Daijiworld Media Network - New York

New York, Mar 18: Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi narrowly lost the Democratic primary for the Illinois Senate seat, conceding defeat to Juliana Stratton, the Lieutenant Governor of Illinois.

In a statement issued Tuesday night, Krishnamoorthi acknowledged Stratton’s victory after early results showed her leading by about six percentage points with roughly 85 per cent of the votes counted, around three hours after polls closed.

“I called Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton and congratulated her on winning this primary,” Krishnamoorthi said, adding that he trusted she would continue the legacy of veteran Senator Dick Durbin, who is stepping down and not seeking re-election.

In the heavily Democratic state, the winner of the party’s primary is widely expected to prevail in the November general election against a Republican candidate. In the 2024 presidential election, former Vice President Kamala Harris defeated Donald Trump in Illinois by about 11 percentage points.

The loss ends Krishnamoorthi’s bid to become the second Indian American to serve in the U.S. Senate after Harris, who later went on to become Vice President and the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee.

Krishnamoorthi, who has represented Illinois in the United States House of Representatives since 2017, ran a well-funded campaign positioning himself as an outsider challenging Stratton, who was backed by the state’s Democratic establishment.

Stratton received strong support from Governor JB Pritzker and Senator Tammy Duckworth. Another contender, Representative Robin Kelly, finished third in the race to succeed Durbin.

Some political observers framed the contest as a power struggle between Krishnamoorthi and Pritzker, who is seeking a third term as governor and threw his support behind Stratton, his long-time political ally.

Pritzker, an heir to the Hyatt hotel fortune, reportedly spent about $5 million of his personal wealth backing Stratton. Overall campaign spending was significant, with ad-tracking firms estimating roughly $29 million spent in support of Krishnamoorthi compared to about $16 million for Stratton.

Campaign financing became a contentious issue during the race. Stratton’s critics pointed to Pritzker’s financial backing, while Krishnamoorthi faced scrutiny over support linked to Fairshake, a political action committee backed by digital and cryptocurrency interests.

Controversy arose when Fairshake spent money on advertisements supporting Kelly, which some observers interpreted as an attempt to split the African American vote, potentially benefiting Krishnamoorthi indirectly. However, he was not directly involved in that spending.
Krishnamoorthi also received around $250,000 in support from the Indian American Impact Fund, a political action committee representing the Indian-American community.

During the campaign, Krishnamoorthi made opposition to the policies of President Trump a central theme. He criticised what he described as an “unauthorised war with no end in sight” involving Iran and voted against Trump’s Iran war resolution, which ultimately failed to pass in Congress.

He also supported legislative efforts aimed at reversing some of Trump’s cuts to welfare programmes, while highlighting economic pressures and rising prices, which he linked to the conflict with Iran.

Born in New Delhi, Krishnamoorthi moved to the United States as a three-month-old when his father relocated for higher education.
Reflecting on his journey, he said, “Only in America can an immigrant with twenty-nine letters in his name go from public housing and food stamps to the halls of Congress.”

Immigration policy was another key issue in the campaign, particularly amid the Trump administration’s intensified enforcement operations in Chicago, where the crackdown known as “Operation Midway Blitz” reportedly led to around 1,600 arrests, some under controversial circumstances.

Krishnamoorthi highlighted his immigrant background in campaign messaging, saying opposition to Trump’s immigration policies and actions by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was deeply personal. He called for major reforms to the agency, while Stratton advocated abolishing it entirely.

With his Senate bid unsuccessful, Krishnamoorthi will not return to Congress once his current term ends. His departure will reduce the membership of the informal group of Indian-American lawmakers in Congress known as the Samosa Caucus — unless new members are elected in November.