Candidates For Illinois State Representative – Chicago Area
By Ken Hare
Chicago Defender Staff Writer
Disclaimer – The following profiles are to introduce Chicago voters with the candidates running for Illinois State Representative and not necessarily an endorsement from the Chicago Defender.
5th District Ken Dunkin
Representing the 5th District which stretches from the Gold Coast on the North Side to South Shore on theSouth Side, State Representative Ken Dunkin has served a diverse constituency since 2002. A Democrat that isn’t afraid to be independent when necessary, Duncan with the support of other Black legislators helped restore upwards to two billion dollars in budget cuts to child care, homecare workers, and senior subsidies.
Representative Dunkin recently introduced HB 6409, which would restore funding to Illinois public colleges and universities. He has garnered the support of organized labor for the past 13 years with a 90 percent voting rate. He is currently being challenged by Michael Madigan-backed candidate Juliana Stratton.
6th District
Sonya M. Harper
State Representative Sonya Harper fills the vacancy left by Ester Golar. The 6th District extends as far north as River North and to the far south to parts of Englewood. Golar, who served from 2006 to 2015, was a staunch supporter of the Black community and fought hard on initiatives like appropriations for human services, elementary and secondary education, housing, personnel, pensions and public utilities.
Harper was appointed to fill the vacancy in October 2015. After Harper was appointed, she signed the “Esther Golar Pledge” to support Senate Bill 570, which would restore funding and bring back the original eligibility requirements to the Child Care Assistance Program. Sonya M. Harper is running against Kenyatta Nicole Vaughn, Genita C. Robinson, and Darryl D. Smith.
8th District
La Shawn K. Ford
State Representative La Shawn K. Ford’s vast district encompasses Austin on the West Side of Chicago, Oak Park, Berwyn, North Riverside, Proviso Township, Forest Park, Brookfield, Lagrange Park, LaGrange and Western Springs. Ford was elected in 2006.
This year, Representative Ford sponsored legislation to recall Mayor Rahm Emanuel after the release of the Laquan McDonald video. He also has sponsored legislation that provides that the use of grand juries are prohibited in cases where an accused peace officer’s use of force in making an arrest led to a person’s death. Incumbent Ford is running unopposed in the Democratic primary.
9th District
Arthur Turner
The 9th District includes parts of Chicago’s Near West, Near North, University Village, Little Italy, and North Lawndale neighborhoods. Elected in December 2010, State Representative Arthur Turner is passionate about his constituents and supported the Equal Pay Act, which is now law in Illinois. Companies that pay women less money for the same work that men do would be violating the law in Illinois and subject to penalties.
Representative Turner also cosponsored legislation that protects senior citizens from reverse mortgage fraud and misunderstanding. The new law prohibits lenders from requiring borrowers to buy financial products such as life insurance as a condition of getting the reverse mortgage. It also prohibits disbursement of the loan to anyone other than homeowners and their spouses. Representative Turner is running unopposed.
10th District
Melissa Conyears-Ervin
Melissa Conyears-Ervin, the wife of Alderman Jason Ervin (28th Ward), graduated from Eastern Illinois University with a Bachelors degree in finance. She has worked in the banking, finance, and insurance sectors for 15 years while earning her MBA. She and her three sisters were raised in a single-parent household on the West Side. As the next state representative, she plans to focus on family-driven issues, education, and criminal justice reform.
The 10th District includes portions of Chicago’s Austin, East Garfield, Humboldt Park, Lincoln Park, Logan Square, Near North Side, Near West Side, West Garfield Park and West Town neighborhoods. Melissa Conyears-Ervin is running against Republican Mark Spognardi.
26th District
Christian Mitchell
State Representative Christian Mitchell was sworn into office in January 2013. The 26th District is comprised of portions of Streeterville, parts of the Loop, Oakland, Grand Boulevard, Kenwood, Hyde Park, South Shore and South Chicago.
