Margaret Croke, Stephanie Kifowit, Holly Kim and Karina Villa are the Democrats vying to replace outgoing incumbent Susana Mendoza as the state comptroller.

What does the Illinois comptroller do?

The Illinois comptroller is the state’s chief financial officer. The office manages the state’s fiscal accounts, records all transactions, pays bills and reviews all expenditures and contracts. The comptroller also chairs the State Employees’ Retirement System Board and sits on the Illinois State Board of Investment, helping manage pensions for state employees. The comptroller also issues financial reports about the state’s fiscal affairs. In addition to managing the state’s finances, the office regulates cemeteries and handles the fiduciary protection of cemetery funds meant for the maintenance of grave sites in Illinois.

Who is the current comptroller?

Susana Mendoza won a special election for comptroller in 2016 to serve the final two years of the late Judy Baar Topinka’s term. Mendoza earned reelection bids in 2018 and 2022. She is the highest-ranking Latina elected official in Illinois. Mendoza, 53, previously served as the Chicago city clerk and as a state representative, and she unsuccessfully ran for mayor of Chicago in 2019. She announced last summer she would not seek reelection as she considered her “next biggest challenge.”

Who are the candidates?

Three of the four candidates in the Democratic primary are state legislators: Rep. Margaret Croke of Chicago, Rep. Stephanie Kifowit of Oswego, and Sen. Karina Villa of West Chicago. The fourth is Lake County Treasurer Holly Kim. Bryan Drew, an attorney from downstate Benton, is the lone candidate for comptroller in the Republican primary. None of the candidates received an endorsement from Mendoza.

Croke and Kifowit are more moderate Democrats. Croke boasts endorsements from House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch and 30 other House Democrats, while Kifowit is backed by multiple labor unions, veterans groups, a few House Democrats and many suburban elected officials.

Kim possesses a progressive vision but has earned votes in historically conservative areas of Lake County. She has endorsements from U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider, numerous local elected officials from across the state and several unions.

Villa is a progressive who has been a strong advocate for immigrants, as well as for affordable housing and lower healthcare costs. She carries endorsements from U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez, outgoing U.S. Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García and Illinois Senate President Don Harmon.

In the days and hours leading up to the NBA trade deadline (Thursday at 2 p.m. CT), there wasn’t a team more active than the Chicago Bulls. And while Illinois was busy blasting Northwestern down in Champaign, 84-44, the Bulls’ front office was deciding if and how to move former Illini guard Ayo Dosunmu – who had been a mainstay with his hometown NBA franchise since being selected in the second round of the 2021 NBA Draft.

Former Illini Ayo Dosunmu dealt from Chicago Bulls to Minnesota Timberwolves

On Thursday morning, Chicago’s brass – Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley – seemingly came to a concrete (albeit head-scratching) solution: deal Dosunmu (and Julian Phillips) to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Rob Dillingham, Leonard Miller and four second-round draft picks.

Although Chicago’s decision is thoroughly confounding from an organizational perspective, the change in scenery for Dosunmu just may be in his best interests. Although he may not enjoy the idea of leaving his hometown, Dosunmu couldn’t be entering a better basketball situation.

Per ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, Dosunmu “will be the guard for the foreseeable future they’re putting next to Anthony Edwards.” Not only will Dosunmu – who is in the midst of a breakout campaign (15.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists on tremendous shooting splits off the bench) – enter into a larger role, but he will be on a squad that is currently fifth in the Western Conference standings and has NBA title aspirations.

The lone drawback (at least as far as Illini fans may be concerned) is that the addition of Dosunmu may push fellow Illinois alum Terrence Shannon Jr. to the back of the rotation. Shannon has been battling injuries for the vast majority of the 2025-26 campaign, but he was a key contributor in the Timberwolves’ Western Conference Finals run a year ago.

After finally carving out a role with Minnesota, Shannon entered this season as a prime candidate to push for the league’s Most Improved Player award. But thus far, he has appeared in just 22 games, averaging just 12.8 minutes.

Although Dosunmu and Shannon never overlapped in Champaign, the prospect of the pair sharing the floor together is an enticing one for Illini fans. Both are transition-oriented players who thrive in open space but are also valuable halfcourt slashers and spot-up shooters.

Dosunmu attacking and kicking to an open Shannon for a corner three, or the pair running a two-on-one fastbreak together wouldn’t just be a sight to behold for Illinois fans – but also one for the Timberwolves and their fans.

Some polls opened up for early voting on Thursday, with less than six weeks to go until primary day in Illinois.

The actual date of the primary election in Illinois is March 17. But if work, school, doctor’s appointments, or other responsibilities prevent one from casting a ballot that day, early voting is an alternative.

MORE: Early voting dates, locations for Chicago and surrounding counties

DuPage County was to open up the polls at five locations beginning at 8 a.m. However, “due to unresolved candidate objections currently pending before the Appellate Court,” the start of early voting and vote by mail has been delayed for “early next week.” 

The McHenry County Election Center, at 410 S. Eastwood Dr. in Woodstock, will fire up its machines for residents of that county at 8:30 a.m. 

Also at 8:30 a.m., the Will County Clerk’s office, at 302 N. Chicago St. in Joliet, and the Kankakee County Clerk’s office, at 189 E. Court St. in Kankakee, begin early voting.

Ballots can be cast at the Lake County Courthouse, at 18 N. County St. in Waukegan, starting at 9 a.m.

Primaries do not always see the best voter turnout, but this election includes some key races that will affect politics across the entire state. Voters will determine who runs on the Democratic and Republican tickets for Illinois governor, and the seat of retiring U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) is also up for grabs.

A total of 14 Democratic candidates are running for the nomination for Durbin’s seat, and eight on the Republican side.

Early voting is not yet open for Chicago and suburban Cook County residents.

Early voting begins Thursday, Feb. 12, for city residents. The downtown supersite has moved to a new location at 137 S. State St.

Suburban Cook County early voting doesn’t start until March 2. Click here to look up the early voting site near you. 

For those who prefer to vote by mail, the United States Postal Service now says it cannot guarantee that ballots will be postmarked the same day they are sent. This means ballots mailed on the primary day of March 17 may not count for this election.

USPS suggests returning vote-by-mail ballots by March 10 to be safe.