2012 Election: Chicago Ballot, Legislative and Executive Positions

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(By Andrew MacKie-Mason)

Here's a quick run-down of my positions on the legislative and executive (both national, state, and local) contested positions on the ballot in Chicago (at least, my ballot in my part of Chicago). For another opinion, the Chicago Tribune's endorsement page is here.

• U.S. House of Representatives, 1st District of Illinois

The candidates are Bobby Rush (incumbent, D) and Donald Peloquin (R). First of all, Congressman Rush deserves credit for wearing a hoodie on the floor of Congress in honor of Trayvon Martin, the teenager shot in Florida earlier this year. But Peloquin on the issues is tough to beat. He's an economic conservative, but a smart one: his focus is on a simplified tax code with everyone paying their fair share. He seems to acknowledge that low capital gains tax rates are ridiculous, and he makes a positive statement about health care reform (specifically, the need to address preexisting conditions and portability) without jumping on the "repeal Obamacare" bandwagon: in fact, he says that he would support a detailed and thoughtful reconsideration of the Affordable Care Act that would keep some parts of it and change others. His support for lowering the deficit without raising additional revenue is troubling, but not realistic and seemingly not a core principle. He says that marriage is between a man and a woman, but also says that he understands "marriage" to be a purely religious notion—not only does he think the government should offer civil unions to same-sex couples, he thinks civil unions are all the government should offer to anyone. He thinks that military action against Iran's nuclear program should be a last resort. He supports a path to citizenship for current undocumented immigrants. He supports investment in clean energy and term limits for Congressmen. I'm not quite sure how I feel about the last one, but Peloquin has my support, especially given Rush's uninspired approach to addressing the issues.

• Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Commissioners

Voters can select up to three of the eight candidates for this commission. This isn't an area where I have much to say, so I can't do much better than go with the Tribune's endorsement of Debra Shore, Kari Steele, and Patrick Thompson. The Tribune does seem to be focusing on the right issues, at least, even if their concern about the Election Day holiday is a bit overblown.

• Cook County State's Attorney

The candidates are Anita Alvarez (incumbent, D) and Lori Yokoyama (R). I don't feel kindly to Alvarez because of her trumpeting her victory in Williams v. Illinois, a recent Supreme Court case that limited defendants' right to confront witnesses under the Sixth Amendment. But Professor Friedman argues that the impact of Williams is limited and, regardless, arguing Williams was Alvarez's job; it's hard to imagine any prosecutor doing differently. And we shouldn't fault Alvarez for doing her job well. There are some positives in Alvarez's issues profile as well: her focus on public corruption is encouraging, as is her creation of a conviction integrity unit to investigate suspect convictions. In contrast, Yokoyama's approach to the issues feels juvenile; her style simply doesn't convey the gravitas one expects from a prosecutor charged with life-altering decisions. Also, as the Tribune points out, Yokoyama's background is in civil litigation, not criminal law. State's Attorney is not the first criminal law position someone should hold. So, I'll be voting for Alvarez.

• Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court

An vote for county clerk is more about administrative abilities than politics, so I must once again turn to the Tribune, and trust them in their assessment that Dorothy Brown (D) has failed to follow through on modernizing the Clerk's office. But just because politics isn't going to get anyone elected as Clerk, that doesn't mean it shouldn't sink their campaign. The Tribune references anti-Muslim postings by Diane Shapiro (R); one of them appears to be this. In short, it's a crude joke claiming that Muslim women wear veils because they're all ugly. It's not a suggestion that Muslims shouldn't be elected to office, but it's still pretty bad. Given that, and the fact that Brown's accomplishments do sound positive, even if she hasn't modernized the office like she promised to, I'll be voting for Dorothy Brown.

• Recorder of Deeds

The difference in issue statements between Karen Yarbrough (D) and Sherri Griffith (R) actually provides some good information this time. Yarbrough is focused on increasing the investigative role of the Recorder's office, while Griffith is focused on stream-lining the office, eliminating waste and speeding up turnover rates. Both are important, but Griffith's focus seems to me to be more essential at the current time, and so I'll be voting for her (the Tribune's endorsement notwithstanding).

Summary:
US House, 1st District: Donald Peloquin (R)
MWRD: Debra Shore (D), Kari Steele (D), Patrick Thompson (D)
State's Attorney: Anita Alvarez (D)
Clerk of the Circuit Court: Dorothy Brown (D)
Recorder of Deeds: Sherri Griffith (R)