Politics
Illinois Democratic Party Chair on the DNC: ‘There’s Just So Much at Stake Right Now’
The Illinois Democratic Party is gearing up for a busy week in Chicago.
During the Democratic National Convention from Aug. 19-22, members will be meeting with other party leaders, discussing policies and rallying behind presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
As Illinois party chair, state Rep. Lisa Hernandez (D-Cicero) will be there to ensure Illinois is in on the action.
She joined “Chicago Tonight: Latino Voices” to discuss the party’s expectations for the week.
On having the DNC in her home state:
“DNC is the stage,” Hernandez said. “It’s where it’s at to really uplift the party, ignite and get ourselves ready for the election in November. We’ve already started as a party to put, to implement, to get, you know, starting to work on the election for November. But before we, you know, get there, we have to make sure that we at the DNC, we get everybody motivated and an opportunity to get folks to participate and volunteer in every way imaginable. For me, it’s going to be important to expand our Democratic base through the volunteer participation.”
On the DNC’s message:
“DNC is an opportunity to really unify people,” Hernandez said. “... There’s just so much at stake right now, and if we are going to keep our freedoms, this is the moment. In particular, me being a woman, having two daughters and granddaughters, I’m doing everything and encouraging as much as possible to get involved. This is the moment. It’s a historical moment. And on top of that, we are just about to elect the first woman, and I think we should start getting used to it — madam president of the United States.”
The DNC’s impact on Illinois campaigns:
“This is an opportunity for us as a party,” she said. “... We have targeted in particular, two congressional districts, the 13th and the 17th, which is Nikki Budzinski, Eric Sorensen, and this is an opportunity within those districts, if there is any other targeted districts, from bottom ballot all the way up, to make sure that people are coming out to vote in this ticket is a way to use, for all races of all government levels. So really taking advantage of that moment.”
On the continued campaign momentum:
“What President Biden did to step down and pass the torch to Vice President Kamala Harris is just, I can’t say how incredibly courageous that was on part of the president,” Hernandez said. “... But once he did, it just kind of, like, it paused, and then it just kind of hit it. Just it hit hard, and so it brought some energy of a sort from people and now they’re just ready to get involved.”
