At a formal campaign kickoff event Thursday morning in Chicago, Pritzker said, "through every challenge and every triumph, I have grown to love Illinois even more."

The Democratic incumbent returned to the Grand Crossing Park Field House where he launched his first run for governor in 2017, making his case for another term.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said in a video shared to X that Illinois has become the center of the Democratic Party’s fight against President Donald Trump. He specifically called out Trump’s tariff