Endorsements for the March 17, 2026 Primary Election

*The below endorsements were approved by the CCCTU House of Representatives

United States Congress 

• US Senate: Juliana Stratton

• US Congress 2nd: Robert Peters

• US Congress 5th: no endorsement 

• US Congress 6thy: Sean Casten

• US Congress 7th: La Shawn Ford

• US Congress 8th: Kevin Morrison 

• US Congress 9th: Mike Simmons

  
  

Illinois Statewide Offices

• IL Comptroller: Karina Villa

Illinois General Assembly (Senate)

• IL Senate 6th: Sara Feigenholtz

• IL Senate 9th: Patrick Hanley 

• IL  Senate 10th: Robert Martwick

• IL Senate 14th: Emil Jones, III

• IL Senate 20th: Graciela Guzmán

• IL Senate 26th: Nabeela Syed

• IL Senate 27th: Carina Santa Maria

• IL Senate 33rd: Michele Clark

  
  

Illinois General Assembly (House)

• IL House 1st: Aaron Ortiz

• IL House 4th: Lilian Jiménez

• IL House 8th: Shantel Franklin

• IL House 12th: no endorsement 

• IL House 13th: Adam Braun

• IL House 16th: Kevin Olickal

• IL House 21st: Abdelnasser Rashid

• IL House 26th: Kam Buckner

• IL House 34th: Aja Kearney 

• IL House 40th: Miguel Alvelo Rivera

• IL House 42nd: Lynn LaPlante 

• IL House 52nd: Erin Chan Ding

• IL House 77th: Norma Hernandez

• IL House 84th: Jared Ploger

• Cook County Board 

  • President: Toni Preckwinkle

  • Assessor: Fritz Kaegi

  • District 1: Tara Stamps

  • District 6: Patricia Joan Murphy

  • District 7: Alma Anaya

  • District 8: Jessica Vasquez

  • District 12: Elizabeth Granato

  • District 15: Ted Mason

    
    

• Cook County Water Reclamation District: 

  • Beth McElroy Kirkwood

  • Eira L. Corral Sepúlveda

  • Precious Brady-Davis 

  • Cameron “Cam” Davis

    
    

• Democratic Township Committee Person

  • Orland Township: Beth McElroy Kirkwood

  • Thornton Township: Napoleon Harris 

  • Wheeling Township: Mary Beth Canty

  • Worth Township: Patricia Joan Murphy

• Judicial 

  • Appellate Court District 1: Judith Rice

  • Appellate Court District 3: Margaret “Peggy” O’Connell

Candidate Bios:

US Senate: Julianna Stratton 

Juliana Stratton made history in 2019 as Illinois’ first Black woman lieutenant governor, serving with Governor J.B. Pritzker and focusing on justice, equity, and opportunity. A lifelong resident of Chicago raised in Pill Hill, she built a career as an attorney, mediator, and reform advocate before entering politics. She led the Cook County Justice Advisory Council and later won election to the Illinois House of Representatives. After being tapped as Pritzker’s running mate, she has pushed priorities like early childhood education, rural development, and equity while chairing the Illinois Council on Women and Girls and other interagency councils.

US Congress 2nd: Robert Peters

Robert Peters is a lifelong Chicagoan and Illinois State Senator who’s built a reputation as a strong progressive voice for education, community colleges, and working families. He has led on major issues like ending cash bail, raising the minimum wage, expanding union apprenticeships, and investing in affordable housing and higher education. Shaped by his South Side upbringing, early childhood deafness, and years as a community organizer, Peters is committed to advancing justice, opportunity, and community reinvestment.

US Congress 6th: Sean Casten

Sean Casten is a scientist and clean-energy entrepreneur who represents Illinois's 6th congressional district in Congress focusing his work on fighting climate change. He brings private-sector experience to crafting market-based emissions solutions that also create jobs and support economic growth. In Congress, he serves on the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services and the Joint Economic Committee, and he is Vice-Chair of the Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition. He earned a Master of Engineering Management and an M.S. in Biochemical Engineering from Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College, where his research included thermophilic fermentation for cellulosic ethanol and integrated ethanol/heat/power systems.

