Previous political experience (elective and appointed):
Ms. Andrade is the first Mexican American women elected to be the Illinois State Central Committeewomen on February 2nd, 2010
Paloma currently serves as the Chairman of the South West Side Greens
Ms. Andrade ran for Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court and received close to 100,000 votes.
Paloma Andrade ran for Alderman in the 14th ward in the last election. Paloma is the current 14th ward green party committeeman.
Education:
Ms. Paloma Andrade graduated from Thomas Kelly High School in 1992 and from Robert Morris College in 1997.
At Robert Morris Paloma majored in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting and she was in the honor society of alpha beta gamma and represented the college as a student ambassador.
Paloma, attended Dominican University as a candidate for a Masters in Education.
Q: Submit a brief essay that explains why you are qualified to hold this office.
A:
I am the most qualified candidate for the Office of Cook County Commissioner of the 7th District because I have spent decades advocating for the community as a candidate for office, as a member of community organizations such as South Side United Local School Council Federation as a mother for 4 wonderful and musical children and so much more.
My main qualification is my clear and demonstrated desire to see justice served for the people of Cook County – for the elimination of the scourge of corruption that plagues almost all of Chicago area local government – including in the Office of Cook County Commissioner. Some of the largest problems faced in Cook County are due to the corrupt self-interest of elected officials and the clear and blatant operations that funnel simple campaign ‘volunteers’ into city and county jobs.
I am qualified because I have demonstrated my independence from the corruption of Chicago and Cook County elected officials as I have challenged them as a citizen and as an independent candidate for office. In particular I ran for Alderman in 2007 against one of the most powerful politicians in Illinois – Ed Burke.
The people Cook County will know that in me they have the strongest advocate for their interest, for changing the culture of corruption in Cook County offices. No other candidate for this office can show such a record of leadership and independence.
I have also worked as a public school special education teacher and when I challenged the principle of the school when I saw money being spent improperly – I was fired after I refused to keep quiet.
Back when I ran for alderman against Ed Burke in the 14th ward, the Chicago Democratic Party Machine sent their top lawyer against me and raised flagrantly false accusations and tried to keep me off the ballot.
After 2 months in court I prevailed and succeeded in giving the voters in the 14th ward a choice on the ballot – for the first time since the 1960’s.
It is about time that an independent and community minded citizen step forward to serve the people of Cook County.
Having raised four wonderful children while completing my college degree, I know the value of very hard work and doing what is right.
I am a strong administrator, having completed an undergraduate Business Administration degree, working for years in Business and having run a household and a public special education classroom and having grown up in a family of entrepreneurs watching my dad and brothers start a number of businesses around Chicago.
I was born in Mexico and have lived most of my life in Chicago, I speak two languages fluently so I am sensitive to the needs of all the people of Cook County.
Q: List your three most significant accomplishments
A:
A significant accomplishment I made was as a candidate for alderman in the early spring of 2007 I won a viscous two month-long court case against me. This case attempted to kick me off the ballot for alderman in the 14th ward and was clearly backed by the local Democratic Party and my opponent, the powerful and almost always unopposed – Alderman Ed Burke. I am proud that democracy in one corner of Chicago – in the 14th ward – won against the corrupt and entrenched forces that run the city and the County all in their self interest against the public interest. Winning this case was a long shot as I alone was pitted against the Democrat’s top lawyer.
Another significant accomplishment of mine is that I have raised four wonderful and talented children all while I was completing my higher education in Chicago.
Finally, not just winning the court case against me, but stepping forward to represent the interests of the people and run as a candidate for alderman at all – where in the southwest side of Chicago you literally risk your life and your property to run against corrupt ‘machine’ politicians – has been one of my greatest accomplishments. Where too many people in Chicago have had to cower and accept things as they are (and not work towards changing things to how they should be) in the face of viscous, corrupt and self-interested politicians and their city and county employed foot solders. To show what desire there is in the community for change in the face of this regime – I won my court case only 3 days before the aldermanic election in 2007 and yet I still received 10% of the vote. This was the first time Ed Burke faced an opponent on the ballot since he was elected to office, over 30 years before. Justice and democracy prevailed for the people of the 14th ward on that rainy day in April.
Q: Do you favor repeal of Cook County’s recent increase of the sales tax by 1 percentage point? If so, what offsetting budget reductions do you propose?
A:
Yes, I favor a repeal of Cook County’s recent increase of the sales tax because that tax is regressive: the lower your income, effectively, the greater percentage of your income is taxed. Cuts would come in an investigation of corrupt, patronage jobs. But more revenue would be raised in other ways – I strongly push the Cook County Board to vastly expand the methods used to means test property tax assessments it levies on residents. Residents that have received the most benefit from society in wealth and earn well above the minimum required to survive should have the most burden to ensure that the public trust and public interest – a well-run efficient government serving the needs of all especially those most in need – is served.
Q: How can Cook County accelerate the pace of criminal cases to provide swifter justice for defendants and crime victims, and reduce headcount at the county jail. (Don’t be shy if the office you seek isn’t involved in criminal justice; the expense implications of slow case movement burden the entire county budget.)
A:
The problem facing Cook County with both over-crowded jails and over-crowded and backed-up courtrooms is not one where defendants should receive less of a day in court to defend themselves so that the County can save a few dollars and cover up its own mismanagement and corruption. Instead, the problem facing Cook County is one where sufficient resources should be provided to government to enable it to efficiently and effectively serve the public – in this case in adequate courtroom physical facilities and staff using a fair taxation system. And clearly those most likely to suffer injustice in the County Court system are those that cannot afford their own expensive private attorneys and so are at the mercy of justice system. When we have addressed meeting the needs of those most in need – enabling safe, comfortable, healthy housing, access to good nutrition and excellent education and providing the tools for self empowerment and engagement in our community – spending on these long term priorities and goals will eventually lead, I believe, to not only more appropriate laws, but then also less lawlessness. These are the priorities that are so seldom spoken of – but that should be on the lips of every citizen that has a daily concern for true justice – and not just an occasional thought that it would be nice one day.
Q: What county offices should be eliminated outright or combined with others?
A: The separate offices of Management Information Services and that of the Office of Office Technology clearly have overlapping duties and bringing those offices together – under one strategic management structure – should help remove possible redundancies. Aside from this, with the county organized under 60 offices and bureaus there are plenty of obscure corners to hide patronage jobs. The byzantine nature of the way County government is organized needs to be rationalized and as I’ve stated a comprehensive and thorough review of all employees and whether or not they were hired properly and if their performance justifies their continued employment with the county or their termination or not needs to be conducted.
Q: Should an elected county official who is indicted on public corruption charges resign from office immediately, or instead await adjudication of his or her case?
A:
I believe an elected county official who is indicted should take a leave of absence during the period of the indictment until the case is decided. Public officials have an obligation to serve with the public’s trust and an indictment for public corruption, whether malicious or in good faith, necessarily raises serious questions about that official.
Paloma M. Andrade
