Jeanette Beatrice Taylor [1] (born May 16,1975) is an American politician and community organizer. Taylor is the alderman of Chicago,Illinois' 20th ward,taking office as a member of the Chicago City Council in May 2019. She won an open race to succeed outgoing alderman Willie Cochran in the 2019 Chicago aldermanic elections. [2] [3] She is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. [4]
Taylor was born in Chicago on May 15,1975. [5] [6] Her parents were a clerk at Chicago Public Schools and a taxi driver. [6] For high school,Taylor attended Dunbar Vocational High School. [6] [7] At age 19,Taylor was elected as a member of the local school council for Mollison Elementary School,where her son attended school,and served in that position for over 20 years. [5] She has been an organizer at Kenwood Oakland Community Organization,and is a member of People United for Action and United Working Families. [5] In 2015,Taylor led a hunger strike that successfully protested the proposed closure of Dyett High School. [3] [8]
Taylor took office as a member of Chicago City Council on May 20,2019. In July 2019,Taylor and fellow alderman Leslie Hairston introduced a Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) ordinance aimed at protecting affordable housing near the proposed Barack Obama Presidential Center development. [9] [10] The ordinance gained the support of nearly 30 aldermen,but in January 2020,the Lightfoot administration announced that it would support a scaled-back version. Taylor opposed the scaled-back version and reiterated support for the initial CBA ordinance. [11] In July 2020,a compromise ordinance was formulated after negotiations between Lightfoot's administration,aldermen Taylor and Hairston,and community groups. [12] Taylor called the compromise ordinance a "step in the right direction" and called for further action. [13]
In November 2019,Taylor was one of eleven aldermen to vote against Mayor Lori Lightfoot's first budget. [14] She joined all five other members of the Socialist Caucus in signing a letter to Lightfoot which criticized her budget for "an over-reliance on property taxes" and "regressive funding models" that are "burdensome to our working-class citizens,while giving the wealthy and large corporations a pass." [15]
The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 alderpersons elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms. The council is called into session regularly,usually monthly,to consider ordinances,orders,and resolutions whose subject matter includes code changes,utilities,taxes,and many other issues. The Chicago City Council Chambers are located in Chicago City Hall,as are the downtown offices of the individual alderpersons and staff.
Toni Lynn Preckwinkle is an American politician and the current County Board president in Cook County,Illinois,United States. She was elected to her first term as president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners,the executive branch of Cook County government,in November 2010,becoming the first woman elected to that position.
Pat Dowell is a member of the Chicago City Council representing the City of Chicago's 3rd ward in Cook County,Illinois. Dowell was elected in April 2007 in a runoff election against incumbent Dorothy Tillman. Dowell had lost to Tillman in 2003. Dowell is a member of the City Council's Housing and Real Estate,Transportation and the Public Way,Landmarks,Rules and Health committees.
The Barack Obama Presidential Center is a planned museum,library,and education project in Chicago to commemorate the presidency of Barack Obama,the 44th president of the United States. The center will also include community and conference facilities and will house the nonprofit Obama Foundation. Construction on the 19.3 acre campus began in 2021,the tower topped out in mid-2024,and the center is expected to open in the first half of 2026.
Carlos Ramirez-Rosa is an American politician. He has served as the Alderperson for Chicago's 35th Ward since May 18,2015. He was first elected to the Council in 2015,become one of the chamber's youngest members ever elected at age 26. He was re-elected in 2019 and 2023.
Michelle A. Harris is an American politician who is the alderman of Chicago's 8th ward and the chair of the Chicago City Council's rules committee.
Susan Sadlowski Garza is a member of the Chicago City Council serving as Alderman for the 10th ward. The 10th ward is located on Chicago's southeast side and includes East Side,Hegewisch,Jeffrey Manor,South Chicago and South Deering. She initially assumed office after defeating Rahm Emanuel ally John Pope in the 2015 election. During the 2019–23 term,she was selected to be the chair of the Chicago City Council Progressive Reform Caucus.
Anthony V. Napolitano is the current Alderman for Chicago's 41st ward,located on the Northwest side and including Edison Park,Norwood Park,Oriole Park,O'Hare and Edgebrook.