Representative Mitchell sponsored the “Fund Education First” bill which would provide an additional $200 million to CPS immediately and over $1 billion in long-term relief, and it would do so without increasing property taxes. The bill would also keep Governor Rauner from making any future cuts to education and provide increased transparency to ensure education dollars are actually making it to our local schools. Representative Mitchell is running against Jhatayn “Jay” Travis.
27th District
Monique Davis
Monique Davis has served as the Illinois State Representative of the 27th District since 1987. The District includes parts of the Chicago neighborhoods Beverly, Chatham, Morgan Park, Roseland, Washington Heights and West Pullman, as well as portions of the suburban communities of Alsip, Blue Island, Crestwood, Orland Park, Palos Heights and Robbins.
Representative Davis is a 1967 graduate of Chicago State University and has fought to keep the university open and to restore the Monetary Award Program (MAP) that provides tuition assistance to college students statewide. Representative Davis is being endorsed by the National Association of Social Workers and is running unopposed.
31st District
Mary Flowers
Incumbent Mary Flowers has been a State Representative in the 31st District for over 20 years. As a senior stateswoman, Flowers is Chairperson of the House Committee on Health Availability and Access and has led meaningful reform in health care for Illinoisans.
In 2014, Representative Flowers sponsored legislation requiring employers to provide employees with “reasonable accommodations” based on pregnancy, childbirth, or medical or common conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth.
In 2015, Representative Flowers also sponsored an initiative in response to the federal No Child Left Behind act that sets different proficiency goals for each student racial subgroup which is considered racist. Representative Flowers is running unopposed.
32nd District
Andre Thapedi
Illinois State Representative Andre Thapedi was elected to office in 2008. As Chairman of the International Trade and Commerce Committee, Thapedi has redirected his focus to higher education and job creation through international trade and investments. To compete globally, he believes that minority students must be trained and prepared at a much earlier age.
For these reasons, Representative Thapedi recently filed legislation appropriating $25 million to public colleges and universities such as Chicago State University while calling for greater transparency in charter school operations. Thapedi also called for passage of the international trade agreement, that would expand exports in Illinois, leading to more local job creation and opportunities within his district. Representative Thapedi has been endorsed by AFL/CIO and is running unopposed.
33rd District
Marcus Evans Jr.
State Representative Marcus Evans Jr.’s district includes parts of the Burnside and Chatham neighborhoods in Chicago, along with the suburbs of Burnham, Calumet City, Lansing, Lynwood and Sauk Village.
In office since 2012, Representative Evans sponsored HB4358 in January 2015 that created the Police Department Non-Lethal Force Policy Act. TheHis bill essentially requires that each police department of a municipality of this state shall develop a plan or strategy for the use of non-lethal force on a person suspected of committing or having committed a criminal offense or resisting arrest. Representative Evans is running unopposed.
34th District
Elgie Sims Jr.
Elected to the House in 2012, State Representative Elgie Sims Jr. is an accomplished attorney and second-generation small business owner. As such, he worked to pass a law to help revitalize the local economy by allowing low-interest loans to be awarded to small minority-owned and woman-owned businesses working on transportation projects for the state.
The 34th District includes all or parts of Burnham, Calumet City, Lansing, Ford Heights, Lynwood, Sauk Village, Willowbrook, Beecher, Manteno and Grant Park. Representative Sims is running unopposed in the primary election.
78th District
Camille Y. Lilly
Illinois State Representative Camille Y. Lilly assumed office in 2010. She recently cosponsored HB3270 which states that all persons incarcerated for at least six months at a county jail, juvenile detention center, or state correctional facility shall have their eligibility for medical assistance determined by the Department of Human Services prior to their release from custody.
The 78th District includes parts of the communities of Austin in Chicago and Oak Park, River Grove and Franklin Park. Representative Lilly has won the endorsement of the Sierra Club and is running unopposed.
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