2023 Chicago Election Voter Guide

Candidate Q&A

Why are you running?

I am running because no elected office has such a direct impact on the quality-of-life issues that working families face every day. I am a full-time alderperson because I feel one must be fully committed every waking hour to tackle whatever issue is impacting our neighbors, whether a blizzard, broken water mains, or emerging acts of gang violence. I have an opportunity to serve, and it is a responsibility that I take as an honor of a lifetime.

What does this office do well, and what needs fixing?

The office of Alderperson must be empowered to directly provide services to the ward, instead of relying on bureaucrats at City Hall who are not accountable to voters.  We can increase the quality of life in our communities if we can hold accountable those who deliver the services.

What is the most pressing issue facing your constituents and how do you plan on addressing it?

My top priorities are improved public safety, affordable property taxes, and investments in education. I've fought to fund schools and police, including investing in new technologies. I also advocate for increased community input in the city budget and school management, and I am one of the chief proponents of an elected Chicago Public Schools board. Not only do I believe public safety, property taxes, and education are the top priorities for my residents, but I believe all three are necessary prerequisites to improving quality of life in our city.

What specific steps would you take to ensure your office is accessible and responsive to your constituents?

I am one of the few alderpeople who operate two full-time constituent service officers to ensure accessibility throughout the ward.  I spend hours a week canvassing door to door to talk directly to constituents and host dozens of community events a year which I attend.  I also regularly answer the phones when a constituent calls the office because each employee at a ward office, myself included, works for the residents.

Do you believe in the tradition of aldermanic prerogative, which gives each City Council member the final say on issues in their ward?

Aldermanic prerogative does not give final say to alderpeople as each alderperson is ultimately accountable to the constituents whom they represent.  The practice called “aldermanic prerogative” is resident prerogative as constituents can fire the alderperson the next election if they disagree with the decisions he or she is making in the ward.

Should the $1.9 billion budget for the Chicago Police Department increase, stay the same or decrease?

I would support increasing the public safety budget to ensure we are hiring more officers, providing better training and resources, promoting more detectives and field sergeants, and investing in technology to provide more tools to close cases faster.

Should the city raise the Real Estate Transfer Tax on properties sold for more than $1 million to fund programs to help unhoused Chicagoans?

I support exploring options to address the unacceptable level of the unhoused population that does not place a greater burden on the struggling property market in Chicago.

Should the city open and operate mental health clinics to provide free care to Chicagoans?

Yes.

How should Chicago build the 120,000 homes it needs for low- and moderate-income Chicagoans?

I am willing to look at a proposal to address the need of low and moderate-income Chicagoans housing needs, specifically the need for property tax relief as many working families are struggling to maintain ownership of their single-family homes under the skyrocketing CPI-based property tax system imposed by City Hall.

What do you see as potential solutions to address the number of shootings in Chicago?

Research like studies compiled by Thomas Abt, Senior Research Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School former public safety advisor to the New York Governor's Office and the Office of Justice Programs at the U.S. Department of Justice under President Barack Obama, show that the biggest impediments to police-community relations are the low clearance rates of violent crime cases.  When murders are not being solved or violent criminals are given light sentences or released, the incentive for the community to put themselves in danger and cooperate with the police diminishes.  We need better trained investigators who are equipped with the resources needed to close these cases and bring violent offenders to justice and prosecutors who are willing to pursue sentences that fit the crime, not to send a message to criminals, but to show those who know something about the crime to feel their participation in helping investigators is not putting themselves in harms way, or at least not in vain.