US Congress 7th: La Shawn Ford

State Representative La Shawn K. Ford has served Illinois’ 8th District since 2007, championing social justice, education equity, economic opportunity, and carrying key legislation for Local 1600 that has directly supported our members and students. From his roots on Chicago’s West Side to his leadership in Springfield, Ford has proven he can turn our shared values into action—and we are excited to see him bring that same commitment and experience to Washington.

US Congress 8th: Kevin Morrison

Kevin Morrison is a Cook County Board of Commissioners Commissioner, attorney, and progressive leader working to ensure government serves everyone, not just the powerful. First elected in 2018, he made history as the county’s youngest-ever and first openly LGBTQ+ Commissioner, and as Chair of the Technology and Innovation Committee he has advanced mental health access, small business recovery, tenants’ rights, and modernization of county services. Before joining the County Board, he worked as a grassroots organizer and later served as an Edgar Fellows Program Fellow and LGBTQ+ Victory Fund board member.

US Congress 9th: Mike Simmons

State Senator Mike Simmons is a lifelong Chicagoan and barrier-breaking public servant who has made inclusive economic growth, equity, and education central to his work, passing nearly 50 bills into law while championing working families. A close partner to Local 1600 and a fierce community college advocate, Simmons sees community colleges as the backbone of workforce development and continues to fight for affordable education, housing, public transit, and green jobs so every Illinoisan can thrive.

IL Comptroller: Karina Villa

State Senator Karina Villa is a lifelong West Chicago resident, former school social worker, and proven champion for education, workers, small businesses, and mental health. A strong ally of Local 1600 who carried our legislation mandating licensed counselors in Illinois community colleges, she cares deeply about our colleges and students and consistently brings empathy, equity, and a student-centered perspective to her work in Springfield.

IL Senate 6th: Sara Feigenholtz

Senator Sara Feigenholtz has been a strong voice, serving in the Illinois House from 1995 to 2020 before being appointed to the Senate in January 2020. An adoptee, she founded and chaired the House Adoption & Child Welfare Committee and is best known for major work on healthcare access and child welfare reform. She also champions mental health parity as a founding member and vice president of The Kennedy Forum, and her Senate priorities include affordable housing, safe neighborhoods, strong public education, and a fair, inclusive economy.

IL Senate 9th: Patrick Hanley

Hanley is an environmental leader and political organizer focused on climate action, green infrastructure, disaster preparedness, and economic opportunity. Born in Evanston and raised in Northbrook and Glenview, he spent a decade in Washington, D.C. working in the United States Senate and the United States Department of Justice, and later earned master’s degrees in public policy and business administration from the University of Chicago. He chairs the Winnetka Environmental & Forestry Commission, serves on the board of Openlands, co-founded the Winnetka Future Energy Coalition, and helped lead major volunteer and justice-march organizing.

IL Senate 10th: Robert Martwick

Senator Robert “Rob” Martwick represents Illinois’ 10th Legislative District and has been a long-term partner of Local 1600, consistently standing up for community colleges, working families, and fair taxation. As chief sponsor of our landmark legislation to establish an elected board of trustees for the City Colleges of Chicago, Martwick is leading the fight for accountability, shared governance, and stronger partnerships between faculty, staff, students, and the public.

IL Senate 14th: Emil Jones, III

Emil Jones III is the incumbent state senator for Illinois Senate District 14, serving since 2009. He has emphasized transportation and infrastructure, chairing the Illinois Senate Transportation Committee and helping secure funding tied to Chicago Transit Authority Red Line extensions and local road repairs. 

IL Senate 20th: Graciela Guzman

Senator Graciela Guzmán, a longtime partner of labor and former campaign director for the groundbreaking Healthy Illinois initiative, now represents the 20th District after a 2024 election in which Local 1600 was instrumental to her victory. Since taking office, she has been a strong voice for community colleges and is the chief sponsor of Local 1600’s academic freedom legislation, standing with faculty, staff, and students to protect higher education and democratic values in Illinois.

