Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) announced on May 6, 2025, that she will run for the U.S. Senate in Illinois in 2026 rather than another term in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The seat is open since incumbent Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) announced he would not seek re-election. As of May 6, 2025, independent race forecasters The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have rated the general election for the seat as Solid Democratic. Sabato’s Crystal Ball rated it Safe Democratic.

On her campaign, Kelly wrote, “I’m running for U.S. Senate because this moment demands proven leaders who have the experience to take on the toughest battles. I’ve never backed down—not from gun lobbyists, not from MAGA extremists, and certainly not from a fight for what’s right.”

In 2013, Kelly ran to represent Illinois’ 2nd Congressional District in a special election after then-Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) resigned. That year’s election was one of 16 special elections that happened at some point during the 113th Congress, which took place from 2013 to 2014. Kelly defeated Paul McKinley (R) in the special election, 71% to 22%. 

Kelly won by a median of 58 percentage points in her six subsequent re-election bids, in which she ran with major party opposition. Her widest margin of victory (MOV) was in 2018, when she won by 62 percentage points. Her narrowest MOV was in 2022, when she won by 30 percentage points.

As of May 6, 2025, The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have rated the 2026 general election for the district as Solid Democratic. Sabato’s Crystal Ball rated it Safe Democratic.

As of May 6, 2025, 16 members of the U.S. Congress—five senators and 11 representatives—have announced they will not seek re-election to their current seats in 2026.

Of the 11 representatives—five Democrats and five Republicans—not seeking re-election:

• Two Democrats are retiring from public office.
• Five—four Democrats and one Republican—are running for the U.S. Senate.
• Four—all Republicans—are running for governor.

Compared to the last four election cycles, there were 10 retirement announcements at this point in 2024, 12 in 2022, five in 2020, and eight in 2018.

From January 2011 to now, Ballotpedia followed 363 announcements from Senate and House members who announced they would not seek re-election. January had seen the highest number of announcements of any month at 69. The fewest announcements—12—happened in June.