Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) on Sunday said he’s not ruling “anything out” when it comes to a potential 2028 presidential bid.
“I’m focused on running for reelection as governor of the state of Illinois, and everything that I do really is focused on lifting up the people of my state,” he said to NBC’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press.”
However, he continued, “I can’t rule anything out, but what I can rule in is that no matter what decisions I make, and I mean in particular about what I do here in the state of Illinois, is about the people of Illinois.”
“Indeed, any future decisions of mine will always be guided by that.”
Pritzker announced his reelection campaign for a third term as governor on June 26.
“I’m running for reelection to protect our progress and continue solving the problems we face. I love this state, and it’s the honor of my life to serve as your governor — to help lead through the most challenging of times and celebrate the most joyful ones together,” he said.
Pritzker has been one of the biggest critics of the Trump administration in the Democratic Party, which has ramped up speculation that he might run for president in 2028. In February, during his State of the State address, Pritzker compared President Trump’s new term to Nazi Germany.
During the 2024 election, he was also considered a potential vice presidential candidate to run alongside former Vice President Kamala Harris before Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was ultimately picked.
He has also been in the spotlight this past week amid the tit-for-tat redistricting war in Texas. He adamantly criticized the president, saying that Trump was “trying to steal five seats from the people.”
Pritzker said he would block any efforts to arrest Democratic lawmakers in the state who fled Texas to block a GOP effort to pick up five additional House seats in the midterm elections.
“They’re here in Illinois. We’re going to do everything we can to protect every single one of them and make sure that — because we know they’re doing the right thing, we know that they’re following the law,” Pritzker said.
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