IL Senate 26th: Nabeela Syed

Representative Nabeela Syed is a lifelong northwest suburban resident, community organizer, and one of the youngest members ever elected to the Illinois General Assembly, where she has focused on lowering costs for working families, expanding healthcare access, and strengthening government transparency. In her first term, she passed legislation prohibiting price gouging on generic prescription drugs, supported protections for reproductive healthcare and mental health access, and continues to champion inclusive, forward-looking policies that help Illinois families thrive.

IL Senate 27th: Carina Santa Maria

Carina Santa Maria is a licensed clinical social worker, first-generation American, and Executive Director of Shelter, Inc., as well as an Arlington Heights Village Trustee, now running for the Illinois State Senate in District 27. She has expanded Shelter, Inc.’s operations statewide, led reforms in child welfare and trauma-informed care, and champions child welfare, affordable housing, and accountable, community-centered government.

IL Senate 33rd: Michele Clark

Michele Clark is a nonprofit leader, small business owner, and lifelong northwest suburban resident running for the Illinois House in the 52nd District, drawing on roots in Kildeer and a family tradition of small business and advocacy for women’s education. She has owned and operated a large early childhood learning center, led the Boys & Girls Club of Dundee Township through the COVID-19 pandemic, and now serves as Director of Development for the D300 Food Pantry, where she continues her commitment to education, women’s rights, and community-based solutions.

IL House 1st: Aaron Ortiz

Aaron Ortiz is a Democratic lawmaker representing Illinois House District 1 and Assistant Majority Leader in the House, a former teacher and college counselor at Back of the Yards High School, and a proud member of the Chicago Teachers Union. Born and raised in Chicago to immigrants from Durango, Mexico, he brings his background in urban planning and community leadership to his work advocating for equity, education, and immigrant rights.

IL House 4th: Lilian Jiménez

Lilian Jiménez is a Chicago native, attorney, and advocate whose career has centered working-class families, immigrant rights, and underinvested Black and Brown communities. Her work and leadership is informed by being raised by an undocumented mother from Mexico and a father who migrated from Puerto Rico. After earning her J.D. from DePaul University College of Law, she organized with UNITE!/Workers United, led the Fair Labor Standards Division at the Illinois Department of Labor, served as chief of staff to Jesús "Chuy" García at Cook County Board of Commissioners, and directed Illinois Office of Welcoming Centers for Refugee and Immigrant Services. Elected in November 2022, she serves as Vice Chair of the Housing Committee, Secretary of the Progressive Caucus, and Treasurer of the Latinx Caucus.

IL House 8th: Shantel Franklin

Shantel Franklin (D) was born and raised on Chicago's West Side. She holds a B.A. in Political Science from Southern Illinois University Carbondale and a Master's in Public Affairs from Indiana University. Her professional background includes work as a licensed real estate professional and property owner, as well as service as a legislative liaison for the Illinois Attorney General's Office, where she engaged in drafting and advocating for bills related to consumer protections, victim compensation, and gun safety. During her time at SIU, she interned with then-Senate President John Cullerton through the Alexander Lane internship program. Her campaign priorities center on housing affordability, economic development, safe neighborhoods, and healthcare access, informed by both her lived experience on the West Side and her career in legislative affairs.

IL House 13th: Adam Braun

Adam Braun is the former Executive Deputy Attorney General in the Illinois Attorney General’s Office, where he helped hold pharmaceutical companies accountable for the opioid crisis, advanced a statewide crime-gun tracing platform, and worked on major consumer and public-health legislation. Outside of government, he has served on the Illinois Holocaust & Genocide Commission and the Foundation for Hearing and Speech Rehabilitation, and helped secure insurance coverage for children’s hearing aids.

