April 19, 2024
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‘Chuy’ Garcia endorses Joliet candidate Guerrero

One-time Chicago mayoral hopeful gets involved in Joliet City Council race

By Bob Okon

Cesar Guerrero speaks outside Joliet City Hall during an event in August. (Eric Ginnard)

U.S. Rep Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, a former Chicago alderman and one-time mayoral hopeful, is backing a candidate in the Joliet City Council race.

Garcia, D-Chicago, is endorsing Cesar Guerrero, the one Hispanic candidate in the Joliet council election on April 6.

Guerrero in a written statement said the endorsement “is incredibly uplifting.”

Garcia in his statement said Joliet has 50,000 Latinx residents without a Latinx representative on the council.

U.S. Rep Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, D-Chicago, seen in 2015 during his campaign for mayor of Chicago. Garcia at the time was a Cook County commissioner. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green) (M. Spencer Green)

“Every community deserves to be represented by people from their own community who can stand up and represent their collective needs,” Garcia said.

There are 12 candidates in the race for the three at-large seats on the City Council in the citywide election.

“It’s hard to overstate the significance of the congressman’s endorsement,” Guerrero said. “As the leading figure in the struggle for Latinx representation in Chicagoland, ‘Chuy García’ has always been a household name in my community.”

Garcia has been in Congress since 2019. He also has served in the Illinois state senate and on the Cook County Board of Commissioners as well as being an alderman on the Chicago City Council.

He challenged incumbent Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel in 2015 and finished a close enough second in the general election to force a runoff vote, which Emmanuel won.