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Equality Illinois endorses 95 pro-equality candidates for June 28 primaries
-- From a press release
2022-04-29

This article shared 3236 times since Fri Apr 29, 2022
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"Equality Illinois is excited to announce our primary election endorsements today as we continue to make our state fairer and more just for LGBTQ+ people," said Brian C. Johnson, CEO of Equality Illinois. "In recent years, Illinois has been a beacon of equality and inclusion but we have so much more work to do. These endorsed candidates will continue to advance our progress as we keep fighting for equality and inclusion for all LGBTQ+ Illinoisans."

"Representation matters, especially when LGBTQ+ equality and inclusion are under attack nationally in Florida and Texas and even closer to home in Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, and Wisconsin. Equality Illinois is excited to support these LGBTQ+ candidates," said Mony Ruiz-Velasco, Deputy Director of Equality Illinois. "As an organization that promotes representation in roles of public leadership, we are excited to see so many publicly LGBTQ+ people lending their talents and perspectives to public service. Representation at tables of power matters when it comes to passing inclusive policies and for changing hearts and minds by sharing our stories."

Key endorsements include:

For State House District 13, where LGBTQ+ champion House Majority Leader Greg Harris is retiring, Equality Illinois endorsed out LGBTQ+ candidate Fernando "Sergio" Mojica and super-ally Eileen Dordek.

Mojica is a public school leader who would be the first out LGBTQ+ Latinx member of the Illinois General Assembly. He has spent nearly 25 years as a Chicago public school teacher and administrator, most recently serving as principal at Roberto Clemente Community Academy. He was the first Puerto Rican principal in 45 years at a majority-Latinx CPS school, where he concentrated on developing a healing-centered, culturally responsive, anti-racist approach to teaching and learning. He lives out the values of finding common ground while staying true to yourself.

Dordek is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a long and significant record of allyship on LGBTQ+ rights and reproductive justice, an area with deep intersections for LGBTQ+ communities. She was a founding board member of About Face Theatre, the Chicago-based company that advances queer stories, and has advocated in Springfield for LGBTQ+ affirming measures like inclusive restroom laws and the Keeping Youth Safe and Healthy Act. Dordek was also Board Chair of Personal PAC and serves on the board of the Equality Illinois Institute, a 501(c)(3) organization.

For the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, Equality Illinois endorsed two outstanding LGBTQ+ candidates, Precious Brady-Davis and Rick Garcia, and ally Mariyana Spyropoulos.

Brady-Davis will be the first Black Trans woman elected to an office in Cook County and only the fourth Trans person elected to office in Illinois. Currently a communications professional at the Sierra Club, Brady-Davis will focus on environmental and climate change protections, access to clean drinking water for marginalized communities, and inclusive workforce and supplier diversity policies at MWRD. She was previously Youth Outreach Coordinator at the Center on Halsted and is a published author of her memoir, I Have Always Been Me.

Garcia has a long career of leadership and advocacy for LGBTQ+ equality since the 1970s. He co-founded the St. Louis Task Force for Gay and Lesbian Rights and joined New Ways Ministry, which advocates for LGBTQ+ people within the Catholic Church. In the 1980s, he was part of the Lesbian and Gay Town Meeting, which advocated for the Chicago Human Rights Ordinance. He was the founding executive director and political director of the Illinois Federation for Human Rights, which later changed its name to Equality Illinois. He played significant leadership roles in the fights for state and local non-discrimination laws and the marriage equality law. At MWRD, he will work with labor unions and other board members on programs that recruit, train, and support LGBTQ+ workers.

LGBTQ+ candidates endorsed today are State Sen. Mike Simmons (SD 7), State Rep. Lamont J. Robinson (HD 5), State Rep. Kelly Cassidy (HD 14), State Rep. Sam Yingling for the State Senate (SD 31), state representative candidates Fernando "Sergio" Mojica (HD 13) and Karla Bailey-Smith (HD 91); Lake County Clerk candidate Anthony Vega; incumbent Cook County Board Commissioner Kevin B. Morrison and candidates Jaylin D. McClinton, Anthony Joel Quezada, and Maggie Trevor; and Metropolitan Water Reclamation District candidates Precious Brady-Davis and Rick Garcia.

Equality Illinois endorsed 95 candidates total, including Governor Pritzker, Lieutenant Governor Stratton, Attorney General Raoul, Comptroller Mendoza, Treasurer Frerichs, and 65 incumbent legislators seeking re-election.

