Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker revealed Monday that he’s lost 80 pounds in two years with the help of GLP-1 medication — but denied his regimen had anything to do with plans to run for president in two years time.
“I’ve been driven my whole life to lose weight,” Pritzker told “CBS Mornings” in a new interview. “The fact that I am now able to do it because this GLP-1 became available is truly, like, I mean, it’s something that has meant a lot to me. I have not made any decisions about what I might do in the future. I can tell you I want to be the governor of the state of Illinois for a while longer, and I’m running for re-election [this November].”
Asked point-blank if he would seek the Democratic nomination in 2028, the 61-year-old told reporter David Begnaud: “I honestly am focused on what’s best for the people of Illinois.”
Pritzker, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt hotel fortune, did specify which drug he is taking.
There is a long history of presidential candidates dropping weight before launching a run for the White House, usually unsuccessfully. In early 2013, then-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie dropped at least 40 pounds after undergoing lap-band surgery ahead of a sucessful re-election campaign and an unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination in 2016.
During that same cycle, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush lost a similar amount of weight by adhering to the paleo diet, while Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) drew attention for his vegan diet and intermittent fasting during the 2020 campaign.
