Four Democrats are vying to succeed Rep. La Shawn Ford, who has held this West Side and near west suburban seat for nearly two decades and is relinquishing it to run for Congress.
They are Latonya Mitts, community activist and daughter of 37th Ward Ald. Emma Mitts; Shantel Franklin, real estate agent and former legislative liaison for Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul; John Harrell, a pastor at churches in Maywood and Chicago, as well as president of Black Men United, a national community service organization; and Jill Bush, director of community engagement for 29th Ward Ald. Chris Taliaferro.
Franklin is endorsed by CTU, and her policy prescriptions — heavy on taxes on the wealthy — reflect that union’s views.
Harrell noted his involvement with a large group of pastors who organized to reopen the appeals window for homeowners on the West Side hammered by a spike in property taxes. But his answers to our questions were skimpy.
We reached Mitts, who is endorsed by retiring U.S. Rep. Danny Davis among others, and let her know our deadline, but she didn’t get responses to our questions back to us in time.
Bush, 62, is a lifelong West Side resident whose career has included stints in the private sector (e.g., Waste Management and PepsiCo) and public sector (e.g., Chicago Public Schools and the city of Chicago). She identified property taxes as the leading issue for the district’s voters and said she was open to a surcharge on millionaires as a means of providing relief on property taxes exclusively.
But she also said that pension reform needed to be part of that property tax discussion and is willing to consider options anathema to public sector unions such as 401(k) plans for new hires and the consolidation of public pension plans, among other ideas. We need more people in Springfield willing to put pressure on public sector unions to come to the table on pension solutions.
Jill Bush has our endorsement.
Read all of the Tribune Editorial Board’s endorsements for the 2026 Illinois primary election here.
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