"We thank Governor Pritzker, Lieutenant Governor Stratton, Attorney General Raoul, Comptroller Mendoza, Treasurer Frerichs, and our legislative incumbents for advancing LGBTQ+ justice in 2021," said Michael Ziri, Director of Public Policy for Equality Illinois. "Last year, the Illinois General Assembly and Governor Pritzker ended the harsh and discriminatory criminalization of HIV, approved the inclusive Keeping Youth Safe and Healthy Act, moved inclusive demographic data collection forward, and passed other important initiatives to build a better Illinois. But there is more work to do to ensure Illinois stays a beacon of hope for LGBTQ+ people across the country. We look forward to working with this powerful LGBTQ+ affirming team of statewide constitutional officers and state legislators to keep Illinois moving forward."

Equality Illinois, a 501(c)(4) organization, engages in the advocacy and electoral processes to defend and advance full equality, justice, and fairness for LGBTQ+ individuals and their families in Illinois. Further endorsements may be added on a rolling basis. Please check back to the Equality Illinois website at a later date: www.equalityillinois.us/our-candidates/ .

Illinois Constitutional Officers

Governor JB Pritzker

Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton

Attorney General Kwame Raoul

Comptroller Susana Mendoza

Treasurer Michael Frerichs

Illinois Senate (District Number — Name)

1 — Javier Loera Cervantes

2 — Omar Aquino

6 — Sara Feigenholtz

7 — Mike Simmons

8 — Ram Villivalam

9 — Laura Fine

10 — Robert Martwick

12 — Celina Villanueva

13 — Robert Peters

16 — La'Mont Williams

17 — Elgie Sims

20 — Cristina Pacione-Zayas

21 — Laura Ellman

22 — Cristina Castro

23 — Suzy Glowiak Hilton

25 — Karina Villa

26 — Maria Peterson

27 — Ann Gillespie

28 — Laura Murphy

29 — Julie Morrison

30 — Adriane Johnson

31 — Sam Yingling

34 — Steve Stadelman

36 — Michael Halpin

39 — Don Harmon

40 — Patrick Joyce

42 — Linda Holmes

43 — Rachel Ventura

46 — Dave Koehler

49 — Meg Loughran Cappel

57 — Christopher Belt

Illinois House of Representatives (District Number — Name)

2 — Elizabeth Hernandez

3 — Eva Dina Delgado

4 — Lilian Jiménez

5 — Lamont Robinson

6 — Sonya Harper

7 — Emanuel Chris Welch

9 — Lakesia Collins

11 — Ann Williams

12 — Margaret Croke

13 — Fernando "Sergio" Mojica and Eileen Dordek

14 — Kelly Cassidy

15 — Michael Kelly

16 — Denyse Wang Stoneback

17 — Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz

18 — Robyn Gabel

19 — Lindsey LaPointe

21 — Michael Zalewski

23 — Edgar Gonzalez Jr.

27 - Justin Slaughter

29 — Thaddeus Jones

39 — Will Guzzardi

40 — Jaime Andrade Jr.

41 — Janet Yang Rohr

42 — Terra Costa Howard

43 — Anna Moeller

45 — Jenn Ladisch Douglass

46 — Diane Blair-Sherlock

49 — Maura Hirschauer

50 — Barbara Hernandez

52 — Mary Morgan

54 — Mary Beth Canty

56 — Michelle Mussman

57 — Jonathan Carroll

58 — Bob Morgan

59 — Daniel Didech

60 — Rita Mayfield

61 — Joyce Mason

67 — Maurice West II

72 — Gregg Johnson

77 — Kathleen Willis

79 — Erin Slone

81 — Anne Stava-Murray

84 — Stephanie Kifowit

85 — Dagmara "Dee" Avelar

91 — Karla Bailey-Smith

98 — Natalie Manley

103 — Carol Ammons

113 — Jay Hoffman

Cook County Board President

Toni Preckwinkle

Cook County Assessor

Fritz Kaegi

Cook County Board of Commissioners (District Number — Name)

5 — Jaylin D. McClinton

8 — Anthony Joel Quezada

9 — Maggie Trevor

15 — Kevin B. Morrison

Lake County Clerk

Anthony Vega

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago

Precious Brady-Davis

Rick Garcia

Mariyana Spyropoulos

About Equality Illinois

At Equality Illinois we envision a fair and unified Illinois where everyone is treated equally with dignity and respect and where all people live freely regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression. We work hard to promote legislation to protect the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) individuals; maintain the visibility of LGBTQ issues; oppose legislation which seeks to limit the civil rights of the LGBTQ community; and expand statewide grassroots support.


This article shared 3236 times since Fri Apr 29, 2022
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