Chicago Public Schools headquarters. (Michael Izquierdo / WTTW News)
Chicago’s Board of Education is currently comprised of seven appointed members, but with the first wave of board elections approaching this fall, nearly 50 candidates have tossed their hats into the ring for a seat.
Chicago Public Schools parents, educators, Local School Council members and more were among the 47 candidates to submit their nomination petitions for the board races by Monday’s deadline.
The candidate pool more than doubled in size as 26 candidates filed Monday, joining 21 others who had previously filed their petitions last week.
That election marks the first for the board since the state legislature approved a plan to shift from a mayoral-appointed board — which had been in place for nearly three decades — to a hybrid one made up of appointed and elected members.
For this year’s election, Chicago will be divided into 10 separate districts, each of which will elect one board member. Mayor Brandon Johnson will also appoint a second member from each district, along with a board president, for a total of 21 elected and appointed board members.
Those members will serve until 2026, when residents will vote once again, this time electing all 21 members for four-year terms.
Candidates had to collect more than 1,000 signatures from residents within their board district in order to appear on the November ballot. Each district currently has at least three candidates running, while District 10 has the most candidates with seven.
1st District
Jennifer Custer
Charles (Chuck) Hernandez
Michelle N. Pierre
2nd District
Ebony L. DeBerry
Kate Doyle
Daniel Steven Kleinman
Margaret “Maggie” Cullerton Hooper
Bruce Leon
3rd District
Carlos A. Rivas Jr.
Jason C. Dones
Kirk J. Ortiz
4th District
Kimberly Brown
Karen Zaccor
Ellen Rosenfeld
Thomas Day
Andrew A. Davis
Carmen Gioiosa
5th District
Anthony Hargrove
Aaron “Jitu” Brown
Kernetha Jones
Jousef M. Shkoukani
Michilla “Kyla” Blaise
6th District
Jessica Biggs
Anusha Thotakura
Brenda I. Delgado
Danielle J. Wallace
Andre Smith
7th District
Yesenia Lopez
Jesus Ayala Jr.
Felipe “Phil” Luna Jr.
Eva A. Villalobos
Raquel Don
8th District
Angel Gutierrez
Felix Ponce
Darius Dee Nix
9th District
Brittany Bailey Preston
Therese Boyle
Lanetta M. Thomas
Miquel Lewis
La’Mont Raymond Williams
10th District
Che “Rhymefest” Smith
Adam Parrott-Sheffer
Karin Norington-Reaves
Robert Jones
Nathaniel “Nate” Ward
Rosita Chatonda
James M. Walton Jr.
