Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- As we have in the past, we share information on which judges to vote for and which to NOT vote for in Cook County. Please do not vote for the judges in our first list below. Our information comes directly from VoteForJudges.org. Vote for Judges gathers information from the Alliance of Bar Associations for Judicial Screening (referred to hereafter as “Alliance”).
Primary Election Day is Tuesday, June 28, 2022. The General Election will be November 8, 2022.
Through the years, we have heard, and agree, that members of the public are least informed on the performance of judges.
The Alliance of Bar Associations for Judicial Screening is comprised of the following bar associations:
- AABAR: Arab American Bar Association
- AABA: Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Chicago Area
- BWLA: Black Women Lawyers’ 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: Chicago’s LGBTQ+ Bar Association
- PRBA: Puerto Rican Bar Association
- WBAI: Women’s Bar Association of Illinois
The Alliance of Bar Associations works collaboratively to screen judicial candidates in Cook County. Judicial candidates are rated by the Alliance members based on detailed information supplied by each candidate, a background check by trained lawyers/investigators, and interviews of each candidate.
The ratings reflect the Alliance’s opinion of whether candidates have the necessary qualifications for judicial service or ascension to a higher office and are not a reflection of the candidates’ abilities as lawyers or judges.
The rating key follows:
| HQ | Highly Qualified |
| WQ | Well Qualified |
| Q | Qualified |
| NQ | Not Qualified |
| HR | Highly Recommended |
| R | Recommended |
| NR | Not Recommended |
| 1 | Not Evaluated Through No Fault of the Candidate |
Candidates not participating in the Alliance’s evaluation process are rated “NR.”
Please do not vote for these judges:
If you’re seeking a short list, these candidates are rated Not Qualified or Not Recommended by at least one bar association and you should NOT vote for them. Either they are not qualified for office or did not bother to fill out forms and submit to a background check and interview by one or more bar associations. Either way, they should NOT receive your vote in this primary election.
- Ubi O. O’Neal: NR by all bar associations.
- Monica G. Somerville: NQ by the ISBA and NR by WBAI.
- Mable Taylor: NQ or NR by all but two bar associations.
- Yolanda Harris: NQ by the ISBA.
- Wende Williams: NR by all.
- Deidre Baumann: NQ by the ISBA
- Chelsey Renece Robinson: NQ by the ISBA
- Jacqueline Marie Griffin: NR by DSL and ISBA.
- Dan Balanoff: NQ or NE by SEVEN bar associations.
- Claudia Silva-Hernandez: NR by all bar associations.
- Meredith Vanae Hammer: NR by all bar associations.
- Maria M. Barlow: NR by all.
- Amanda Moira Pillsbury: NQ by CCL, HLAI, ISBA; NR by BWLA, CCBA.
- ShawnTe Raines-Welch: NR by AABA, NQ by ISBA.
- Patrick Campanelli: NQ by CCL, HLAI, ISBA, NR by all others except CCBA which is blank in this case.
Continuing the List
- Judie Lyn Smith: NQ by ISBA, NR by LAGBAC.
- Tivvany N. Brooks: NQ by CCL, HLAI, ISBA, NR by AABA, DSL, LAGBAC.
- Jackie Marie Portman-Brown: NQ by ISBA, NR by six Alliance members.
- Pat Casey: NQ by AABA, CCL, ISBA; NR by CCBA, DSL, LAGBAC, WBAI.
- John Fritchey: NQ by ISBA, NR by BWLA, HBA, WBAI.
- Ann Buran-Vongher: NQ by HLAI, ISBA, NR by LAGBAC.
- Chris Taliaferro: NQ by CCL, HLAI, ISBA, NR by five members.
- Christine Svenson: NR from LAGBAC
- Iris Y. Chavira: NR by all but is running unopposed.
- Viviana Martinez: NQ by ISBA, NR by AABA, CCBA.
- Jorge V. Cazares, NQ by CCL, ISBA; NR by four.
- Jim Gleffe: NQ by CCL, ISBA; NR by four Alliance members.
(R) next to a name denotes Republican candidates; all other candidates are Democrats.
