Melissa Bean, a Democrat who represented Illinois's 8th congressional district from 2005 to 2011, is her party's nominee for the open 8th district seat in 2026 against Republican Jennifer Davis, a service technology company founder.
2026 Races & Market Forecast
Live TruthIndex™ and prediction market consensus for races contested by Melissa Bean.
- Born
- January 22, 1962
- Birthplace
- Chicago, Illinois
- Education
- Maine East High School
Oakton Community College (associate degree, 1982)
Roosevelt University (bachelor's degree, 2000)
Biography & Campaign Analysis
Background
Melissa Bean was born Melissa Luburich on January 22, 1962, in Chicago and grew up in a Serbian-American family in the Chicago suburbs, where her adopted father owned a machine belt factory. She attended Maine East High School, graduated from Oakton Community College with an associate degree in 1982, and received a bachelor's degree from Roosevelt University in 2000. Before entering Congress she was president of a home-based business, Sales Resources Inc.
Career
Melissa Bean first ran for Illinois's 8th congressional district in 2002, losing to Republican incumbent Phil Crane, who had held the seat for 33 years, while taking 43% of the vote.
In a 2004 rematch she defeated Crane with 52% of the vote, and when she took office on January 3, 2005, she became the first Democrat to represent the district since it was formed in 1935.
In the House she was a member of the Blue Dog Coalition and the New Democrat Coalition and served on the Financial Services and Small Business committees. She lost re-election in 2010 to Republican Joe Walsh by 291 votes.
After leaving Congress, Bean became president and CEO of the Executives Club of Chicago in 2011. She later served as chair of Midwest operations for JPMorgan Chase, and in 2019 she became CEO of Mesirow Wealth Advisors, part of Mesirow Financial.
2026 race
Illinois's 8th congressional district, based in the western outer suburbs of Chicago, including Elgin, Schaumburg and Des Plaines, is open because Democratic incumbent Raja Krishnamoorthi, re-elected with 57.1% of the vote in 2024, ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate.
Melissa Bean announced in September 2025 that she would run for her old seat after a 15-year absence. In the Democratic primary on March 17, 2026, she won an eight-candidate field with 31.6% of the vote, ahead of tech consultant Junaid Ahmed at 26.9% and attorney Dan Tully at 12.6%.
In the general election on November 3, 2026, she faces Republican Jennifer Davis, a service technology company founder who won the Republican primary with 51.4%.