion rights. She will spend the summer interning with WisPolitics. Follow her on X at @clara_strecker.