Complete Evaluations
ILLINOISAPPELLATECOURT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon.ShelvinLouiseMarieHallVacancy |
||||||||||||
Debra B. Walker |
R |
R |
R |
WQ |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
HQ |
R |
R |
HR |
Russell “Russ” Hartigan |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
HR |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Dominique C. Ross |
R |
NR |
R |
NQ |
R |
R |
R |
NQ |
NQ |
|
R |
|
Hon.SheldonA.HarrisVacancy |
||||||||||||
Raymond W. Mitchell |
R |
R |
R |
WQ |
R |
HR |
R |
Q |
HQ |
R |
R |
R |
Devlin Joseph Schoop |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
NR |
NQ |
NQ |
R |
R |
R |
John H. Ehrlich |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
NQ |
HR |
R |
HR |
CIRCUITCOURT,COUNTYWIDE |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon.MargaretA.BrennanVacancy |
||||||||||||
Ubi O. O’Neal |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
Howard B. Brookins, Jr. |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
¹ |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Lisa Michelle Taylor |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Hon. JohnP.Callahan,Jr. Vacancy |
||||||||||||
Mary Bernadette McMahon |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
|
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Suzanne Therese McEneely |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
HR |
R |
R |
Tracie Porter |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
HR |
HR |
R |
HQ |
Q |
HR |
R |
R |
CIRCUITCOURT,COUNTYWIDE |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon. Diane GordonCannon Vacancy |
||||||||||||
Monica G. Somerville |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
NQ |
R |
R |
NR |
Mable Taylor |
¹ |
NR |
R |
NQ |
|
NR |
NR |
NQ |
NQ |
NR |
NR |
NR |
Diana López |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Hon. Michael B. Hyman Vacancy |
||||||||||||
Thomas E. Nowinski |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Carmen Migdalia Quinones |
NR |
Q |
R |
NQ |
R |
NR |
NR |
NQ |
NQ |
NR |
R |
NR |
Hon. CheyrlIngram Vacancy |
||||||||||||
Elizabeth “Beth” Ryan |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Yolanda Harris Sayre |
R |
¹ |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
NQ |
R |
R |
R |
Hon. Pamela M. Leeming Vacancy |
||||||||||||
Wende Williams |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
Rena Marie Van Tine |
R |
Q |
R |
WQ |
R |
HR |
R |
HR |
HQ |
HQ |
HR |
R |
Hon.DanielLynchVacancy |
||||||||||||
Paul Joyce |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
HR |
R |
Q |
Q |
HR |
R |
R |
Deidre Baumann |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
NQ |
R |
R |
R |
Michael Weaver |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
HR |
R |
R |
Hon. Kathleen M. McGury Vacancy |
||||||||||||
Chelsey Renece Robinson |
R |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
NQ |
R |
R |
R |
Ruth Isabel Gudino |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
Q |
HQ |
Q |
HR |
HR |
R |
Hon. Joan M. O’Brien Vacancy |
||||||||||||
Jacqueline Marie Griffin |
R |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
NR |
R |
Q |
Q |
NR |
R |
R |
Araceli Reyes De La Cruz |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
HR |
R |
R |
Dan Balanoff |
¹ |
¹ |
NR |
NQ |
R |
NR |
R |
NR |
NQ |
NR |
R |
NR |
Hon.SharonM.SullivanVacancy |
||||||||||||
Claudia Silva-Hernandez |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
Thomas More Donnelly |
R |
R |
R |
WQ |
R |
HR |
R |
HQ |
HQ |
HR |
R |
HR |
Meridth Vanae Hammer |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
CIRCUITCOURT, 1STSUBCIRCUIT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon. SharonO.Johnson Vacancy |
||||||||||||
John W. Wilson |
R |
R |
R |
WQ |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
HQ |
HR |
R |
R |
Maria M. Barlow |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
CIRCUITCOURT, 4THSUBCIRCUIT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon. James Gavin Vacancy |
||||||||||||
AmandaMoiraPillsbury |
R |
Q |
NR |
NQ |
NR |
R |
R |
NQ |
NQ |
R |
R |
R |
Nick Kantas |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
CIRCUITCOURT, 4THSUBCIRCUIT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon.PatrickT.RogersVacancy |
||||||||||||
Chloe Georgianna Pedersen |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
ShawnTe Raines-Welch |
R |
NR |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
NQ |
R |
R |
R |
Jerry Barrido |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Patrick Campanelli |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NQ |
|
NR |
NR |
NQ |
NQ |
NR |
NR |
NR |
