Democrat Eric Sorensen faces off against Republican Esther Joy King for an open seat in Illinois' 17th Congressional District election
- Republican Esther Joy King is running against Democrat Eric Sorensen in Illinois' 17th Congressional District.
- Incumbent Rep. Cheri Bustos' retirement sparked the open seat contest.
Republican Esther Joy King is taking another swing at Illinois' 17th District, this time against former local weatherman Eric Sorensen as Democrats try to hang after a key retirement.
Illinois' 17th Congressional District candidates
King is a JAG Officer in the US Army Reserve. As a former aid worker, she used these connections and her military experience to help people fleeing Afghanistan during America's chaotic withdrawal in August 2021. Her race has been highlighted by the typical Republican attacks on inflation and crime.
Bustos, who led the House Democrats' campaign arm during the disappointing 2020 cycle, only bested King by about 4 percentage points. State Democrats threw their party a major lifeline though in dramatically altering the seat during redistricting.
Sorensen, whose campaign logo includes a wind turbine, has pushed for aggressive action addressing climate change. An abortion rights proponent, he has also slammed Republicans in the wake of Roe v. Wade's reversal.
Voting history for Illinois' 17th Congressional District
The seat is a prime example in how former President Donald Trump accelerated the erosion of traditionally Democratic strongholds. President Barack Obama easily bested Republican Mitt Romney in 2012 — by nearly 17 percentage points in 2016. But Trump carried it narrowly in both 2016 and 2020.
Bustos saw her margin of victory vanish over time, too. Even with Trump on the ballot in 2016, she posted a double-digit blowout, a performance she followed up again during Democrats' flip majority-making 2018 midterms. But by 2020, King shocked pundits by nearly toppling her.
The money race
According to OpenSecrets, Sorensen has raised $2.1 million, spent $1.8 million, and has about $300,000 cash on hand, as of September 30. King has raised more — $4.3 million — and spent $2.9 million with about $1.4 million still remaining, as of September 30.
As of mid-October, super PACs, national party committees, and other non-candidate committees have combined to spend more than $7 million to advocate for or against the candidates.
What experts say
The race between Sorensen and King is rated as "tilt Democratic" by Inside Elections, while both The Cook Political Report and Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics peg it as a "toss-up."