Early voting begins this week, but who will you vote for in Illinois?

There are lot of great candidates running in the March 17, 2026 Primary elections for both the Democrat and Republican parties. Here are some you should consider and a few you should avoid

By Ray Hanania

(FREE)

President Donald Trump won’t go to war for Ukraine to stop Russia. But he will go to war for Israel to attack Iran.

You’d think Israel’s government would be grateful, attacking Iran using our weapons, and costing American lives?

But this election shows how ungrateful Israel is to America and to Trump, who self-described himself as “Israel’s greatest champion.”

I wonder if Trump knows what’s going on behind his back? Pro-Israel PACS are slamming Trump, pouring millions of dollars in dark PAC money into candidates who have made hating Trump the focus of their elections.

Recipients of AIPAC-tied money focused on foreign interests include four Democrats right here in Illinois who offer little except “fight Trump”: State Sen. Laura Fine, running for Congress in the 9th District; former Congresswoman Melissa Bean, running for Congress in the 8^th District; Chicago City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin (who misspent Chicago money and abused a whistleblower), running for Congress in the 7th District; and, 6th District Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller, running for Congress in the 2^nd District.

Thanks to Trump’s friends, AIPAC< they are bashing Trump like there is no tomorrow. It’s not that Trump is good or bad. It’s the deceitfulness of a group that claims they love America, when they clearly do not.

Some might argue AIPAC has no choice but to support Democrats who hate Trump because in Illinois, Republicans are a dysfunctional disaster.

That’s true. But the candidates could have used the AIPAC money to focus on other important issues, or help strengthen Republicans, rather than bite the hand that feeds you.

Don’t expect MAGA extremists to understand how they are getting screwed by AIPAC. They pay more for gasoline, groceries, and everything else, and still think the economy is great. LOL

Speaking of “Republicans,” In the important Orland Park battle for GOP Committeeperson, disgraced former Mayor Keith Pekau is desperate to be relevant, leading Sean Morrison and Cindy Katsenes to back Ken Duffy.

Pekau was thrown out of office by a massive landslide rejection last April. Pekau, who whined for the first two years of his term about how he was unfairly treated, spent the remaining 6 years of his two terms attacking anyone who didn’t agree with his poor policy choices.

Pekau left Orland Park in debt, but worse, he destroyed the Republican Party, dragging it to the Extreme Far Right, the mirror image of the problem among Democrats who have drifted to the Extreme Far Left.

Under Pekau’s hand-picked minions, the Republican Party took a beating.

Keep in mind, while I am a conservative Democrat (which puts me in the “Middle”), I believe we need both parties, Democrats and Republicans, to preserve the checks and balances that make our Democracy so great.

The effective Republican in the Orland Township GOP Committeeman’s race is Elizabeth “Liz” Gorman, who served on the County Board for years as the strongest pro-taxpayer voice. Gorman’s record defending and fighting for taxpayers is rock solid.

I covered Gorman and came to respect her, watching her fight for taxpayers, blocking many tax hikes, and creating a consensus that served the needs of the taxpayers.

Gorman can rebuild the Republicans party. She fought off a dozen tax hike proposals, even though Republicans are a small minority in Cook County. Democracy needs a good Republican voice as a counterbalance.

At some point, Pekau will disappear, screaming into the night to himself in his eNews”Litter” about how he screwed up an opportunity to make Orland Park great. He had the chance and blew it, attacking anyone who questioned his poor, failed decisions.

His successor, Jim Dodge is slowly and carefully rebuilding Orland Park, restoring stability and its image as one of the best suburban communities in the Southwest Suburbs.

Besides Gorman in the Republican Primary March 17, there are many great candidates locally in the Democratic Primary, not funded by foreign money.

One I like is Niki Conforti, the Republican candidate for Congress in the 6th Congressional District. She has run before and done very well. The more people see the failures of Congressman Sean Casten, who cowardly avoids taking tough positions, the more change is in the air. On the Democratic side, Joseph “Joey” Ruzevich gets the first shot at taking Casten out.

Former County Board member Richard Boykin is running in the 7^th Congressional District to succeed US Rep. Danny Davis. Boykin worked for Davis, whom I covered when he was an alderman and I was a City Hall reporter. Davis was a great public servant as an alderman and later as a member of Congress in the 7th District.