Sophia D. King is an American politician and former member of Chicago City Council,who served as alderman from the 4th ward,which includes portions of the neighborhoods Bronzeville,Hyde Park,Kenwood,Oakland,and South Loop. King was appointed to the position by mayor Rahm Emanuel in 2016 as a replacement to the retiring William D. Burns. She won a special election in 2017 to serve out the rest term of the Burns' unexpired term,and was re-elected to a full term in 2019. On the council,she was a member and chair of the Progressive Reform Caucus. She forwent reelection to the city council in 2023 in order to make an unsuccessful run for mayor of Chicago in the 2023 Chicago mayoral election.
Lori Elaine Lightfoot is an American politician and attorney who was the 56th mayor of Chicago from 2019 until 2023. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Before becoming mayor,Lightfoot worked in private legal practice as a partner at Mayer Brown and held various government positions in Chicago. She served as president of the Chicago Police Board and chair of the Chicago Police Accountability Task Force. In 2019,Lightfoot defeated Toni Preckwinkle in a runoff election for Chicago mayor. She ran again in 2023 but failed to qualify for the runoff,becoming the city's first incumbent mayor to not be reelected since Jane Byrne in 1983.
Maria Elaine Hadden is an American politician and community activist from Chicago. She is a member of the Chicago City Council,serving as alderperson for the city's 49th ward. She won election to that office after defeating 28-year incumbent Joe Moore in the 2019 election,and was reelected in 2023. The 49th ward includes most of Rogers Park and portions of West Ridge. She is a member of the Progressive Caucus,Black Caucus,and LGBT Caucus in the City Council.
Daniel Francis La Spata is a Chicago politician. He has served as the alderman of Chicago's 1st ward since May 2019. He won election to that office after defeating incumbent Proco Joe Moreno in the 2019 Chicago aldermanic elections. He is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.
Michael D. Rodriguez is a Chicago politician. He is the alderman of Chicago's 22nd ward and took office as a member of the Chicago City Council in May 2019. He was elected in the 2019 aldermanic election,in an open race to succeed incumbent alderman Ricardo Muñoz.
United Working Families (UWF) is an independent political organization based in Chicago,Illinois. It was formed in 2014 as a coalition between the Chicago Teachers Union,SEIU Healthcare Illinois Indiana,Grassroots Illinois Action,and Action Now. Although it is not a formal political party,the organization recruits and trains political candidates and organizers,endorses and provides support to political candidates,and engages in community organizing. Its stated goal is to "create space for independent politics" in Chicago and Illinois and to enact a "vision for a city and a state that provides for the many,not just the wealthy few." The organization has been characterized as part of the progressive movement and the labor movement.
Byron Sigcho-Lopez is a Chicago politician and community activist. He is the alderman of Chicago's 25th ward,having taken office as a member of the Chicago City Council in May 2019. He won an open race to succeed outgoing alderman Daniel Solis in the 2019 Chicago aldermanic election. He is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. He was elected as 25th Ward Democratic Committeeperson in 2020.
Rossana Rodríguez-Sánchez is a Chicago politician and community organizer. She is the alderwoman of Chicago's 33rd ward,having taken office as a member of the Chicago City Council in May 2019. She won election to that office after defeating incumbent Deb Mell in the 2019 Chicago aldermanic elections. She is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.
The Progressive Reform Caucus of the Chicago City Council is a bloc of aldermen in the Chicago City Council that was formed in 2013. Its stated mission statement is "creating a more just and equal Chicago,combating all forms of discrimination,and advancing public policies that offer genuine opportunity to all Chicagoans,especially those who have been left out of our society’s prosperity." As of the 2023–27 term,it had 19 members,out of the council's 50 aldermen.
The Chicago Aldermanic Black Caucus is a bloc of aldermen in the Chicago City Council,designed with the goal of "representing the needs and interests of Chicago's Black communities." During the 2019–23 term,the caucus consists of 20 members,out of the council's 50 aldermen. As of June 2023,the chair of the caucus is Stephanie Coleman.
The Democratic Socialist Caucus of the Chicago City Council is a bloc of aldermen in the Chicago City Council. The block was unofficially organized as the Socialist Caucus in 2019,and later organized as a formal caucus with its current name in 2021. It currently has six members,out of the 50 aldermen that comprise the Council. Members of the caucus identify as democratic socialists.
The 2023 Chicago aldermanic election took place in two rounds on February 28 and April 4,2023,to elect 50 alderpersons to the Chicago City Council. Each alderperson represents one of Chicago's 50 wards. The elections are non-partisan and use a two-round system where the top two finishers compete in a second-round runoff if no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote in the first round. The elections are part of the 2023 Chicago elections,which include elections for Mayor,City Clerk,and City Treasurer.
Members of the Chicago City Council | |||||||
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