The June 2022 Voter Guide: Candidates 101
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By Ankur Singh
It’s election season. Illinois residents are being flooded with robocalls, mailers, Facebook and Youtube ads, yard signs and more from candidates up and down the ballot trying to win their votes.
Candidates who win the primary election on June 28, 2022 will go on to represent their party in that race during the general election on Nov. 8, 2022.
With district lines having been redrawn after the 2020 census, and every state representative, 17 Cook County Commissioners and more positions open for elections, Cicero Independiente has created this voter guide to help you navigate the election process in Cicero and Berwyn as easily as possible.
Who and what do I get to vote for?
There are several national, state, and county districts that have various jurisdictions throughout Cicero and Berwyn. Below are some of the many hyperlocal races that you might see on your ballot during the June primary. To review the entire ballot specific to your location, visit bit.ly/CookCountyVotersVotantes.
State Representatives:
The Illinois General Assembly is made up of two bodies, the House and the Senate whose members are elected by voters to represent their interests. These elected officials vote on laws at the state level that impact all Illinois residents on issues ranging from school funding, gun control, infrastructure, COVID relief, taxes and more.
The Cicero area has three representatives at the state level. Depending on which street you live on, you may see one or more of the following elections on your ballot.
House of Representatives - District 21
The following individuals are running as Democrats to represent residents of District 21 at the state level.
Abdelnasser Rashid:
According to his campaign website, Rashid is the child of Palestinian immigrants who “will fight to root out corruption, fund public education, and work to fix the broken property tax system that punishes working families while giving huge corporations major tax cuts.”
A graduate of Harvard University, he worked for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. He also was Deputy Chief of Staff to former Cook County Clerk David Orr and was Chief Policy Officer for Assessor Fritz Kaegi. Rashid worked on Congressman Chuy Garcia's Chicago mayoral campaign and was Illinois Deputy Director of Bernie Sanders's 2016 presidential campaign for president.
Learn more about Rashid on his website at bit.ly/RashidforIL
Michael Zalewski:
Zalewski has been a state representative since 2008. According to his website, “During his ten years in the legislature, Mike has authored and led passage of a number of important laws, including Illinois’ first Racketeering statute, comprehensive ride-share law, the creation of an Independent Tax Tribunal, and a rewritten EDGE tax credit to lure more businesses to the State of Illinois.”
He previously worked as an attorney and his father is a former City of Chicago alderman.
Learn more about Zalewski on his website at bit.ly/staterepMikeZ.
House of Representatives - District 2
Elizabeth “Lisa” Hernandez:
Hernandez has been a state representative for four terms and is a Democrat running for Illinois House of Representatives 2nd District unopposed.
State Senate 1st District
Javier Loera Cervantes:
Cervantes is a Democrat running for Illinois State Senate 1st District unopposed. Cervantes filed his petitions to run for election shortly after his father-in-law State Senator Antonio Muñoz announced his retirement from the seat.
Cook County:
Cook County Commissioner 16th District
According to the Cook County Board of Commissioners website, “County Commissioners are elected officials who oversee county activities and work to ensure that citizen concerns are met, federal and state requirements are fulfilled, and county operations run smoothly. The Cook County Board of Commissioners is the governing board and legislative body of the county. It is comprised of 17 Commissioners, each serving a four-year term and is elected from single member districts. Each district represents approximately 300,000 residents.”
Frank J. Aguilar:
Aguilar has held a variety of positions throughout his career as an elected official. He was previously elected as a Republican to the Illinois House of Representatives from 2003 - 2005. Since then he has served on the Board of Morton College and been a member of the Little Village Chamber of Commerce. He also served as Director of Community Affairs and Special Projects for the Town of Cicero. He was first appointed to the Cook County Board in April 2020. At the time, some local groups opposed his appointment because of a lack of transparency around his selection, as reported by the Chicago Sun-Times.
Learn more about Aguilar on his website at bit.ly/3O0ABT8
Leticia “Letty” Garcia:
Garcia is a registered nurse who has worked throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. According to her website “she sits on several boards making executive decisions, work with nonprofits and organizations to help pass legislation/policies to better the life of our communitie,” such as the Illinois Transplant Fund (ITF) and the National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN).
Garcia is a pro-choice woman’s advocate who says if elected she will prioritize health care, fair wages and workers’ rights, and immigrant rights.
