Darren Bailey & Aaron B. Del Mar

Darren Bailey is a former state senator.¹ His running mate, Aaron B. Del Mar, is a Palatine Township Highway Commissioner and chair of the Cook County Republican Party.¹ Del Mar has served as a city councilman and township committeeman.²

The campaign has proposed an Illinois Department of Government Efficiency, led by Del Mar, to root out waste and corruption.³ Bailey has campaigned on lowering taxes and auditing government spending.⁴ The campaign supports making non-governmental organizations that receive at least $10,000 from the state subject to the Freedom of Information Act and Open Meetings Act.⁵ The candidates proposed an eight-point plan offering infrastructure bonds and property tax negotiations to encourage the Chicago Bears to stay in Illinois.⁶

At a rally sponsored by an anti-abortion organization, Del Mar called Illinois abortion laws a 'sin against God.'⁷ He said in a July 2026 interview that abortion is not on the campaign's legislative agenda.⁷ Del Mar said the campaign will focus on affordability, property taxes, public safety and education rather than social issues.⁸ The candidates do not seek to reverse the SAFE-T Act but want it to better hold criminals accountable.² Del Mar said education funding should be more equally dispersed.²