Lupe Castillo, a Republican from Chicago, is running for the U.S. House of Representatives in Illinois's 4th Congressional District in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election.
Castillo, who has served as the 22nd Ward GOP committeewoman for four years, said she is running because she has watched the district decline, mostly over the past five years. "We do need change, it was promised by the Obama administration and they failed," Castillo said in a questionnaire response to the Chicago Sun-Times. She said residents deserve "a right to their freedoms and hard earned accomplishments."
Candidate information
Party: Republican
Hometown: Chicago (Bridgeport and Little Village neighborhoods)
Residency: 43-year resident of the 4th Congressional District
Education: Associate's degree in culinary arts, Washburne Community Trade School (2000)
Occupation: Castillo said she worked 23 years in a pharmacy as a senior technician, five years in retail and 20 years in the food industry. She is not currently working.
Family: Husband and daughter. Castillo described her extended family as multicultural, including Hispanic, American Indian, Black, Jewish, Polish, Puerto Rican, Italian and German Irish heritage.
Experience and public service
Castillo has served as the 22nd Ward Republican committeewoman in Chicago for four years. No one else in her family works in politics or government, she said.
She described herself as "an integral member of my community" rather than a lifelong politician, noting she has lived in Bridgeport and Little Village for most of her life. Castillo said residents in her mostly Spanish-speaking neighborhood would seek her out for help navigating city services and communicating issues to local government.
On the issues
The following positions are drawn from Castillo's questionnaire responses submitted to the Hinsdale Journal and her campaign website.
Immigration: Castillo named immigration as her single most important issue. She said the immigration system "must be revamped" with stricter laws and that people who want to live in the United States "must assimilate to the American way of life." She supports closing the border, requiring all migrants to enter legally, reinstating the Stay in Mexico policy and ending financial incentives she said encourage illegal immigration.
Cost of living and energy: Castillo said Congress should work to bring down oil and gas prices, which she said affect grocery costs and transportation. She supports reinstating oil pipelines and offshore drilling, bringing manufacturing jobs back to the United States and eliminating trade deficits.
Federal spending and taxes: Castillo supports a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution and returning annual federal spending to roughly $4.2 trillion to $4.5 trillion. She said she aligns with Sen. Rand Paul's "Penny Plan" to address deficits. She also supports eliminating taxes on tips and overtime and said government funds should go directly to Americans in need rather than to what she called "politically corrupt NGOs."
Healthcare: Castillo said Congress should prioritize healthcare spending on U.S. citizens. She opposes a national insurance program, saying it would increase income taxes and make scheduling appointments with a doctor harder. She said she wants to protect children from what she described as surgery without parental consent.
Education: Castillo supports school choice for low-income families.
National security and foreign policy: Castillo supports U.S. military aid to Israel and food and medical supplies to Palestine. She said the United States must ensure Iran does not obtain a nuclear warhead. On Ukraine, she supports continued U.S. backing but said NATO allies should provide military aid proportional to their GDP and NATO commitments.
