The United States got its newest congressman April 7 when Democratic candidate Mike Quigley was overwhelmingly elected to represent Illinois' 5th Congressional District, replacing Rahm Emanuel, who is President Barack Obama's chief of staff.
Quigley received 69 percent of the vote. Republican entry Rosanna Pulido got 24 percent of the vote and Green Party candidate Matt Reichel won 7 percent. The general election was certainly an easier battle than last month's primary election, when he defeated almost a dozen other candidates with 22 percent of the vote.
Quigley will officially be sworn in April 21, and he has resigned from his post as a Cook County commissioner. Jay Paul Deratany, an openly gay attorney who ran for Cook County Board of Review against County Democratic Party Chairman Joe Berrios last year, is among those seeking the appointment to Quigley's seat. The Democratic Cook County Board District Committee for the 10th District of the Cook County Board of Commissioners will meet April 11 and chose Bridget Gainer to succeed Quigley.
While only certain areas of Chicago were involved in electoral activity April 7, voting took place in many suburbs—and a few LGBT individuals won their races as well. BUNGALO ( Berwyn United Neighborhood Gay And Lesbian Organization ) member and attorney Margaret Paul of the Independent Voters of Berwyn party defeated Democrat Vince LaPaglia to become the 3rd Ward alderman of Berwyn. Former Better Existence with HIV ( BEHIV ) board member Mark Tendam prevailed in his race to become 6th Ward alderman of Evanston, and Sandy Kim was elected to a two-year term to the College of DuPage Board of Trustees.
Kim told Windy City Times that reform was the reason she ran: "I graduated from the college and was the student body president my last year, and got the chance to work with the administration and staff. ... There's been a downslide regarding some of the decisions the board has been making. Over the last year or so, there have been [ people ] who spoke to the board about poor decisions they were making—and they went ahead and made them anyway." Kim added that even DuPage County is pretty conservative, the college itself has a liberal atmosphere.
Downstate, Scott Hall was unopposed in his bid for 1st Ward alderman in Jacksonville. Hall, the director of budget and decision support at Passavant Area Hospital, told the Jacksonville Journal-Courier that both he and partner Joel Tinsley, a musician and music director at a local church, have received positive feedback from the community during the campaign.