Republicans hope to chip away next month at super-majorities in the Illinois General Assembly held by Democrats, who are aiming to strengthen their iron grip on the state Capitol.
Leaders on both sides of the aisle in the Illinois House say they can flip five or more seats in the chamber, where Dems hold a commanding 78-40 edge.
Here’s a look at three Chicago area races in the Nov. 5 election that could tip the balance — or imbalance — of power in Springfield.
51st District: Syed vs. Ufodike
The Illinois Democratic Party is flexing its financial muscles to protect the seat won two years ago by state Rep. Nabeela Syed, D-Palatine, in this northwest suburban district that also includes Vernon Hills, Lake Zurich and Hoffman Estates.
Syed, the youngest woman in the House and one of the chamber’s first two Muslim members, faces a challenge from Republican Ela Township trustee Tosi Ufodike, who runs a preschool academy in Hawthorn Woods.
The campaign of Syed, who previously worked as a digital strategist for a civic engagement nonprofit, raked in more than $900,000 in cash and in-kind contributions from July through early October. The bulk of that support has come from the state party and several large labor unions, state election board records show.
Ufodike, who has raised more than $70,000, bills herself as a fiscal conservative and calls Syed “too extreme” for a district that previously was favorable to Republicans until Democrats redrew legislative maps after the 2020 U.S. Census. Syed won by almost seven percentage points in 2022.
The progressive incumbent touts legislation she shepherded last year that bans price gouging by pharmaceutical companies on generic drugs, emphasizing her “concentrated efforts to find GOP co-sponsors” across the aisle.
52nd District: McLaughlin vs. Peterson
State Rep. Martin McLaughlin, R-Barrington Hills, faces a deep-pocketed challenge from Democratic nominee Maria Peterson as he vies for a third term at the helm of this far northwest suburban district that stretches north to Wauconda.
McLaughlin, the former village president of Barrington Hills who owns an investment advisory firm, had about $100,000 in his campaign account at the end of June and raised about $73,000 over the summer. That included support from the Realtor Political Action Committee, the Chicagoland Operators Joint Labor-Management PAC and the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police.
Peterson, of North Barrington, is a retired attorney for the U.S. Dept. of Labor who lost her 2022 state Senate run against former Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie by fewer than 400 votes. She’s raised more than $560,000 for this campaign, much of that coming from funds controlled by Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, D-Hillside.
McLaughlin says he approaches issues as a businessman instead of as a politician, pointing to bipartisan legislation he championed to lower construction costs on engineering projects.
He won reelection by almost five points in 2022 in the once solidly Republican district, which went to President Joe Biden in 2020.
McLaughlin slammed suburban Democrats for campaigning as moderates and then “going to Springfield and voting like hair-on-fire California progressives.” He told the Sun-Times he thinks Peterson “would fit that same mold.”
Peterson countered by calling McLaughlin “a breath away from being part of the Freedom Caucus” of hardline conservative House members.
She said abortion rights are the top issue she’s heard while knocking on thousands of residents’ doors. She added she would push for an amendment adding abortion rights to the state constitution.
McLaughlin calls himself “an advocate for life” who follows former President Bill Clinton’s 1990s-era mantra of keeping abortion “safe, legal and rare.”
82nd District: La Ha vs. Akhras
State Rep. Nicole La Ha, R-Homer Glen, has had about 10 months to win over voters spanning west and southwest suburbs from Western Springs out to Lemont. The former dental hygienist, Homer Glen trustee and Mrs. America crown winner was appointed last year to replace former House Republican Leader Jim Durkin.
La Ha amassed a campaign war chest of nearly $300,000 as of early October to fend off Democratic challenger Suzanne Akhras, the Burr Ridge founder of the nonprofit Syrian Community Network (SCN), which provides support for refugees and immigrants.
Akhras believes her campaign, focused on reproductive rights and community safety, can flip a district that has twice voted for former President Donald Trump, and went to far-right GOP gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey in 2022.
La Ha says she’s proven herself “an authentic and approachable leader” who advocates for children with disabilities. She called abortion “an important topic,” but said voters in the district are more concerned with bloated government spending and property tax increases.
Asked for her stance on abortion rights, La Ha said “there should be options. There are exceptions.”
Her major financial backers include the Fraternal Order of Police and the 613 PAC, a group that supports “the advancement of Orthodox Judaism,” records show.
Akhras’ campaign had raised about $125,000 by the end of September, with individual donors “from all over,” she said — but without any help from the state party. That could change in the home stretch, as Welch has identified the 82nd as a viable flip.