CIRCUITCOURT, 5THSUBCIRCUIT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon.JackiePortman-BrownVacancy |
||||||||||||
David L. Kelly |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
HR |
R |
Jenetia Marshall |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Hon. Diane Shelley Vacancy |
||||||||||||
Timothy W. Wright III |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Judie Lyn Smith |
R |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
NQ |
NR |
R |
R |
Tiffany N. Brooks |
¹ |
NR |
R |
NQ |
R |
NR |
R |
NQ |
NQ |
NR |
R |
R |
Jackie Marie Portman-Brown |
NR |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NQ |
NR |
R |
NR |
CIRCUITCOURT, 6THSUBCIRCUIT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon.MauricioAraujoVacancy |
||||||||||||
Charles “Charlie” Beach |
R |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Hon.RaulVegaVacancy |
||||||||||||
David S. Rodriguez |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
¹ |
R |
R |
Kerrie Maloney Laytin |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
CIRCUITCOURT, 7THSUBCIRCUIT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon.PatriciaMartinVacancy |
||||||||||||
Marcia O’Brien Conway |
R |
¹ |
R |
WQ |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
HR |
R |
Owens “Joe” Shelby |
R |
¹ |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
¹ |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
CIRCUITCOURT, 8THSUBCIRCUIT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon.RobertE.GordonVacancy |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Pat Casey |
R |
NQ |
R |
NQ |
NR |
NR |
R |
R |
NQ |
NR |
R |
NR |
Bradley R. Trowbridge |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
John Fritchey |
R |
¹ |
NR |
Q |
R |
R |
NR |
Q |
NQ |
R |
R |
NR |
Hon.ThomasJ. LipscombVacancy |
||||||||||||
Stephen Swedlow |
R |
R |
R |
WQ |
R |
HR |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Jennifer Bae |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
CIRCUITCOURT, 9THSUBCIRCUIT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
|
Hon.JeanneClevelandBernsteinVacancy |
|||||||||||||
Sanjay Tailor |
R |
R |
R |
WQ |
R |
HR |
R |
HQ |
HQ |
R |
HR |
R |
|
Ann Buran-Vongher |
¹ |
R |
R |
Q |
|
R |
R |
NQ |
NQ |
NR |
R |
R |
|
Hon.MosheJacobiusVacancy |
|||||||||||||
Don R. Sampen |
¹ |
Q |
R |
WQ |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
HR |
R |
R |
|
Torrick Alan Ward |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
HR |
R |
R |
|
Barry Goldberg |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
HR |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
|
Basileios “Bill” John Foutris |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
¹ |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
|
CIRCUITCOURT, 11TH SUBCIRCUIT |
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
|
Hon.DennisM.McGuireVacancy |
|||||||||||||
Chris Taliaferro |
NR |
NR |
R |
NQ |
R |
NR |
R |
NQ |
NQ |
NR |
R |
NR |
|
Aileen Bhandari |
R |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
HR |
HR |
R |
|
CIRCUITCOURT, 13TH SUBCIRCUIT |
|
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon.SusanneM.GroebnerVacancy |
|||||||||||||
Christine Svenson |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
Q |
|
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
NR |
R |
R |
Gary William Seyring |
R |
¹ |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Dominic J. Buttitta, Jr. R |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
HR |
R |
R |
|
James Costello |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
¹ |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
|
Joe Gump |
R |
Q |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
|
CIRCUITCOURT, 14TH SUBCIRCUIT |
|
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon. James R. Brown Vacancy |
|||||||||||||
Iris Y. Chavira |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
|
Hon.RaymondL.JagielskiVacancy |
|||||||||||||
Viviana Martinez |
R |
NR |
R |
Q |
R |
NR |
R |
Q |
NQ |
R |
R |
R |
|
Steve Demitro |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
¹ |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
|
Jorge V. Cazares |
¹ |
NR |
R |
Q |
NR |
R |
R |
¹ |
NQ |
NR |
R |
NR |
|
CIRCUITCOURT, 15TH SUBCIRCUIT |
|
AABAR |
AABA |
BWLA |
CCL |
CCBA |
DSL |
HBA |
HLAI |
ISBA |
LAGBAC |
PRBA |
WBAI |
Hon. ChristopherLawler Vacancy |
|||||||||||||
Bernadette Barrett |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
Q |
Q |
R |
R |
R |
|
Jim Gleffe |
¹ |
NR |
R |
NQ |
|
NR |
R |
Q |
NQ |
NR |
R |
NR |
|
Complete evaluations are here in PDF format for downloading and printing (click the DOWN ARROR to download):
