Grogan Elected Chair of Illinois Republican Party

Bob Grogan has been elected chair of the Illinois Republican Party, defeating incumbent Chair Kathy Salvi for the post.

“I am honored and humbled to be elected as the next Chair of the Illinois Republican Party. I’m grateful to my good friend, Chair Salvi, for her dedication to the party and her work to build a brighter future for Illinois families. Illinois Republicans are united and I’m excited to get to work electing Republicans up and down the ballot in November.”

Grogan is a lifelong resident of DuPage County and served as DuPage County auditor from 2008 to 2020. As auditor, Grogan focused on transparency, including making the county checkbook publicly available, creating a transparency portal and establishing a fraud hotline. According to the party, his work helped root out waste, fraud and abuse, saving taxpayers millions of dollars.

Salvi, a Mundelein attorney, was elected chair of the Illinois Republican Party in 2024 after former Chair Don Tracy resigned. She was also the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in 2022, when she ran against Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth.

Grogan takes over the party as Republicans continue to face a difficult political landscape in Illinois. Democrats hold all statewide constitutional offices and supermajorities in both chambers of the General Assembly. In the 2024 presidential election, Democrat Kamala Harris carried Illinois with 54.4% of the vote, while Republican Donald Trump received 43.5%.

Republicans have pointed to stronger performances in some downstate and suburban areas as opportunities for rebuilding, while Democrats have continued to dominate statewide races in recent election cycles. Grogan’s election gives the party new leadership heading into the November election.