Olivia Olander

Olivia Olander is the Chicago-based state government reporter at the Tribune, covering Gov. JB Pritzker, the Illinois General Assembly and state agencies. She previously covered labor and employment policy for POLITICO in Washington. Olivia is a graduate of Northwestern University and grew up in the suburbs of San Diego.

Republican nominee for governor Darren Bailey speaks during the public comment portion of a Chicago City Council meeting on May 20, 2026. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)

Republican Darren Bailey treads water in governor’s race as GOP candidates struggle to raise campaign cash

July 16, 2026 at 8:37 p.m.

GOP candidates across Illinois struggle to raise campaign cash as U.S Senate Republican nominee Don Tracy raised about $133,000 to Democratic nominee Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton's $1.1 million.

State Rep. Carol Ammons speaks with the media outside the Urbana federal courthouse on July 16, 2026. She and her husband, Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons, right, pleaded not guilty to federal charges. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Illinois state Rep. Carol Ammons and husband, Champaign Clerk Aaron Ammons, plead not guilty to federal charges

July 16, 2026 at 3:40 p.m.

Six-term Democratic state Rep. Carol Ammons and her husband, Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons, each pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal charges handed up earlier this month by a grand...

Jimmy Soto is embraced by his cousin, David Ayala, during a celebration of his 63rd birthday at his sister Marta’s home in Deerfield on April 13, 2024. Soto and Ayala, co-defendants in the crime for which they were wrongfully convicted, were both sentenced to natural life without the possibility of parole in 1982. (Vincent Alban/Chicago Tribune)

Illinois raises limits on wrongful conviction payouts under new law Gov. JB Pritzker has signed

July 14, 2026 at 6:13 p.m.

The new law marks “a major stride in criminal legal reform and accountability to those who are wrongfully convicted and imprisoned,” Gov. JB Pritzker said in a video statement.

A “250” American flag is displayed atop the Arlington Heights Park District float during the Frontier Days Fourth of July Parade on July 4, 2026, in Arlington Heights. (Joe Lewnard/Daily Herald)

State-funded America 250 commemorations kept mellow as federal funding cuts still sting in Illinois

July 12, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

By almost any measure Illinois’ celebrations to commemorate the United States’ 250th birthday have been decidedly low-key.

State Rep. Carol Ammons and the Black Caucus deliver a response to Gov. JB Pritzker’s annual State of the State and budget address on Feb. 18, 2026, at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Illinois House GOP triggers committee investigation after federal indictment of Democratic Rep. Carol Ammons

July 10, 2026 at 6:54 p.m.

The Illinois House is launching a committee to investigate Rep. Carol Ammons after the Urbana Democrat's indictment on federal fraud and obstruction charges.

State Rep. Carol Ammons speaks among supporters, Feb. 17, 2026, about the Adequate and Equitable Public University Funding Formula at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Democratic state Rep. Carol Ammons and Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons indicted on fraud and obstruction charges

July 8, 2026 at 6:12 p.m.

A federal grand jury indicted Democratic state Rep. Carol Ammons of Urbana on wire fraud and other charges.

Doreen Bartholomae is supported by family while speaking about her daughter, Emily Kasanga, July 7, 2026, at their lawyer’s office in Chicago. Kasanga, 34, died of choking in April while in the care of a state-licensed Rolling Meadows group home. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Family sues state-licensed Rolling Meadows group home for wrongful death, alleging ‘fatal choking event’

July 7, 2026 at 5:52 p.m.

Emily Kasanga’s family always gathered for celebrations, younger sister Ashley Kasanga said. Though Emily Kasanga lived in a group home due to a moderate intellectual disability and other disorders, her...

State Rep. Laura Faver Dias, a bill sponsor, talks with Rep. Bob Morgan in the House chamber as resolutions are read at the State Capitol in Springfield on May 28, 2026. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Illinois bill awaiting Pritzker OK would add oversight on private equity firms buying disability group homes

July 7, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The bill, which passed the General Assembly this spring with broad bipartisan support, requires facilities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to report to the state when they are...

Gov. JB Pritzker signs SB 315, the Artificial Intelligence Safety Measures Act, into law on July 6, 2026, in Chicago. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Gov. JB Pritzker signs first-in-nation Illinois law requiring third-party safety audits for AI giants

July 6, 2026 at 2:42 p.m.

Illinois will be the first state to require independent audits of large artificial intelligence developers’ safety practices after Gov. JB Pritzker signed a new law Monday.

Oswego school board member Jared Ploger, center, attends a board meeting at Oswego East High School on March 20, 2023. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

Aurora-area Democrats pick teacher, union leader Jared Ploger for state Senate seat ballot spot

July 2, 2026 at 6:06 p.m.

Jared Ploger will replace Aurora-area state Sen. Linda Holmes as the Democrat on the November ballot after Holmes, who won the March primary, recently announced she was retiring at the...

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