By JIM TALAMONTI
Illinois Radio Network
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (IRN) — Gov. J.B. Pritzker says his choice to be the state’s next lieutenant governor is an experienced government leader who is up for the fight against President Donald Trump.
After launching his campaign for a third term as governor last Thursday, Pritzker named Christian Mitchell his 2026 running mate with an announcement Tuesday morning.
Mitchell is currently a First Lieutenant in the Illinois Air National Guard and vice president of civic engagement at the University of Chicago. He served in the Illinois House from 2013 to 2019 and then as Pritzker’s deputy governor from 2019 to 2023. In 2018, Mitchell was executive director of the Democratic Party of Illinois under then-party chairman and longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago.
Pritzker was asked about Mitchell at an unrelated event Tuesday afternoon in Peoria.
“He is somebody that I have grown to trust. I’ve seen him usher enormous legislation through the legislature, working with legislators to pass the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, to pass the infrastructure bill, $45 billion capital bill for the state, so he’s a guy who knows how to get big things done. I’ve worked with him to get it done,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker’s campaign released a video Tuesday morning to announce that Mitchell was his choice for lieutenant governor next year.
“As a state representative, as the deputy governor of this state, Christian Mitchell has gotten so much done for people. I know when we’ve got to take on Donald Trump and overcome the challenges he’s bringing to our state, that Christian Mitchell is up for that fight,” Pritzker said.
Mitchell said Pritzker has done what he promised by thinking big.
“I am so excited to be joining J.B. in this moment, because it’s more critical than ever. We’ve made a lot of progress in the last eight years, but we have to protect that progress,” Mitchell said.
Current Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton announced plans to run for the U.S. Senate one day after Illinois U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, D-Springfield, said he would not seek a sixth term in 2026.
Pritzker said Tuesday that he expected Stratton to remain lieutenant governor for the next 18 months.
At the governor’s reelection campaign launch last week, Stratton said it has been wonderful to be Pritzker’s partner in governance.
“We’re two different people. We come from two different backgrounds, but we share the same values, and that is the people of Illinois deserve strong, compassionate leadership,” Stratton said at Pritzker’s reelection campaign launch last week.
Pritzker said Mitchell would have to give up his post at the University of Chicago in order to run for lieutenant governor.