IL House 16th: Kevin Olical

Illinois State Representative Kevin John Olickal serves the 16th District—one of the most diverse in Illinois—bringing a lifelong commitment to inclusive, community-centered leadership shaped by his upbringing in Skokie as the son of immigrant parents. A graduate of The Ohio State University and Loyola University Chicago School of Law, he draws on years of experience in organizing, nonprofit, political, and government work to advance legislation that expands opportunity and ensures every resident is seen, heard, and represented in Springfield.

IL House 21st: Abdelnasser Rashid

Representative Abdelnasser Rashid serves Illinois’ 21st House District, bringing deep policy experience and a strong commitment to working families, public education, and fair, forward-looking technology governance. A close ally of our community colleges, Rep. Rashid carried Local 1600’s language in HB 1859 to protect faculty from Artificial Intelligence by ensuring that only human instructors—not AI systems—can award college credit in Illinois community colleges.

IL House 26th: Kam Buckner

Kam Buckner is a South Side Chicago native with his legislative perspective grounded in extensive public-service experience, including work on the staffs of Mitch Landrieu and Dick Durbin, as well as roles managing government and community relations in major civic institutions. He holds a B.A. in Political Science from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a J.D. from DePaul University College of Law, and he has also taught public policy at the University of Chicago and served on the board of Chicago State University. He serves as the Speaker Pro Tempore in the Illinois House. 

IL House 34th: Aja Kearney

Aja Kearney is a Chicago native and lifelong South Side resident, as well as a wife and mother. She graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2001 and completed the Illinois Women’s Institute for Leadership in 2006. She built a career in grassroots organizing and public service, holding leadership roles with the 8th Ward Young Democrats and Cook County Young Democrats and working in city, county, and state government, most recently as district director for Representative Marcus C. Evans, Jr.

IL House 40th: Miguel Alvelo Rivera

Miguel Alvelo Rivera is a community organizer, executive director of the Latino Union of Chicago, and son of Puerto Rican immigrants who has spent a decade fighting for day laborers, domestic workers, undocumented residents, and tenants through campaigns against wage theft, for city ID cards, and for stronger labor protections. A progressive challenger in the 40th District Democratic primary, he centers workers’ rights and affordable housing—and is proudly supported by Local 1600’s closest allies, including Congresswoman Delia Ramirez, State Senator Graciela Guzmán, and Chicago Alder Rossana Rodríguez-Sánchez.

IL House 42nd: Lynn LaPlainte

Lynn LaPlante advocates for a progressive, values-driven government that strengthens quality of life for working families. A three-time elected DuPage County Board member, she has led major initiatives including a $5 million investment to establish the county’s first permanent homeless shelter, fair collective bargaining for Care Center employees, and sustainability partnerships for local businesses. She also serves on the DuPage County Board of Health, where she is advancing the county’s first Insulin Bank and championing health equity, mental health, and economic development through the arts via bipartisan coalitions and community-wide programs.

IL House 52nd: Erin Chan Ding

Chan Ding is an attorney and elected member of the Barrington School District 220 board, where she has served as vice president since being elected in 2021. A former federal prosecutor who later worked in-house at a Fortune 500 company, she gained prominence leading the board through contentious debates over COVID safety and diversity curriculum, consistently advocating for science-based policies and inclusive public education. She is campaigning to protect school funding and educational quality, oppose book bans and other extremist interference, and deliver suburban priorities like improved Metra service and safer routes for students while supporting reproductive rights.

IL House 77th: Norma Hernandez

Representative Norma Hernandez is a third-generation Melrose Park resident, daughter of Mexican immigrants, and former Triton College Trustee who brings the lived experience of working-class families and a deep commitment to community-driven solutions to her work in the Illinois House. One of Local 1600’s closest allies, she carried our mental health legislation mandating licensed counselors in community colleges and consistently champions quality education, student support, and policies that put everyday families first.

