The Democratic Party of Illinois is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is the oldest extant state party in Illinois and one of just two recognized parties in the state, along with the Republican Party. It is currently the dominant party in the state, controlling the majority of Illinois' U.S. House seats, both U.S. Senate seats, both houses of the state legislature, and the governorship.
The Democratic Party of Illinois took shape during the late 1830s. Prior to that time, Illinois did not have organized political parties; instead, political competition in the state was more personalist, with prominent factions centered on Governors Ninian Edwards and Shadrach Bond. As the Democratic and Whig parties began to form at the national level during the late 1820s and 1830s, Illinois politicians began sorting themselves accordingly and, in the summer of 1837, leading Democrats met to lay the groundwork for a Democratic Party organization in the state.
Before 2010, the party had been extremely successful in statewide elections for the past decade. In 1992, Carol Moseley Braun became the first African American woman to be elected to the United States Senate. Her election marked the first time Illinois had elected a woman, and the first time a Black person was elected as a Democratic Party candidate to the United States Senate. A second African American Democratic Senator, Barack Obama was elected in 2004 (the same seat that Senator Moseley-Braun once held), and later elected President of the United States in 2008. Democrats currently hold supermajorities in both the Illinois Senate and Illinois House of Representatives.
Organization and leadership
The Democratic Party of Illinois is run by a Democratic State Central Committee of 34 members, two from each of the state's 17 congressional districts. The Central Committee has four officers: a chairman, a vice-chair, a secretary, and a treasurer.
Calvin Sutker of Skokie served as state party chairman until 1986 when he lost his committeeman seat to reform Democrat Jeffrey Paul Smith.[1] Sutker was succeeded by Vince Demuzio, who served from 1986 to 1990 and is credited with rebuilding the Illinois Democratic Party.[2] Demuzio was then defeated by Gary LaPaille, then-chief of staff for Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan. Madigan himself succeeded LaPaille, serving in the role until he stepped down in 2021. He was succeeded by U.S. Representative Robin Kelly. In 2022, Kelly was replaced by State Representative Lisa Hernandez.
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