Bar Association Acronyms+

AABAR

Arab American Bar Association of Illinois

AABA

Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Chicago Area

BMLA

Black Men Lawyers’ Association

BWLA

Black Women Lawyer’s Association of Greater Chicago

CCL

Chicago Council of Lawyers

CCBA

Cook County Bar Association

DSL

Decalogue Society of Lawyers

HBA

Hellenic Bar Association of Illinois

HLAI

Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois

ISBA

Illinois State Bar Association

LAGBAC

Lesbian and Gay Bar Association

PRBA

Puerto Rican Bar Association

WBAI

Women’s Bar Association

We at Voteforjudges.org want to thank you for using our website.  Election results are still unofficial, but here are early results:

Justice Joy Cunningham won her race for the Illinois Supreme Court.

In the contested Appellate Court races, Judge Celia Gamrath and Justice Cynthia Cobbs won their races.

In the contested countywide races for Circuit Judge, winners were Pablo F. deCastro, Neil Cohen, Edward Joseph Underhill and Debjani “Deb” Desai.

Winners in the Subcircuit races:

3rd: Lucy VasQuez-Gonzales

7th: Judge Owens J. Shelby

10th: James V. Murphy

11th:  Too close to call at the moment.

14th: Griselda Vega Samuel

15th:  Luciano “Lou” Panici, Jr.

18th:  Too close to call at the moment.

19th: Bridget Colleen Duignan

20th:  Nadine Jean Wichern

Again, thank you for using VoteforJudges.org. For information about systemic reform of our courts, please visit www.chicagoappleseed.org.

VoteForJudges.org provides nonpartisan judicial voter education to people electing judges in Cook County. We report information on judicial candidates from local media outlets, fourteen bar associations in and around Cook County (the Alliance of Bar Associations and the Chicago Bar Association), and the judicial endorsements of local media outlets.

March 2024 Cook County Judicial Elections Guide

1 How To Select Judges

Click on the drop down menus below and select the candidates you wish to retain. In the following section, you’ll be able to create a report with your choices to take with you to your polling place. To find your polling place and judicial subcircuit, click here if you live in Chicago or click here if you live in suburban Cook County.

For easy reference, clicking the listed Bar Association Acronyms will display their full names at the bottom left of the screen.

Click here for a PDF of judicial candidates considered by Alliance bar associations to be highly qualified.

    2 Select Your Choices for Supreme, Appellate, and Circuit Courts

    • Bar Association Approval Key:
    • High (Majority Bars Say Yes)
    • Low (Majority Bars Say No)
    • Results Pending

    Fill Supreme Court Vacancies

    The Illinois Supreme Court has seven Justices; three represent the First Appellate District (Cook County) and four others represent the remaining four Judicial Districts. Supreme Court Justices serve 10-year terms and must run for retention at the end of that term to keep their position. Illinois voters will be asked to fill one vacancy for the state Supreme Court during the 2024 primary election.

    1ST DISTRICT

    Vacancy of the Hon. Anne M. Burke
    Jesse G. Reyes
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Joy Virginia Cunningham
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Fill Appellate Court Vacancies

    Illinois has five Appellate Districts with a combined total of 54 Appellate Judges. These judges hear cases that have been appealed from the Circuit Court level. Appellate Judges are elected by the voters in their district or are assigned to the Appellate Court by the Supreme Court to serve 10-year terms. At the end of their term, they must be retained by the voters in their district to keep their position. Voters in Cook County will be asked to fill four vacancies for the First Appellate District during the 2024 primary election.

    1ST DISTRICT

    Vacancy of the Hon. Maureen Connors
    Mary Lane Mikva
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Joy V. Cunningham
    Cynthia Y. Cobbs
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Carolyn J. Gallagher
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCBA, HLAI, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. CCL, DSL, HBA, and ISBA all say No.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Mathias W. Delort
    Celia Louise Gamrath
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Leonard Murray
    AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, HBA, DSL, HLAI, ISBA, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. LAGBAC says No.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Eileen O’Neill Burke
    Carl Anthony Walker
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Fill Countywide Vacancies (All Ballots)

    Illinois has five Appellate Districts with a combined total of 54 Appellate Judges. These judges hear cases that have been appealed from the Circuit Court level. Appellate Judges are elected by the voters in their district or are assigned to the Appellate Court by the Supreme Court to serve 10-year terms. At the end of their term, they must be retained by the voters in their district to keep their position.

