Gov. JB Pritzker is not one for labels, but his supply side solutions to address the state’s housing shortage and energy reflect an ‘abundance’ agenda, @brendenmoore.bsky.social writes in his column: https://loom.ly/HlM70Bw
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Gov. Pritzker said he's "flattered" by 2028 presidential speculation, but insisted his focus is on getting reelected. He said "whatever decisions I would make would really be about what I think is best for the state of Illinois.” Part 3 of our interview: capitolnewsillinois.com/news/pritzke...
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Despite thinking the Bears “had not set themselves up well for getting something done," Gov. Pritzker believes PILOT legislation will pass — and that the team will ultimately build their new stadium in Arlington Heights. Part 2 of our interview:
capitolnewsillinois.com/news/pritzke...
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New: @benszalinski.bsky.social and I interviewed @govpritzker.illinois.gov earlier this week. He touted progress in his first seven years but said there’s “more work to do” economically as he ramps up his bid for a third term. Part 1 is here — more to come: capitolnewsillinois.com/news/exclusi...
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Some of the details conveyed to me earlier were not clear. In any case, I wrote it in a confusing manner. Apologies. Story is updated with some better information from the gov's office:
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The plan would also bar municipalities from requiring minimum lot sizes greater than 2,500 square feet for detached single-family homes.
Some of the nitty-gritty details conveyed to me earlier were not clear. My apologies, folks! Our story is updated.
capitolnewsillinois.com/news/pritzke...
**Important update**
Some new details on what property owners can build by right on land zoned for residential under Pritzker's plan:
≤2,500 sq ft: 1 unit
2,500–5,000 sq ft: up to 4 units
5,000–7,500 sq ft: up to 6 units
7,500+ sq ft: up to 8 units
Gov. Pritzker could give his State of the State/budget speech outside if he wanted to. The forecast for speech time: sunny skies and 65° with a slight breeze. Just a beautiful day in the capital city. It certainly beats the usual frigid temps and sometimes snowy conditions!
It’s a supply side approach to address the state’s housing shortage by tackling the “patchwork of local barriers” that prevents builders from building. But expect significant pushback from local governments to the imposition of statewide zoning standards and permitting timelines.
New from me: @govpritzker.illinois.gov will use his State of the State address to push a sweeping housing plan that’d permit multi-unit buildings on most residential lots, legalize granny flats and slash red tape that’s slowed homebuilding in recent years. capitolnewsillinois.com/news/pritzke...
Illinois lawmakers say there’s “positive momentum” on a Bears stadium package. Indiana’s push helped. But a major hurdle – getting enough Chicago lawmakers on board – remains. @brendenmoore.bsky.social reports ➡️ https://loom.ly/gwGBV2k
@brendenmoore.bsky.social will also be bringing back his column, now called Moore in Springfield. Read his first iteration here: capitolnewsillinois.com/news/moore-i...
Exciting things on the way. ⬇️
Ted Dabrowski has traded think tank influence for a spot on the ballot, pitching himself as more electable than the GOP’s 2022 nominee, Darren Bailey. He’s also calling for rolling back Illinois’ 4.95% income tax to 3%. First in our series profiling GOP candidates for governor:
Gov. JB Pritzker quietly dropped $5M into a PAC backing Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton’s U.S. Senate bid, filings show. The group later confirmed it has raised more than $10M overall. Brenden Moore and Ben Szalinski report ➡️https://loom.ly/qLiFVhw
The reason Stratton needs outside help? Raja Krishnamoorthi. He raised $3.6 million in Q4 and entered 2026 with $15.2 million cash on hand, per his campaign's FEC filing. By my count, he dropped $4.8 million on TV ads in the final three months of 2025 alone.
Also, the filing only covers through December, so it's plausible that Pritzker's given more since. But we won't know that until after the March 17 primary.
Pritzker's endorsed Stratton and one of his former top campaign aides is running the PAC, so his financial support had been expected. But its extent had not been known until now. The PAC began running ads earlier this month. capitolnewsillinois.com/news/pac-sup...
New: Gov. JB Pritzker donated $5 million last month to Illinois Future PAC, the outside group backing Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton’s U.S. Senate bid, per the PAC's FEC filing. His cousin, Jennifer Pritzker, added $1.05 million. The PAC raised $6.32 million overall in 2025. #twill
The 3 leading Democratic candidates vying to replace retiring Sen. Dick Durbin called for some version of dismantling ICE, but only Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton called for the agency's complete abolition. @brendenmoore.bsky.social reports ➡️ https://loom.ly/ZXW6k28
Illinois has averaged about one lawsuit a week against the Trump administration since January 2025. Here’s the status of them all. @brendenmoore.bsky.social reports ➡️ https://loom.ly/456Vp38
Inside JB Pritzker’s media strategy as he gets in Trump’s head, grows his 2028 profile and embraces social media influencers. @benszalinski.bsky.social & @brendenmoore.bsky.social report ➡️ https://loom.ly/WwOiMT0
Anyways, lots of interesting nuggets in there, so go read it!
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A major goal? Getting the attention of Trump, an avid watcher of cable news. After the president threatened to jail him last October, Pritzker and his team made a “very intentional” choice to have his first interview live on MSNBC: capitolnewsillinois.com/news/as-trum...
His growing presence on podcasts, influencer pages, cable TV and in the country's newspapers of record has led to speculation that Pritzker is gearing up for a 2028 presidential bid. Pritzker's team says that's not the goal. Still, it's exposing him to a larger audience.
The shift reflects the rapid change in the media landscape during Pritzker’s tenure. For instance, the governor held 23 meetings with newspaper editorial boards during his first 14 months in office. Most of those no longer exist.
