2026 Midterms · U.S. House · Illinois Safe
Illinois — 15th District
Democratic
Jennifer Todd
Republican
Mary Miller
Incumbent
Incumbent Republican Representative Mary Miller is running for re-election against Democratic challenger Jennifer Todd in Illinois' 15th Congressional District. Major election handicappers—including The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill—rate the district as Solid or Safe Republican. The race centers on Miller's conservative, 'America First' platform and record in Congress versus Todd's focus as a nurse on healthcare access, school funding, and support for working families and farmers.
Healthcare
high salienceTodd advocates using federal programs like Medicare and Medicaid to expand access and cap drug costs, whereas Miller opposes government bureaucracy in healthcare in favor of free-market reforms like cross-state insurance sales and tort reform.
Jennifer Todd
Supports expanding healthcare and lowering costs
Todd emphasizes her 30-year career as a nurse in advocating for expanded healthcare access, lower prescription drug costs, and protection for rural hospitals. She supports strengthening Medicare and Medicaid and highlights drug pricing relief achieved under the Inflation Reduction Act. She actively criticizes Miller's legislative record regarding federal healthcare funding.
- Protect rural hospitals and strengthen Medicare and Medicaid programs.
- Support prescription drug price caps, citing insulin cost reductions under the Inflation Reduction Act.
- Expand access to mental healthcare and preventative care services.
“Everyone deserves access to quality, affordable healthcare. I will fight to lower prescription drug costs, protect rural hospitals, and ensure every family has the care they need.”
“Did you see that cuts to Medicare and Medicaid are coming in 2027? Did you know that Mary Miller voted for them? I will fight to protect the healthcare our seniors and rural communities depend on.”
Mary Miller
Supports free-market healthcare reforms
Miller advocates for free-market solutions to lower healthcare costs rather than expanding government programs. Her plan includes allowing insurance sales across state lines, increasing price transparency, expanding health plan portability, and enacting medical tort reform. She voted for major budget reconciliation legislation that reformed federal spending.
- Allow health insurance companies to offer plans across state lines.
- Promote price transparency for healthcare services to foster competition.
- Enact medical tort reform to reduce liability insurance costs for doctors.
“Mary Miller believes the key to lowering the cost of healthcare must come from free market solutions - not government bureaucracy.”
Agriculture
high salienceTodd focuses on strengthening federal safety nets like crop insurance and funding rural infrastructure, while Miller focuses on deregulation, committee advocacy as an active farmer, and opposing climate legislation that she argues harms rural families.
Jennifer Todd
Supports family farms and agricultural infrastructure
Todd supports policies aimed at sustaining family farms across Central and Southern Illinois. Her platform calls for protecting crop insurance programs, promoting fair trade policies, expanding market access, and investing in sustainable agriculture and rural infrastructure.
- Protect federal crop insurance programs for family farmers.
- Invest in sustainable farming practices and rural infrastructure.
- Advocate for fair trade policies and expanded agricultural market access.
“I will fight for fair trade policies, expand access to agricultural markets, and support investments in sustainable farming practices. I’ll work to protect crop insurance programs, strengthen rural infrastructure, and ensure family farms can thrive for generations to come.”
Mary Miller
Supports deregulation and trade protections for farmers
As a grain and cattle farmer serving on the House Committee on Agriculture, Miller emphasizes defending the agricultural industry against federal overregulation. She supports fair trade agreements and preserving economic policies that benefit Illinois agricultural producers while opposing climate legislation.
- Serves on the House Committee on Agriculture and its subcommittees on farm commodities and conservation.
- Promotes policies to preserve and protect Illinois' multi-billion-dollar agriculture sector.
- Opposes environmental regulations such as the Green New Deal that she contends impoverish rural families.
“Agriculture is a multi-billion-dollar industry in Illinois. Farmers in Illinois help feed the world. Mary Miller is committed to fighting for policies that will preserve, protect and promote the agriculture industry in Illinois and throughout the nation.”
Education
medium salienceTodd prioritizes fully funding public schools and raising teacher pay, whereas Miller focuses on culture-war legislation restricting transgender participation in female sports and opposing progressive school curricula.
Jennifer Todd
Supports increased public school funding and teacher pay
Drawing on her experience as a school nurse and former school board member, Todd advocates for fully funding public education. She supports higher teacher compensation and expanded vocational and technical training opportunities for students.
- Fully fund public schools across all zip codes.
- Increase teacher pay and invest in vocational/technical education.
- Seeks to serve on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce to advocate for public schools.
“I will fight to fully fund our schools, increase teacher pay, and invest in vocational and technical training programs.”
Mary Miller
Opposes radical indoctrination and trans athletes in girls' sports
Miller focuses her education policy on opposing progressive cultural curricula in schools and serving on the House Education and Workforce Committee. She voted for federal legislation restricting transgender females from competing in female school sports programs.
- Voted Yea on the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025 (H.R. 28).
- Serves on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
- Opposes what she describes as radical indoctrination in public education.
“She fights hard against Joe Biden’s open borders, runaway inflation, and the radical indoctrination of our children.”
Gun Policy
medium salienceTodd supports gun control legislation to prevent school shootings, whereas Miller opposes any new firearm restrictions and strongly defends Second Amendment rights.
