![\"Donna](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CTC-L-2nd-Miller-1086.jpg\")
Donna Miller, the Democratic nominee for the 2nd Congressional District, was greeted by cheerleaders as she entered her election night event on March 17, 2026, in Chicago Heights. (Vincent D. Johnson\/for the Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\nCook County Commissioner Donna Miller was declared the winner of the Democratic primary in Illinois\u2019 2nd Congressional District Tuesday as voters rejected a comeback effort by former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.<\/p>\n
Miller, who ran a health care-focused campaign, weathered criticism from opponents that her campaign was overly backed by a pro-Israel lobbying group. She had won an estimated 40.5% of the vote by 10 p.m. Tuesday, according to unofficial results from The Associated Press.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe voters of the 2nd Congressional District sent a message tonight that you will choose your representation in Washington,\u201d Miller said at her Chicago Heights watch party. \u201cYou will send someone who knows the issues. You will send someone who actually lives in the 2nd Congressional District to focus on the issues that matter in this district.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jackson, behind her at 29%, ran to win back the seat he once held for 17 years. He resigned in 2012 amid a campaign finance misuse investigation that landed him in prison. As he conceded Tuesday evening, he cited a piece of advice once given, he said, to his late father, the Rev. Jesse Jackson.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe must learn to forgive each other, redeem each other and move on,\u201d he said before a balloon-covered stage with posters that declared \u201cRise, Jesse, Rise.\u201d<\/p>\n
Miller, 60, is all but guaranteed the seat in the heavily Democratic district that stretches along the lakefront on the South Side and includes suburbs like Harvey, Dolton and Pontiac. Outgoing Rep. Robin Kelly, who has held the seat for 13 years since winning a special election following Jackson\u2019s resignation, unsuccessfully ran for U.S. Senate instead of seeking reelection. She conceded late Tuesday to the declared winner, Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton.<\/p>\n
Excitement built at Miller\u2019s watch party as initial returns showed her jumping out to an early lead that never shrank. A squad of youth cheerleaders held green and gold pompoms and wore white T-shirts with pink lettering bearing the refrain made famous in the district on billboards and commercials thanks to massive outside spending supporting her: \u201cGo Donna Go!\u201d<\/p>\n
Miller\u2019s campaign consultant, veteran political strategist Delmarie Cobb, pinned the victory Tuesday night on the optimistic tone Miller sought to strike as opponents made attacks.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe decided to stay positive, keep our heads high and just let the chips fall where they may,\u201d Cobb said. \u201cI think it worked for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cobb said Miller\u2019s campaign targeted older Black women. \u201cThat\u2019s who comes out, that\u2019s who votes in record numbers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Miller, first elected to the Cook County Board in 2018, carved out a moderate lane in the crowded field of 10 candidates vying to replace Kelly, who opted to run for U.S. Senate instead of seeking reelection.<\/p>\n
Throughout the congressional campaign, other candidates slammed Miller for the money she raised and the outside spending that supported her. The opponents alleged the money stemmed from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which advocates for Israel\u2019s interests and supports both Democrats and Republicans.<\/p>\n
About two-thirds of the $2 million she raised through late February came from people who had recently contributed to AIPAC or AIPAC-affiliated groups. The dark-money super PAC Affordable Chicago Now, which opponents described as an AIPAC shell group, spent $4.4 million to support her. Altogether, the money made her campaign one of the most financially well-supported Democratic primary campaigns Chicago has ever seen.<\/p>\n
Donna Miller, the Democratic nominee for the 2nd Congressional District, was greeted by cheerleaders as she entered her election night event on March 17, 2026, in Chicago Heights. (Vincent D. Johnson\/for the Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n
State Sen. Robert Peters, who campaigned as the race\u2019s top progressive, maintained that criticism Tuesday night as he conceded.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith Trump-aligned super PACs spending millions of dollars to buy this and other seats across Illinois, every voter should be deeply concerned,\u201d he said in a concession statement.<\/p>\n
Fairshake, a super PAC backed by cryptocurrency industry leaders, spent over $800,000 attacking Peters, who was the race\u2019s second-highest fundraiser. Peters had won 11.9% of the vote late Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Commissioner Yumeka Brown appeared poised to finish in fourth place with 10.4% of reported votes Tuesday evening, a total that signaled a strong organizing effort from her less-wealthy campaign. State Sen. Willie Preston, expected to be another top competitor, trailed with an estimated 3%, according to the unofficial results.<\/p>\n