Learn more about her at her website at bit.ly/3NAFhj6
Commissioner, Board of Review, 1st District
The Cook County Board of Review is an elected body made up of three individuals that provides taxpayers the opportunity to appeal their property taxes. The Chicago Reader reports that “every year, homeowners, landlords, and business owners receive an assessment, or estimated value, of their property from the Cook County Assessor’s office that ultimately determines their property tax bill. If you’re mad about paying higher property taxes because your assessment increased, the Board of Review is the independent body you can appeal to.”
According to the Chicago Reader, the Illinois General Assembly redrew the lines of the Board of Review 1st District to include majority Latinx wards and suburbs such as Cicero, Berwyn, and Hanover Park to encourage minority representation on the board.
George A. Cardenas:
Cardenas is currently alderman for Chicago’s 12th Ward, which covers parts of Brighton Park, McKinley Park, and Little Village. Since 2011 he has been head of the Environmental Protection and Energy Committee and in 2011 was appointed Deputy Floor Leader by Mayor Lori Lightfoot. Cardenas has been criticized by several environmental justice groups for his role in the construction of the polluter MAT Asphalt in McKinley Park.
According to Block Club Chicago, should Cardenas win the Board of Review seat, he would not pursue another term as alderman. Learn more about Cardenas at his website at bit.ly/3mmRc7R.
Tammy Wendt:
Wendt was first elected to the Cook County Board of Review in 2020 and is running for reelection. According to her website, she previously worked as a social worker helping parents reunite with their children after they had lost custody. She also spent many years working as an attorney, including representing former Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke who was found guilty in the murder of 17 year old Laquan Mcdonald.
Learn more about Wendt at bit.ly/3H1p8QV.
Cook County Assessor
The Cook County Assessor’s website writes that “The Cook County Assessor is an elected government official who is responsible for establishing fair and accurate property assessments. Valuation of the county's 1.8 million parcels of property is conducted for ad valorem tax purposes. Ad valorem means according to value and refers to the amount of taxes that will be required to be paid based on the value of the property.”
The valuation of a piece of property is integral to determining how much the owner of that property, whether it be commercial or residential, will pay in property taxes.
Fritz Kaegi:
Kaegi was first elected as Cook County Assessor in 2018. According to his website, “Before serving as Assessor, Fritz spent his career valuing assets as a financial manager at Columbia Wanger Asset Management. In 13 years at Columbia Wanger, Fritz served as a financial steward, helping average families save for retirement as well as focusing on global small companies.”
Learn more about Kaegi at bit.ly/3aNbapZ.
Kari K. Steele:
Steele is currently serving her first 6-year term as a Commissioner for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) where she is the President. Her website states that, “As President she oversees a billion dollar budget, maintained a AAA bond rating, and has reduced the reliance on property taxes through innovation and efficiency.”
If elected as Assessor, Steele states that, “you have my commitment that I will fight for a property tax system that puts equity first.” Learn more about her at bit.ly/3xfMRbI.
Referendum:
Referendums are opportunities for voters to directly vote on local issues or proposed laws, as opposed to an elected representative voting on it. Below are three referendum questions that will appear on the ballot for Cicero residents. These are nonbinding which means that they are simply to inform. :
TOWN OF CICERO, PROPERTY ASSESSMENT
Shall the Cook County Assessor’s office replace the mass appraisal process and instead base property taxes off of the actual value of the property?
TOWN OF CICERO, INCREASED PENALTY FOR CARJACKING
Shall the minimum criminal penalty for vehicular carjacking be increased from four (4) years to ten (10) years?
TOWN OF CICERO, ELECTRONIC MONITORING
Shall electronic monitoring be prohibited for persons accused of violent crimes or illegally possessing a firearm, where said persons would instead remain incarcerated until the date of trial, unless the person was able to post the court-ordered bond?
What if I encounter issues while voting?
If you encounter any problems at the polls or have a question you can contact the Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights voting hotline. For English or Spanish you can call, 888-839-8682.
Don't hand any mail-in ballots to volunteers outside of the polling locations.
If the polls close while you're still in line, stay in line. You have the right to vote and should not be turned away.
If you make a mistake on your ballot, ask for a new one.
Electioneering within 100 feet of the polls is not allowed. This means that no one should be handing you flyers or political material asking you to vote for a specific candidate within 100 feet of the polls. Talk to a judge if there's a problem or call the hotline.
Ankur Singh is a co-founder and steering committee member. He is focusing on our efforts to become a 501c3 and developing our internal organizational infrastructure.
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