    Vacancy of the Hon. James P. Flannery, Jr.
    Pablo F. deCastro
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Chelsey Renece Robinson
    AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. ISBA says No.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Vincent Gaughan
    Corrine C. Heggie
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Catherine Haberkorn
    Sarah Johnson
    AABAR, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Arnette Hubbard
    Deidre M. Dyer
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Marcia Maras
    Arlene Y. Coleman-Romeo
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Raymond W. Mitchell
    Neil Cohen
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Wende Williams
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say No.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Timothy P. Murphy
    Edward Joseph Underhill
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Lori Ann Roper
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HLAI, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. HBA and ISBA both say No.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Lorna Propes
    Debjani ‘Deb’ Desai
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Russ Hartigan
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. William Raines
    Jennifer Patricia Callahan
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Laura M. Sullivan
    James S. Murphy-Aguilù
    AABAR, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Debra B. Walker
    Chloe Georginna Pedersen
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    3 Select Judges from Your Subcircuit

    Cook County is divided into 20 judicial subcircuits that are redrawn every ten years based on Census data. About two-thirds of all Cook County Judges are elected through the subcircuit system; these candidates must live in their subcircuit but there is no difference in the responsibilities of a judge elected in the subcircuit or through the countywide race. Every six years, judges elected through the subcircuit races must run for retention to keep their position.

    Not every subcircuit will have a candidate running for retention in every election.

    To find your Cook County subcircuit: Chicago Voters, click here; Suburban Voters, click here.

    • Bar Association Approval Key:
    • High (Majority Bars Say Yes)
    • Low (Majority Bars Say No)
    • Results Pending

    3rd Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Janet Brosnahan
    Lucy Vazquez-Gonzalez
    AABAR, BMLA, CCBA, DSL, HLAI, and PRBA, all say Yes. AABA, CCL, HBA, ISBA, and LAGBAC all say No.

    Martin Douglas Reggi
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. DSL and ISBA both say No.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Edward S. Harmening
    Pat Heery
    AABAR, BWLA, CCL, DSL, HBA, HLAI, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. CCBA, ISBA, and LAGBAC all say No.

    4th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Peter Felice
    Michael M. Chvatal
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Edward J. King
    Phillip Fowler
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Edward M. Maloney
    Koula A. Fournier
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    5th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Casandra Lewis
    Yolanda Harris Sayre
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    7th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Irwin Solganick
    Owens J. Shelby
    AABAR, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Deidre Baumann
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. ISBA says No.

    8th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Ann Collins-Dole
    Loveleen Ahuja
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    10th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Clare E. McWilliams
    Caroline Glennon-Goodman
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Gregory J. Wojkowski
    James V. Murphy
    AABAR, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Liam Kelly
    AABAR, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, and PRBA all say Yes. AABA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, and WBAI all say No.

    11th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Ann Finley Collins
    Dawn Gonzalez
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Paula M. Daleo
    Kim Przekota
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Audrey Victoria Cosgrove
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    12th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Grace G. Dickler
    Alon Stein
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Maria McCarthy
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Marguerite Quinn
    Frank J. Andreou
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Pamela Curran Smith
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Andrea M. Schleifer
    James ‘Jack’ Costello
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Matthew Taylor
    AABAR, AABA, CCL, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. BWLA, CCBA, and LAGBAC, all say No.

    13th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Samuel J. Betar III
    Ralph E. Meczyk
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Ketki Shroff Steffen
    Mary Sevandal Cohen
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    14th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. James N. O’Hara
    Griselda Vega Samuel
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Steve Demitro
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Daniel J. Pierce
    Stephanie Kathryn Miller
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    15th Subcircuit

    Vacancy of the Hon. Anna Helen Demacopoulous
    Paul A. O’Grady
    AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, and PRBA all say Yes.

    Luciano ‘Lou’ Panici, Jr.
    AABAR, BWLA, CCL, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. AABA and CCBA say No.

    Allen Price Walker
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Vacancy of the Hon. Michael P. Toomin
    John A. Fairman
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    16th Subcircuit

    Converted from the Associate Judgeship of Lawrence E. Flood
    Pedro Fregoso, Jr.
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say No.

    Converted from the Associate Judgeship of Maxwell Griffin
    Cecilia Abundis
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say No.

    17th Subcircuit

    Converted from the Associate Judgeship of Carmen K. Aguilar
    Rivanda Doss Beal
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Converted from the Associate Judgeship of Brian K. Flaherty
    Lloyd James Brooks
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    18th Subcircuit

    Converted from the Associate Judgeship of Lauren Gottainer Edidin
    Jeffery G. Chrones
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Sunil Bhave
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Converted from the Associate Judgeship of James Linn
    John Hock
    AABAR, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Lynn Terese Palac
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. ISBA says No.

    19th Subcircuit

    Converted from the Associate Judgeship of Robert E. Senechalle, Jr.
    Risa Renee Lanier
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, HBA, HLAI, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes. DSL, ISBA, LAGBAC, all say No.

    Dave Heilmann
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Bridget Colleen Duignan
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    20th Subcircuit

    Converted from the Associate Judgeship of Elizabeth M. Budzinski
    Nickolas Pappas
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    John Poulos
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say No.

    Michael J. Zink
    AABAR, AABA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    Nadine Jean Wichern
    AABAR, AABA, BMLA, BWLA, CCL, CCBA, DSL, HBA, HLAI, ISBA, LAGBAC, PRBA, and WBAI all say Yes.

    4 Download Your Report

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    Individual Bar Association Results

    The below section includes the evaluation results of individual bar associations in the Alliance, if available, and the Chicago Bar Association. It will be updated as results come in.

    More Resources to Check Your Judges

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