Joseph G. McGraw
Joseph G. McGraw (Republican Party) is running for election to the U.S. House to represent Illinois' 17th Congressional District. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 5, 2024. He advanced from the Republican primary on March 19, 2024.
McGraw was a judge of the Illinois 17th Circuit Court. He left office on July 5, 2023.
McGraw has served as the district's chief judge since January 1, 2012. He was unanimously elected by his fellow circuit judges to succeed Janet R. Holmgren.[1]
Biography
Joseph G. McGraw was born in Illinois and lives in Rockford. McGraw earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois in Champaign and a J.D. from the Northern Illinois University College of Law. His career experience includes working in law enforcement as a prosecutor, private attorney, and judge. During his role as judge, McGraw was elected chairman of the Illinois Conference of Chief Judges.[2]
2024 battleground election
Ballotpedia identified the November 5 general election as a battleground race. The summary below is from our coverage of this election, found here.
Incumbent Eric Sorensen (D) and Joseph G. McGraw (R) are running in the general election in Illinois' 17th Congressional District on November 5, 2024.
Sorensen was first elected in 2022, defeating Esther Joy King (R) 52.0%–48.0%. In 2020, Joe Biden (D) defeated Donald Trump (R) in the district 52.7%–44.9%. As of June 21, 2024, The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball, and Inside Elections with Nathan Gonzales each rated the election Lean Democratic. Both the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) and the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) are targeting the district.
Sorensen is a former meteorologist. Sorensen says he is running to continue his work "protecting our neighbors and our communities, values I learned from my family at an early age."[3]
McGraw is a retired judge who served on the felony division of the Illinois Seventeenth Judicial Circuit Court. McGraw says he is running "to take on corruption in Washington and return our district to a safe, free, and economically prosperous community."[4]
All 435 U.S. House seats are up for election in 2024. Republicans have a 220 to 213 majority with two vacancies.[5] As of June 2024, 45 members of the U.S. House had announced they were not running for re-election. To read more about the U.S. House elections taking place this year, click here.
Daily Kos calculated what the results of the 2020 presidential election in this district would have been following redistricting. [6]
Illinois' 17th Congressional District is one of 37 congressional districts with a Democratic incumbent or an open seat the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is targeting in 2024. To read about NRCC targeting initiatives, click here. For a complete list of NRCC targeted districts, click here.
Elections
2024
See also: Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2024
Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2024 (March 19 Republican primary)
Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2024 (March 19 Democratic primary)
General election
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
General election for U.S. House Illinois District 17
Incumbent Eric Sorensen and Joseph G. McGraw are running in the general election for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | ||
| Eric Sorensen (D) | ||
| Joseph G. McGraw (R) | ||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17
Incumbent Eric Sorensen advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Eric Sorensen | 100.0 | 28,533 | |
| Total votes: 28,533 | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17
Joseph G. McGraw defeated Scott Crowl in the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 17 on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Joseph G. McGraw | 67.6 | 20,223 | |
| Scott Crowl | 32.4 | 9,696 | ||
| Total votes: 29,919 | ||||
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Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Ray Estrada (R)
Polls
- See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls
We provide results for polls that are included in polling aggregation from FiveThirtyEight and RealClearPolitics, when available. We will regularly check for polling aggregation for this race from those sites and add polls here once available. To notify us of polls available on either outlet for this race, please email us.
Election campaign finance
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eric Sorensen | Democratic Party | $3,554,877 | $1,005,018 | $2,590,786 | As of June 30, 2024 |
| Joseph G. McGraw | Republican Party | $849,257 | $373,813 | $475,444 | As of June 30, 2024 |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2024. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
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Satellite spending
- See also: Satellite spending
Satellite spending describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.[7][8]
If available, satellite spending reports by the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and OpenSecrets.org are linked below. FEC links include totals from monthly, quarterly, and semi-annual reports. OpenSecrets.org compiles data from those reports as well as 24- and 48-hour reports from the FEC.[9]
Details about satellite spending of significant amounts and/or reported by media are included below those links. The amounts listed may not represent the total satellite spending in the election. To notify us of additional satellite spending, email us.
| By candidate | By election |
|---|---|
Race ratings
- See also: Race rating definitions and methods
Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:
- Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
- Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
- Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[10]
- Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.
Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[11][12][13]
| Race ratings: Illinois' 17th Congressional District election, 2024 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Race tracker | Race ratings | ||||||||
| July 16, 2024 | July 9, 2024 | July 2, 2024 | June 25, 2024 | ||||||
| The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | |||||
| Decision Desk HQ and The Hill | Likely Democratic | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | Pending | |||||
| Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | |||||
| Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | Lean Democratic | |||||
| Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week. | |||||||||
Endorsements
McGraw received the following endorsements. To send us additional endorsements, click here.
- U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood (R)
- Congressional Leadership Fund
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
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Campaign ads
Ballotpedia did not come across any campaign ads for Joseph G. McGraw while conducting research on this election. If you are aware of any ads that should be included, please email us.
Campaign website
McGraw’s campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
Restoring Law and Order in Our Neighborhoods and at Our Border The border crisis may begin hundreds of miles away, but the mass amounts of fentanyl pouring into America are killing our community members, and the migrant crisis landing in our towns further burdens our already overloaded social services system. Judge Joe knows what it takes to secure the border and keep Illinois families safe. When Judge Joe is in Congress, Illinois families won't take a backseat to anyone. That's why he'll fight to build the wall, expand border patrol, crack down on the cartels, and ensure those who peddle lethal drugs are put behind bars. Economy In Washington, he’ll stop the out-of-control spending that is driving inflation and crushing family budgets, and he’ll cut taxes on American factories to bring good-paying jobs home. He'll defend family farmers and kill the death tax once and for all. Judge Joe will stand up for us, and restore our district to the economic powerhouse it once was. Clean Up Washington' Taking on China Judge Joe knows Communist China is America’s greatest threat and recognizes Washington politicians have been soft on China for far too long. Judge Joe will crack down on China when they cheat economically and fight to hold them accountable for their role in poisoning Americans with fentanyl. As a prosecutor and judge, Joe knows no good comes when you coddle bad actors. That’s why he’ll ensure America projects strength on the world stage starting with China.[14] |
” |
| —Joseph McGraw’s campaign website (2024)[15] | ||
2014
McGraw was retained to the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit Court with 83.9 percent of the vote on November 4, 2014. [16]
Evaluations
The Illinois State Bar Association and participating attorneys rated Joseph G. McGraw as Recommended for retention in a 2014 poll.[17]
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Education
McGraw earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois, going on to receive his law degree from Northern Illinois University.[1]
Career
Prior to his judicial appointment in 2002, McGraw was an assistant state's attorney for Warren and Winnebago counties, a partner in the law firm of Turner & McGraw, and the owner of his own firm, The Law Office of Joseph G. McGraw, Ltd.[1]
See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 17th Judicial Circuit Court of the State of Illinois, "Hon. Joseph G. McGraw Elected As Chief Judge Commencing January 1, 2012"
- ↑ Judge Joe McGraw for Congress, "About Joe," accessed February 26, 2024
- ↑ Eric Sorensen 2024 campaign website, "Home page," accessed June 21, 2024
- ↑ Joseph P. McGraw campaign website, "Home page," accessed June 21, 2024
- ↑ A majority in the U.S. House when there are no vacancies is 218 seats.
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2020 presidential results by congressional district, for new and old districts," accessed September 15, 2022
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Outside Spending," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Total Outside Spending by Election Cycle, All Groups," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ Amee LaTour, Email correspondence with the Center for Responsive Politics, August 5, 2022
- ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Judge Joe McGraw for Congress, “Issues,” accessed February 26, 2024
- ↑ Illinois State Board of Elections, "List of judges seeking retention in the November 4, 2014 general election," accessed May 8, 2014
- ↑ Illinois State Bar Association, "Judicial Evaluations," October 2014
Federal courts:
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois
State courts:
Illinois Supreme Court • Illinois Appellate Court • Illinois Circuit Court
State resources:
Courts in Illinois • Illinois judicial elections • Judicial selection in Illinois
