Eric Sorensen | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2022 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's17th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Cheri Bustos |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1976-03-18)March 18, 1976 (age 49) Rockford, Illinois, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | Northern Illinois University (BS) |
| Signature |  |
| Website | House website Campaign website |
Eric Sorensen (/ˈsɔːrənsən/SOR-ən-sən; born March 18, 1976) is an American politician andmeteorologist serving as theU.S. representative forIllinois's 17th congressional district since 2023. His district covers a large swath of western and centralIllinois, centered aroundMoline,Rock Island, and the Illinois side of theQuad Cities. It also includes parts ofPeoria andRockford. A member of theDemocratic Party, Sorensen is the firstopenly gay member of Congress from Illinois.[1]
Sorensen was born inRockford, Illinois.[2] He graduated fromBoylan Catholic High School[3] and then studied communications andmeteorology atNorthern Illinois University.[4]
Sorensen began his career as a meteorologist atKTRE, theABC affiliate inLufkin, Texas, from 1999 to 2000 before moving toTyler, Texas, where he was the morning meteorologist forEast Texas News Daybreak, which aired on bothKLTV and KTRE-TV. He worked as chief meteorologist forWREX, Rockford'sNBC affiliate, from 2003 to 2014, before becoming the senior meteorologist forWQAD, the ABC affiliate ofMoline, Illinois. Sorensen became a fellow of the Society for Environmental Journalists in 2018.[5]
Sorensen retired from television in 2021.[3][6] Afterwards, he took a job in communications forUnityPoint Health before announcing his run for Congress.[3]
WithCheri Bustos not seeking re-election, Sorensen declared his candidacy for theUnited States House of Representatives forIllinois's 17th congressional district in the2022 elections on November 10, 2021, as a member of theDemocratic Party.[6] He defeatedEsther Joy King, theRepublican nominee, in the November 8, 2022, general election.[7] Upon taking office in January 2023, Sorensen became only the second Democrat since 1927 to represent a significant portion of Peoria, and the second since the 1850s to represent a significant portion of Rockford.[citation needed]
In the 2024 election, Sorensen defeated Republican nominee Joseph McGraw with 54.4% of the vote.[8]
Sorensen was sworn into office on January 7, 2023, as theU.S. representative forIllinois’s 17th congressional district.[9] During the118th Congress, he was appointed to theAgriculture andScience, Space, and Technology committees.[9] In May of his first year, Sorensen introduced the Stop Games Act, legislation aimed at lowering drug costs by allowing theFDA to reject fake citizen petitions used by pharmaceutical companies to delay approval ofgeneric drugs.[10] In July, he secured the inclusion of $4.6 million for sixCentral Illinois infrastructure projects, ranging from flood mitigation to housing and water system upgrades, in two appropriations bills.[11] In October, he co-introduced the bipartisan Upper Mississippi River Levee Safety Act to give local levee districts more flexibility in managing flood protections along theMississippi River.[12]
In March 2024, Sorensen secured $123 million for western Illinois infrastructure projects, including water main repairs, road improvements, and river navigation upgrades.[13] In April, he co-introduced the bipartisan ONSHORE Act to help communities attract manufacturing investment by establishing a federal grant program to prepare undeveloped sites for strategically important industries.[14]
In 2025, Sorensen was one of 46 House Democrats who joined all Republicans to vote for theLaken Riley Act.[15]
Sorensen'scommittee assignments for the119th Congress include:[16]
Sorensen'scaucus memberships include:[17]
Sorensen is the first openly gay person to be elected to Congress from Illinois.[1] He lives with his partner in Moline.[1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Eric Sorensen | 14,702 | 37.7 | |
| Democratic | Litesa Wallace | 9,103 | 23.3 | |
| Democratic | Jonathan Logemann | 5,628 | 14.4 | |
| Democratic | Angie Normoyle | 4,818 | 12.4 | |
| Democratic | Marsha Williams | 2,701 | 6.9 | |
| Democratic | Jacqueline McGowan | 2,040 | 5.2 | |
| Write-in | 14 | 0.0 | ||
| Total votes | 39,006 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Eric Sorensen | 121,186 | 52.0 | |
| Republican | Esther Joy King | 111,931 | 48.0 | |
| Write-in | 6 | 0.0 | ||
| Total votes | 233,123 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Eric Sorensen (incumbent) | 170,261 | 54.4 | |
| Republican | Joe McGraw | 142,567 | 45.6 | |
| Total votes | 312,828 | 100.0 | ||
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's 17th congressional district 2023–present | Incumbent |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded by | United States representatives by seniority 355th | Succeeded by |