Welcome to another election night! Polls are closing across Illinois and we are closely tracking Democratic primaries in several key House races, as well as the marquee Senate Democratic primary contest. Those races will offer an early snapshot of the mood of the Democratic Party in a major election year. They will also test the energy of its progressive wing, the power of big-spending outside groups and the influence of the state’s ambitious governor, JB Pritzker, who is supporting his lieutenant governor, Juliana Stratton, in the competitive Senate primary. Indeed, the Illinois elections revolve around several national themes and tensions. Identity politics is one. Stratton and Representative Robin Kelly are both hoping to become the sixth Black woman to serve in the Senate — but some Black leaders are worried they will split the Black vote. Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, for his part, would be only the second Indian American elected to the Senate. Fierce disagreements over the Middle East are another. Groups aligned with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the influential pro-Israel lobbying organization, have spent heavily to shape House races, even as AIPAC becomes increasingly toxic in Democratic circles. And the artificial intelligence and crypto industries have spent a lot, too. We’ll be covering all of these angles through our election live updates — and check out our results pages for major races as numbers start to roll in. Both are linked below. We’ll be back with a special morning edition of On Politics tomorrow. See you then! — Katie Glueck
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