Patricia Joan “Trish” Murphy, running for the Cook County Board 6^th District, replacing sell-out Donna Miller, who has padded her campaign with AIPAC-tied foreign lobbying focused money to grab the seat for Congress.

Murphy will do what Miller failed to do: fight for the taxpayers. Murphy has the experience and commitment.

Miller is doing what Raja Krishnamoorthi is trying to do in his bid to buy the U.S. Senate seat, nothing except attacking others while never saying what he plans to do. They both state the obvious, that they oppose Trump. What responsible elected official doesn’t oppose Trump in Illinois, a state besieged by heavy burdens of taxes, lack of services, lots of crime, and ranked one of the worst in the country?

Big money steals the voice of voters to decide elections. If you see a candidate’s Ad more than 5 times in a day, vote against them.

A seemingly nice person, Krishnamoorthi will turn the Senate seat into a rest area for the wealthy and privileged rather than the frontline for the battle on behalf of those in need, like you and me.

Robin Kelly, running against millions in outside campaign funds behind Krishnamoorthi and Gov. J.B. Pritzker-backed Juliana Stratton, is the favored candidate fighting for taxpayers in that race to succeed Dick Durbin in the US Senate.

Kelly actually has a record of achievements and bills she introduced that taxpayers, seniors, and families have needed. She has been a great voice in Congress and will be an even stronger voice in the U.S. Senate.

For Cook County Commissioner, incumbent Frank Aguilar has been honest, upfront, and dedicated to helping everyone in the 16th Cook County District. His opponent is a good person, but with no real experience.

Illinois Senator Mike Porfirio, an honored veteran, has always puts his district first. He puts his nose to the grindstone, working to get things done, meeting with constituents, but avoiding the big headlines of the egotists.

Dan Balanoff is running for the Judicial SubCircuit. Balanoff is genuine and caring. He will make a great judge.

In the Illinois 8^th House District, Pastor John Harrell is an inspirational voice. Harrell built the group Black Men United to bring the community together in a positive way. He is the pastor of two churches in the West Side (Chicago and suburbs) who was recently elevated to the position of Bishop.

We really need someone who adheres to the purity of religious principles of fairness, kindness, and caring to sit in Springfield and ensure good is done there.

There are some great taxpayer fighters in Springfield, like State Senator Michael E. Hastings, but they can’t do it alone. Hastings is a model of what a public servant should be like, which is why a few low-lifes have tried to take him out and failed, throwing mud and vicious lies at him. Their reckoning is on its way.

In DuPage County, Democrat Mahnoor Ahmad is running for a seat on the DuPage County Board. Ahmad is a hard worker who cares about the needs of taxpayers, homeowners, families, and seniors.

Another great candidate is Lyons Mayor Chris Getty who is running for Congress in November in the 4^th District to succeed retiring US Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia. Garcia waited until the last minute to withdraw so his chief of staff could run in his place, denying voters a real choice. Running in November, Getty vowed to return the voice of voters to the district.

Lessons in School District 230 politics

Elected to the Consolidated High School District 230 board, moderate American Arab Mohammed Jaber fights for the rights of all students.

Not everyone likes that, including some in his own community, a large community plagued by dysfunction and internal squabbles. For some Arab American leaders, “envy” is the key motivator, not commitment to the people.

American Arabs fought for more than 30 years to elect a voice to the Dist. 230 board. When they finally got Jaber elected, the community collapsed into envy and politics, arguing, “Why Jaber and not me?”

Arabs are 30 percent of the student population. It’s important to have at least one Arab on the board, which oversees three high schools – Andrew, Sandburg, and Stagg.

Last August, Jaber urged the board to teach Arabic, arguing correctly its essential for business students who might work in the Middle East, a commerce center.

At January’s board, Jaber proposed it in a motion, but board members were told to reject it. Board “President” Lynn Zeder promised it would come up in February.

It did come up, with little substance, at the February meeting, but no public hearings on the idea were announced. In fact, it’s clear the board plans to kill the added language proposal and prevent it from ever becoming a reality.

Jaber also asked that the word “Arab” be added to the district’s list of nationalities defined in its teaching mandate, but the board refused that, too.

There was one idiot in the audience who attacked Jaber, and others, but no one wastes time listening to his blather, a fading echo of Pekau ties.

(Originally published in the Southwest News Newspaper group)