Lindsey LaPointe
Member of the Illinois House of Representatives
from the 19th district
Assumed office
July 24, 2019
Preceded byRobert Martwick
Personal details
BornPortland, Maine, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationGrinnell College (BA)
University of Illinois, Chicago (MSW)

Lindsey LaPointe is a Democratic member of the Illinois House of Representatives for the 19th district. The district, located in the Chicago area, includes parts of Elmwood Park, Harwood Heights, Norridge, and River Grove and includes parts of the Chicago neighborhoods of Dunning, Forest Glen, Jefferson Park, Norwood Park, O'Hare, and Portage Park.[1][2]

Early life, education, and career

LaPointe earned a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from Grinnell College and a Master's in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Chicago.[3] She was the program manager of Adult Redeploy Illinois at the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, an agency that works with county officials on court-based alternatives to incarceration.[4][5] She has cited her frustration with the impact of the Illinois Budget Impasse on the agency as one of her motivations to enter politics.[6] She also worked as project manager of justice reform at Business and Professional People for the Public Interest (BPI).[7]

Her early engagement in electoral politics included organizing for congressman Jesús "Chuy" García.[6] She served as vice president of the 45th Ward Independent Democrats organization, and was a delegate to the Illinois Women's Institute for Leadership in 2018.[3]

From 2014 to 2018, she served vice president of the board of Hands to Help Ministries, a non-profit organization focused on addressing homelessness.[3][8] She currently serves on the Dean's Advisory Council on Diversity, Equity and Social Inclusion at the Jane Addams College of Social Work.[3][5]

Illinois State Representative (2019–present)

Appointment and 2020 election

On July 24, 2019, LaPointe was appointed to serve as representative for the 19th district in the Illinois House for the remainder of outgoing representative Robert Martwick's term. Martwick had in turn been appointed as state senator for the 10th district to replace John Mulroe. Vacancies in the Illinois state legislature are filled by the party of the outgoing officeholder, and the Cook County Democratic Party delegates this decision to ward and township committeepeople who receive weighted votes based on previous election results. John Arena, committeeman for the 45th ward and former alderman for the ward, held 47 percent of the weighted vote, while Martwick held 33 percent of the vote as committeeman for the 38th ward.[9][10] Both Arena and Martwick supported LaPointe in the appointment vote.[11] Timothy Heneghan, the 41st ward committeeman who had unsuccessfully sought appointment to the senate vacancy that Martwick filled, accused the process of being a "back room deal."[10]

LaPointe ran for a full two-year term in the 2020 Illinois elections. In the Democratic primary election for the seat, she faced Chicago police officer Joe Duplechin and former WGN radio personality Patti Vasquez.[12] She has been endorsed by the Chicago Tribune,[12] the Chicago Sun-Times,[7] Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot,[13] U.S. Senator Dick Durbin,[14] U.S. Representative Mike Quigley,[14] former state senator Daniel Biss,[15] and a number of labor unions.[16] In March 2020, LaPointe circulated campaign mailings alleging that her two opponents were anti-women's rights by pointing to past electoral support of particular donors. Duplechin and Vasquez criticized the mailer, and NBC Chicago found that LaPointe had received similar donations from some of the very same donors.[17] LaPointe won the primary election on March 17, 2020, with 41.3% of the vote, and faced Jeff Muehlfelder in the general election on November 3, 2020.[18]

Tenure

In February 2020, LaPointe introduced legislation that would allow first responders to claim worker's compensation benefits to cover post-traumatic stress disorder.[19] That same month, she sponsored legislation that would require the Department of Veterans' Affairs to create a veterans assistance hotline.[20] She has also co-sponsored legislation including the Clean Energy Jobs Act, a bill that would allow eligible students to vote during school hours on election day, and a bill that would create a state-wide Domestic Violence Task Force.[7][21]

Committees

As of July 3, 2022, Representative LaPointe is a member of the following Illinois House Committees:[22]