Jennifer Todd
Supports gun control legislation
Todd supports gun control legislation aimed at preventing school shootings and gun violence. She explicitly cites U.S. Representative Jared Moskowitz as a political role model due to his advocacy for gun control and school safety.
- Supports gun control measures aimed at curbing school shootings and violence.
“Jared Moskowitz for his passion for gun control and school shootings.”
Mary Miller
Opposes new gun restrictions and defends Second Amendment rights
Miller is a strong defender of Second Amendment rights and opposes federal firearm regulations. She argues that curbing violence requires enforcing existing criminal laws rather than enacting new restrictions on law-abiding gun owners.
- Opposes legislation requiring lawful firearm owners to give up firearms to federal agencies.
- Endorsed by Donald Trump as strong on the Second Amendment.
- Advocates enforcing existing criminal laws rather than passing new gun restrictions.
“She will OPPOSE any legislation that requires honest gun owners to give up their firearms to federal agencies. She believes the best way to curb violence is to enforce existing laws instead of enacting more laws that only serve to undermine the rights of honest citizens.”
Economy, Taxes, and Spending
medium salienceTodd supports leveraging federal investments and protecting labor rights to aid working families, while Miller focuses on making tax cuts permanent, slashing federal spending, and reducing regulatory burdens.
Jennifer Todd
Supports working families, fair wages, and district investments
Todd focuses her economic agenda on supporting working families and lowering everyday costs. She advocates for labor rights, fair wages, and returning federal tax dollars to improve local infrastructure in townships and cities across the district.
- Fight for fair wages, labor rights, and working-class representation in Congress.
- Direct federal investments back to local townships, villages, cities, and counties.
- Focus on policy solutions that lower costs for working families.
“To advocate for those you represent, bring needed tax money back into the district to help improve the townships, villages, cities, and counties.”
“In Congress, I’ll fight for fair wages, labor rights, and the benefits every worker and veteran has earned.”
Mary Miller
Supports tax cuts, deregulation, and deficit reductions
Miller champions conservative fiscal policies, including making the Trump tax cuts permanent, cutting business regulations, and curbing federal deficit spending. She signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge and consistently votes for spending reductions and tax relief legislation.
- Signed Americans for Tax Reform's Taxpayer Protection Pledge.
- Voted Yea on the Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023 (H.R. 2811) and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1).
- Opposes continuing resolutions and advocates for a balanced budget to address federal debt.
“Mary Miller SUPPORTS keeping taxes low and she will fight to make the Trump tax cuts permanent and keep Americans working.”
“The $22 trillion deficit is unacceptable. Mary Miller will fight for an end to the Continuing Resolutions that spend money the government simply does not have.”
Veterans Affairs
medium salienceTodd presents a detailed policy platform focused on VA mental health, healthcare expansion, and educational benefits, whereas Miller highlights her broader support for military and veteran appropriations and America First defense priorities.
Jennifer Todd
Supports expanding VA healthcare and veteran benefits
Todd pledges to defend and expand earned benefits for military veterans. Her platform calls for expanding VA healthcare access, increasing mental health services, ensuring timely benefits processing, and supporting job training and educational opportunities.
- Expand access to quality healthcare through the Department of Veterans Affairs.
- Increase mental health services and guarantee timely processing of earned benefits.
- Advocate for job training and educational opportunities for veterans.
“Veterans deserve a representative who will honor their service by fighting for the support and resources they’ve earned. I will work to expand access to quality healthcare through the VA, increase mental health services, ensure timely benefits for those who served, advocate for job training and educational opportunities.”
Mary Miller
Supports military veterans and defense funding
Miller is endorsed by Donald Trump as strong on the military and veterans. Her legislative record includes voting for continuing appropriations that fund military construction and Veterans Affairs programs.
- Voted Yea on H.R. 5371, providing funding for Military Construction and Veterans Affairs.
- Highlighted by Donald Trump as strong on military and veteran issues.
“Strong on Election Security, the Second Amendment, and our Military and Vets, Mary is a champion of our America First agenda.”
Border Security and Immigration
medium salienceMary Miller
Supports strict border enforcement and border wall construction
Miller advocates for strict immigration enforcement, including building a southern border wall, increasing funding for ICE, and defunding sanctuary cities. She has consistently voted for hardline border security bills, including the Secure the Border Act and Laken Riley Act, and voted to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
- Voted Yea on the Secure the Border Act of 2023 (H.R. 2) and the Laken Riley Act (S. 5).
- Voted Yea to impeach Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas (H.Res. 863).
- Opposes sanctuary cities and supports ICE agency funding and border wall construction.
“Mary Miller OPPOSES sanctuary cities and she SUPPORTS building a wall on our southern border and she SUPPORTS the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.”
Abortion
medium salienceMary Miller
Opposes abortion and supports defunding Planned Parenthood
Miller maintains an explicitly pro-life stance and advocates for strict prohibitions on federal abortion funding. She supports upholding the Hyde Amendment and defunding Planned Parenthood.
- Opposes efforts to eliminate or weaken the Hyde Amendment.
- Supports efforts to defund Planned Parenthood.
- Highlights pro-life advocacy as a foundational component of her platform and personal faith.
“Mary Miller is pro-life. She will OPPOSE efforts to undermine and eliminate the Hyde Amendment, which makes it illegal to use federal funds to pay for abortions.”