U.S. Senate candidate Raja Krishnamoorthi spoke to Bloomington-Normal area Democrats during a stop Friday in downtown Bloomington.
Krishnamoorthi, whose 8th Congressional District is in the Chicago area, is running to fill the vacant seat left by retiring Sen. Dick Durbin. Other Democrats running in 2026 include Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton and U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly. Local state Rep. Sharon Chung has endorsed Krishnamoorthi and was among those in attendance at Friday's event.
Krishnamoorthi fielded audience questions related to the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill, which he refers to as the "Large, Lousy Law." He particularly mentioned downstate Illinois as an area in need of revitalization by Democratic leaders, who are not as popular in rural areas.
“We have to do everything we can to kind of reverse what's happening in parts of downstate Illinois,” said Krishnamoorthi, who was raised in Peoria and now lives in Schaumburg. “And we have to speak to those economic challenges that people have and make sure that we're kind of addressing them squarely”
Krishnamoorthi’s Senate bid comes at a time where Democrats are the minority party in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, which has led to difficulties in pushing back against President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda. A poll this week has shown Democratic support in dire straits with respondents associating the party with being “woke,” “weak,” and “out of touch.”
Krishnamoorthi said the economy has to be the focus to get support back leading into the midterm election in 2026.
“Unless and until you do that, they're going to likely tune you out on everything else,” said Krishnamoorthi. “And so for us to become the majority party, we got to be talking about, how does a Gen Zer rent or buy a home so that they can pursue their American dream? How do parents afford child care, let alone educate their children? How does somebody who's on the verge of retirement retire with dignity?”
Krishnamoorthi serves as a ranking member on the House Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. He has long criticized Chinese companies exporting illicit fentanyl to the United States, something Trump also cites as reason for tariffs, but said he nonetheless disagrees with the blanket tariffs imposed on China.
“They just end up raising prices for everybody, and on the other hand, especially blanket tariffs on friends, partners and allies, end up pushing them away at a time when we could use their assistance,” said Krishnamoorthi.
Trump has most recently announced an Aug. 1 deadline for countries to set trade deals with the U.S. in place to avoid more tariffs on goods sold to the United States. Chinese goods are already taxed at a minimum of 30% in an attempt to change relations that currently see China selling more goods to the U.S. than vice versa.
Krishnamoorthi said he plans to continue to “shine a light on the harm that's being done by bad policies pursued” by Republicans in Congress if he is elected to the U.S. Senate.
The primary for the midterm Senate race will be March 17, 2026, with the general election on Nov. 3.