IL House 84th: Jared Ploger

Jared Ploger is running for State Representative to deliver results for the 84th District by investing in public schools, valuing workers, and strengthening communities. He is the president of the Valley View School District Council, IFT Local 604, and he led major contract negotiations where his members voted to strike. Ploger will prioritize responsible property tax relief, fully funding schools, lowering everyday costs for working families, and long-term investments in infrastructure, public safety, healthcare, housing, and essential local services.

Cook County Board 1st District: Tara Stamps 

Commissioner Tara Stamps is a lifelong educator, organizer, and daughter of civil rights icon Marion Stamps, grounded in the struggles and strength of Cabrini-Green and dedicated to advancing equity, justice, and dignity for working-class communities. A proud Chicago Teachers Union member and representative on the Illinois Federation of Teachers Executive Board, she has spent decades fighting school closures, privatization, and racist policing while championing students, public education, and transformative change.

Cook County Board 6th District: Patricia Joan Murphy Worth Township Democratic Township Committee Person: Patricia Joan Murphy

Trish Murphy is a lifelong Worth Township resident, community leader, and businesswoman who serves as Worth Township Supervisor, Democratic Committeeperson, and a trustee at Moraine Valley Community College, where she also leads statewide as President of the Illinois Community College Trustees Association. A strong voice for community colleges and working families, Trish has been a reliable, collaborative partner for our members—expanding services, championing affordable, high-quality education, and consistently showing up for Moraine Valley’s students and staff.

Cook County Water Reclamation District: Beth McElroy Kirkwood & Orland Township Democratic Township Committee Person: Beth McElroy Kirkwood

Beth McElroy Kirkwood is a lifelong Orland Park resident, educator, and public servant who serves as Chair of the Moraine Valley Community College Board of Trustees and as a Commissioner on the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago. A strong advocate for education, equity, and environmental stewardship, she has been a reliable and collaborative partner for our members—helping to ensure Moraine Valley remains a well-resourced, student-centered college that supports both learning and good jobs.

Cook County Water Reclamation District: Eira L. Corral Sepúlveda

Commissioner Eira L. Corral Sepúlveda is a longtime public servant and proud daughter of working-class Mexican immigrants who rose from serving three terms as Hanover Park Village Clerk to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, where she champions environmental justice, transparency, and equity. As Chair of the Monitoring & Research and Municipalities Committees and Vice Chair of key committees on Ethics, Labor, and Public Health, she leads efforts to protect water quality, expand green infrastructure, and ensure that investments reach the communities most impacted by flooding and environmental inequity.

Cook County Water Reclamation District: Precious Brady-Davis 

Commissioner Precious Brady-Davis is a groundbreaking leader, award-winning social justice advocate, and environmental champion on the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago—making history as the first Black openly transgender woman appointed and elected to public office in Cook County and the first to serve on a water reclamation district in the nation. A longtime Chicago resident with over 15 years of experience at organizations like the Center on Halsted and the Sierra Club, she is deeply committed to protecting Lake Michigan, preventing urban flooding, and advancing climate resilience and environmental justice for all Cook County residents.

Thornton Township Democratic Township Committee Person: Napoleon Harris 

Senator Napoleon B. Harris III represents Illinois’ 15th District, drawing on his roots in Dixmoor, academic success at Northwestern University and Kellogg, and his background as a former NFL linebacker to champion public safety, health equity, and educational opportunity. In the General Assembly, he has led efforts to reduce harsh school discipline, expand telehealth in disadvantaged communities, and authored Illinois’ law allowing student-athletes to earn compensation for their name, image, and likeness.

Wheeling Township Democratic Township Committee Person: Mary Beth Canty

Representative Mary Beth Canty is an attorney and former Arlington Heights Village Trustee who was elected to the Illinois General Assembly in 2022, representing the 54th District that includes Arlington Heights, Palatine, Prospect Heights, and surrounding communities. A strong supporter of small businesses, public education, and social justice, she has helped pass legislation establishing full-day kindergarten, improving wage transparency by requiring pay ranges in job postings, and creating a grocery initiative to support independent grocers in food deserts.