Electoral history

Illinois 19th Representative District Democratic Primary, 2020[23]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Lindsey LaPointe (incumbent) 7,295 42.56
Democratic Patricia D. "Patti Vasquez" Bonnin 5,979 34.89
Democratic Joe Duplechin 3,865 22.55
Total votes 17,139 100.0
Illinois 19th Representative District General Election, 2020[24]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Lindsey LaPointe (incumbent) 27,823 58.40
Republican Jeff Muehlfelder 18,277 38.36
Libertarian Joseph Schreiner 1,544 3.24
Total votes 47,644 100.0
Illinois 19th Representative District Democratic Primary, 2022[25]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Lindsey LaPointe (incumbent) 9,474 76.13
Democratic Tina Wallace 2,970 23.87
Total votes 12,444 100.0
Illinois 19th Representative District General Election, 2022[26]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Lindsey LaPointe (incumbent) 22,458 69.85 +11.45%
Republican Michael Harn 9695 30.15 -8.21%
Total votes 32,153 100.0

Personal life

LaPointe lives in Portage Park, Chicago.[7]

References

  1. ^ "STATE LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: State House District 19 (Illinois)" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. August 14, 2013. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
  2. ^ "Boundaries – Community Areas (current)". City of Chicago. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d CST Editorial Board (January 22, 2020). "Meet Lindsey LaPointe, Illinois House 19th District Democratic primary candidate". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  4. ^ Kapos, Shia (July 22, 2019). "ARENA holds cards close to his chest — IL GOP MIRED in 'squad' Facebook flap — ZIP CODE breakdown of 'fair tax'". Politico. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  5. ^ a b "About Lindsey". Lindsey LaPointe State Representative. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  6. ^ a b Astales, Helen (February 4, 2020). "IL Women's Caucus: Rep. LaPointe Making a Difference". Chicago, IL Patch. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  7. ^ a b c d CST Editorial Board (February 25, 2020). "ENDORSEMENT: Lindsey LaPointe for Illinois House in 19th District Democratic primary". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  8. ^ "What We Do". Hands To Help. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  9. ^ Kapos, Shia; Hurst, Adrienne. "ARENA holds cards close to his chest — IL GOP MIRED in 'squad' Facebook flap — ZIP CODE breakdown of 'fair tax'". POLITICO. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
  10. ^ a b Nadig, Brian (July 24, 2019). "Lindsey LaPointe appointed to fill state rep vacancy in 19th Illinois House District". Nadig Newspapers. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
  11. ^ Kapos, Shia; Hurst, Adrienne (July 25, 2019). "LIGHTFOOT's BIG WIN and HOT MIC — FAIR WORK WEEK passes — RODNEY DAVIS' fake news". POLITICO. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  12. ^ a b Chicago Tribune Editorial Board (February 20, 2020). "Editorial: Choices for Illinois House: Kalish, LaPointe, Tillman, Flowers, Thapedi, Krishnamsetty". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  13. ^ Atsales, Helen (February 13, 2020). "Mayor Lightfoot Endorses Lindsey LaPointe for Illinois House Seat". Chicago, IL Patch. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  14. ^ a b Donovan, Lisa (January 28, 2020). "The Spin: Ex-state Sen. Sandoval pleads guilty to bribery — but there's more | Biden would 'love' Michelle Obama as V.P. | Preview on Pritzker's State of State address". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  15. ^ Nelson, Delaney (November 7, 2019). "Biss reveals support for LaPointe, Stoneback for Illinois legislature". The Daily Northwestern. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  16. ^ "Endorsements". Lindsey LaPointe for State Rep. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  17. ^ "Domestic Violence Claims in Campaign Mailers Shock Candidates in Statehouse Race". NBC Chicago. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  18. ^ "Illinois Election Results 2020: State House, District 19 Democratic Primary". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
  19. ^ "LaPointe Introduces Bill Advocating for First Responders Workers' Comp. to Cover PTSD". Illinois House Democratic Caucus. February 26, 2020. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  20. ^ Collins, Tom (March 1, 2020). "Follow that Bill". NewsTribune. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  21. ^ "LaPointe Supports Domestic Violence Task Force". Illinois House Democratic Caucus. February 7, 2020. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  22. ^ "Illinois General Assembly - Representative Committees". ilga.gov. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
  23. ^ "Election Results 2020 GENERAL PRIMARY". Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
  24. ^ "Election Results 2020 GENERAL ELECTION". Illinois State Board of Elections. December 4, 2020. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
  25. ^ Illinois State Board of Elections. "Election Results: 2022 General Primary".
  26. ^ "Election Results 2022 GENERAL ELECTION". Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved December 4, 2023.

External links

Members of the Illinois House of Representatives
Categories