Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton won the Democratic Senate primary despite more than $8 million in support for Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi from Fairshake, a crypto super PAC (political action committee).
Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton won the Democratic primary for the state’s U.S. Senate seat on Tuesday night, defeating Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, who had received more than $8 million in backing from Fairshake, a crypto super PAC (political action committee). Stratton was backed by Illinois Governor JB Pritzker. According to the Cook Political Report, the seat is rated "Solid Democratic," indicating the primary winner is likely to prevail in the November general election and represent Illinois in the Senate in 2027. Fairshake’s campaign largely focused on attacking Stratton rather than directly promoting Krishnamoorthi, reflecting a tactic it also used in the 2024 election cycle. Stand With Crypto, a Coinbase-backed advocacy group, gave Stratton an "F" rating based on a comment criticizing her opponent’s support from "MAGA-backed crypto bros," while Krishnamoorthi received an "A" based on his voting record and questionnaire responses. In a separate Illinois race, La Shawn Ford also won after Fairshake spent nearly $2 million opposing him. Ford’s team sent the PAC a cease-and-desist letter alleging the advertisements were defamatory. Separately, Senator Tim Scott said a stalled crypto market structure bill is advancing privately and that he expected to review a first proposal this week.