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Race at a glance
Three candidates are running for the U.S. House in Illinois' 6th Congressional District: Republican Skylar Duensing, Democratic incumbent Sean Casten and Republican Niki Conforti. The contest will be decided in the Illinois general election on Nov. 3, 2026.
The race is contested because voters have more than one candidate to choose from. It is not a two-candidate contest: the listed field includes one Democrat and two Republicans. Casten is the only candidate identified as the incumbent, while Duensing and Conforti are seeking the same House seat as Republican candidates.
The candidates
Skylar Duensing is running as a Republican. Duensing is one of two Republican candidates in the three-person general election field. The other candidates are Casten, the Democratic incumbent, and Conforti, the other Republican in the contest.
Sean Casten is running as a Democrat. Casten is the incumbent in the 6th District race and the only Democratic candidate in the listed three-person general election field. The other candidates are Duensing and Conforti, both running as Republicans.
Niki Conforti is running as a Republican. Conforti is one of two Republican candidates in the three-person general election field. The other candidates are Casten, the Democratic incumbent, and Duensing, the other Republican in the contest.
What is contested
The candidates are competing for the same U.S. House seat in Illinois' 6th Congressional District. The field gives voters a choice between an incumbent Democrat and two Republican candidates.
Party affiliation and incumbency are the principal identified distinctions in the race at this stage. Casten enters the contest as the officeholder. Duensing and Conforti enter as Republican candidates challenging for the seat. All three will appear within the same general election contest listed for Nov. 3, 2026.
Because two candidates share the Republican label, voters following the race will need to distinguish between Duensing and Conforti as separate candidacies. Casten, Duensing and Conforti are each competing independently for voter support in the districtwide House election.
Election timeline
Election Day is Nov. 3, 2026. That date will determine the outcome of the general election contest for Illinois' 6th Congressional District.
The field to follow consists of Duensing, Casten and Conforti. For voters, the central process questions are whether the candidate list changes before ballots are finalized and how the three candidates present their choices during the campaign. The contest remains a three-candidate race unless the official field changes before the election.
