The upcoming elections will have Illinoisans voting to elect the governor, other statewide officers, most members of the General Assembly, and our state's 17 representatives in Congress.

Meanwhile, the decision by U.S. Senator Dick Durbin not to seek reelection has created a once-in-a-generation opportunity to be our state's junior senator.

Here at The 21st Show, we committed to offering a full-show interview to every candidate for governor, U.S. Senate, and as many downstate Congressional candidates as time allowed. This held regardless of their party affiliation, their standing in the polls, and their campaign fundraising.

Below is a list of our candidate interviews, as well as some other election-related conversations that may be of interest.

Early voting runs now through Election Day, which is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. You can register to vote or find your polling place through the Illinois State Board of Elections.

Election Day is less than a week away, and one of the biggest choices before Illinois voters is who will succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin.

Democratic Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton is facing Republican Don Tracy, a former chairman of the Illinois Republican Party, and Whitfield Harrington Jr., a Chicago pastor running with the American Center Party. Our conversations covered the war in Iran, America's relationship with Israel, immigration enforcement and the Senate filibuster.

We've spoken with all three candidates on our show, and today we listen back to some of the highlights from those interviews.

Whitfield Harrington Jr., a pastor from Chicago, is running to be the next U.S. Senator from Illinois. He registered as the candidate of the American Center Party, which he also founded as a state party (not to be confused with any other American Center Party).

Harrington faces steep odds against Democratic nominee Juliana Stratton, who is also the lieutenant governor; and Republican nominee Don Tracy. He's also been excluded from the only televised debate of the campaign, which is happening tonight at WTTW-TV in Chicago (and will be broadcast on select PBS stations across Illinois).

Although Harrington will not be in the debate, he did join us live for a conversation on policy, his view on where exactly the American center actually is, and what it means to campaign outside the two-party system.