Don Tracy

Don Tracy (born 1949/1950) is an American lawyer, Republican politician, and business owner. Tracy served as acting and confirmed chair of the Illinois Gaming Board (2015–2019), an appointee of then-Governor Bruce Rauner, and as chair of the Illinois Republican Party (2021–2024), succeeding Tim Schneider. He ran unsuccessfully as a candidate for Lieutenant Governor in his state's 2010 general election. He is the Republican nominee in the 2026 United States Senate election in Illinois.

Tracy is a part of the family ownership group of the privately-held, major food service redistribution company Dot Foods, where he served as general outside counsel.

Donald Tracy was born in Urbana in 1949 or 1950, and is the son of the late founder of Dot Foods Robert F. Tracy and his wife Dorothy Agnes Tracy (née Curtin). He is the eldest of 12 children. His family moved to Mount Sterling, Illinois in 1958.

He attended Western Illinois University, Arizona State University, and the University of Memphis Law School.

Tracy has served as a partner at the Springfield firm Brown, Hay & Stephens (since 1995), and as general outside counsel to Dot Foods, Inc. of his native Mount Sterling, Illinois.

Tracy was a candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Illinois in 2010, finishing third in a field of six candidates in that primary election.

In 2015, Governor Bruce Rauner appointed Tracy to serve as Chair of the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB), the "regulatory and law enforcement agency... oversee[ing] all licensed casino gambling, video gaming[,] and sports wagering" in the State of Illinois. Tracy served in an acting capacity from February 2, 2015 until June 20, 2017, and as the Board's confirmed chair from June 21, 2017 until June 14, 2019, for a total of more than four years of service. On election of J. B. Pritzker to the governorship, Tracy offered to resign his role as Chair, but was asked by Pritzker to complete his term, which was to end on July 1, 2019; he effectively did so, resigning the position on June 14, the day after the last of the Board's meeting scheduled in his term.

As of 2019, Tracy was continuing to serve as a partner at Brown, Hay & Stephens, and as general outside counsel to Dot Foods.

The 2026 Republican senate primary occurred on March 17, 2026. Tracy defeated attorney Jeannie Evans and national director for the Polish American Congress's PAC Casey Chlebek to win the Republican primary spot.

During the period of Tracy's extended service with the IGB at the request of incoming Governor J. B. Pritzker on May 31, 2019, Katherine Fischer, Assistant IG of the Executive Inspector General (EIG), issued a final report alleging that Tracy "engaged in a prohibited political activity... [in] making a $1,000 campaign contribution to a legislative candidate while serving as chair" of the Gaming Board. Tracy claimed that the allegation was "nonsense", arguing that the contribution had been made by his wife, thus presupposing that a wife could not make independent contributions. He also claimed that the Office of the Executive Inspector General (OEIG) had not interviewed his wife.

No further disciplinary or prosecutorial action followed, but Tracy requested a hearing before the Illinois Executive Ethics Commission (IEEC); this request was denied. Tracy then went to court, litigating the denial for two-years; a circuit court verdict found he was legally entitled to a hearing. The hearing, which took place in December 2024, involved testimony from both Tracy and his wife. The IEEC ruled in January 2025 that "the inspector general [had earlier] failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that Tracy had violated the law". While the press declared that Tracy had cleared his name, individuals involved in government reform expressed concern at setting a legal precedent that allowed spouses to circumvent prohibitions of illegal activity by political appointees.

Tracy is married, with 4 children and 8 grandchildren, and resides in Springfield, Illinois. Tracy's sister-in-law is state senator Jil Tracy.

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• Fink, Doug (February 2, 2015). "Don Tracy Nominated to Lead Illinois Gaming Board". The State Journal-Register (SJ-R.com).