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DALLAS — Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois is urging voters to ignore the Republicans’ first-ever midterm convention.
“Voters can see through the BS that Republicans are spewing,” Pritzker told reporters at a Democratic National Committee-hosted counter programming news conference across the street from the American Airlines Center in Dallas, the site of this week’s first-ever Republican midterm convention.
With less than two months until the midterm elections — and early voting just weeks away — President Donald Trump and the GOP kicked off their convention Wednesday as Republicans fight to keep control of Congress.
The GOP’s playbook for the convention, which comes as Republicans face energized Democrats and political headwinds as they defend their slim House and Senate majorities, is to motivate the party’s base and boost turnout in key races that will determine control of Congress.
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The American Airlines Center in Dallas, hours ahead of the start of the GOP midterm convention Sept. 9, 2026. (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)
“We are putting the president on the ballot,” Republican National Committee (RNC) Chair Joe Gruters emphasized in a Fox News Digital interview on the eve of the gathering. “That’s exactly what we’re doing with this midterm convention.”
But Pritzker, a potential 2028 White House contender, blasted the two-day GOP confab.
“This bizarre Republican midterm convention here can’t paper over the fact that Republicans have done nothing to earn your vote,” Pritzker said.
“Donald Trump is hoping that a flashy primetime event will make you forget that, well, his trade war is killing costs for families at the grocery store. His war in Iran is killing ranchers and farmers and their way of life, and his war on people, on the working people, the working families of this country are raising the costs of health care and housing.”
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Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker speaks at a Democratic National Committee news conference ahead of the GOP midterm convention Sept. 9, 2026 in Dallas, Texas. (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)
The governor also charged that Republicans are trying to “rig” the midterm elections, arguing that Trump is aiming to use the U.S. Postal Service to restrict mail-in balloting across the country.
“Republicans know that they can’t win on the merits of their unpopular policies. So, they’re working to rig the 2026 election,” Pritzker charged.
Pritzker also warned that “if Democrats don’t win, if they don’t win in this election, we may not have other elections, or certainly we’re going to have future elections, every single one of which will be rigged.”
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The American Airlines Center, as preparations are underway for the Republican National Midterm Convention in Dallas, Texas, U.S., September 7, 2026 (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)
The White House has defended Trump’s executive order on mail-in voting as a “commonsense measure” aimed at ensuring secure elections.
Pritzker, who is running for re-election this year for a third term steering Democrat-dominated Illinois, is seen as a possible presidential contender in the 2028 White House race to succeed Trump.
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But the governor pivoted when asked by Fox News if his stop in Dallas should be seen as a 2028 signal.
Standing alongside some top Texas Democrats, Pritzker said, “I care a great deal about what happens in Texas. Voters everywhere in the country should care about what happens in Texas. So, I’m pleased to be here for that reason. If I can advance the cause, that’s why I should stand here.”