Jackson credited the other candidates in the race as he told reporters Tuesday night that he did not measure the loss how most would expect.<\/p>\n
\u201cI learned something from them,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cWe grew together as a community and ultimately we\u2019re all neighbors.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the district must unite behind Miller to secure a Democratic win in the general election and added that Miller \u201cfully understands what\u2019s at stake.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jackson said he looked forward to \u201ca good night\u2019s sleep\u201d and having time to mourn the death of his civil rights leader father, who passed away last month.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy dad would share with me \u2026 that some days we win, some days we lose and we get back up and we put the pieces back together,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Miller will face Republican Michael Noack in the November election. Noack, a truck driver who touts his political-outsider status, ran unopposed.<\/p>\n
![\"Donna](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CTC-L-2nd-Miller-1175.jpg\")
Donna Miller, the Democratic nominee for the 2nd Congressional District, reaches out to greet supporters at her election night event on March 17, 2026, in Chicago Heights. (Vincent D. Johnson\/for the Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n
Miller, a health care consultant who served as board chair for Planned Parenthood of Illinois, zeroed in on improving health care as her top priority on the campaign trail and insisted her record as a commissioner, including securing $3 million for a Cook County Health doula program and expanding CPR training, showed she can deliver results.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to get back to data and science and focus on results, and we need to quit chasing headlines,\u201d she said during her campaign.<\/p>\n
She also highlighted her support for a south suburban airport near Peotone, a plan that has been discussed for decades and has gone practically nowhere.<\/p>\n
A lifelong resident of the district, she said she is part of its \u201cwoven fabric,\u201d an apparent effort to distinguish herself from other candidates in a subtle jab at several who live outside the district.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t just come to a district to pop in and out,\u201d she said. \u201cPeople know me, they see me. \u2026 I walk the block.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked about her support from AIPAC-linked groups and individuals, Miller rejected any assertion that her campaign had coordinated with the controversial group. But she aligned herself with one of the group\u2019s top goals: securing more military aid to Israel. She cited her upbringing in a military family when asked if she would support such aid. \u201cI look at military aid as a way that we can strengthen and uphold the democratic values in the Middle East,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Like other candidates in the field, she repeatedly described herself as \u201canti-Trump.\u201d She said she rejects Trump\u2019s rollbacks in medical research, federal employee layoffs and aggressive deportation campaigns.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday night, she took the stage alongside her husband and son as the crowd chanted, \u201cGo, Donna, Go!\u201d<\/p>\n
She reiterated her support for a south suburban airport, promising to \u201cwork tirelessly to bring all sides together\u201d to advance the long-stalled project.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithin the next three to five years, we\u2019ll break ground on the airport, and you\u2019ll see the south suburbs and Chicago\u2019s South Side begin to transform,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
She also criticized Trump for not supporting seniors, veteran health care and Medicaid in an interview with the Tribune.<\/p>\n
\u201cCutting $880 billion out of Medicaid is not what makes people feel comfortable,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is not what people want.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller was declared the winner of the Democratic primary in Illinois\u2019 2nd Congressional District…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":663991,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5124],"tags":[960,5386,1818,280942,280943,280223],"class_list":["post-663990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-chicago","tag-chicago","tag-il","tag-illinois","tag-illinois-2nd-congressional-race","tag-jesse-jackson-jr-donna-miller","tag-robert-peters"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/663990","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=663990"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/663990\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/663991"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=663990"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=663990"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=663990"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}