2020 Cook County State's Attorney election

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2020 Cook County State's Attorney election
← 2016 November 3, 2020 2024 →
Turnout72.20% (ballots cast)[a]
67.72% (votes cast)[b]
 
Candidate Kim Foxx Pat O'Brien Brian Dennehy
Party Democratic Republican Libertarian
Popular vote 1,194,299 861,108 147,769
Percentage 54.21% 39.08% 6.71%
Results:
Foxx:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
O'Brien:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
State's Attorney before election

Kim Foxx
Democratic

Elected State's Attorney

Kim Foxx
Democratic

In the 2020 Cook County, State's Attorney election held on November 3, 2020, incumbent state's attorney Kim Foxx (a Democrat) won reelection to a second term,[3] defeating Republican Pat O'Brien in the general election. Foxx had earlier defeated three opponents in the Democratic primary.

Democratic primary

[edit]

Incumbent Kim Foxx faced three opponents in the two former Assistant State's Attorneys, Bill Conway and Donna More, and former Chicago alderman Bob Fioretti.

The money spent in the Democratic primary made this the most expensive State's Attorney election in Cook County to date.[4] Conway raised $11.9 million in campaign funds, most of which was from his father William E. Conway's cumulative donations of $10.5 million.[5] Foxx raised $2.8 million, and her biggest donors include Fred Eychaner and the political action committee of SEIU Illinois.[6][Note 1] More raised $406,000 and Fioretti raised $20,000.[7][8][Note 2]

Candidates in the Democratic primary

[edit]

The following candidates ran for the Democratic Party nomination for State's Attorney:

Candidate Experience Campaign Ref
Bill Conway Former Navy Intelligence officer
Former Cook County Assistant State's Attorney 		Website [9]
Bob Fioretti Former Chicago alderman for the 2nd ward
Candidate for Mayor of Chicago in the 2015 and 2019 elections
Candidate for Cook County Board President in 2018
Candidate for Illinois State Senate in 2016 		Website Archived 2020-01-05 at the Wayback Machine [9]
Kim Foxx Incumbent
Former Chief of Staff for Cook County Board President
Former Cook County Assistant State's Attorney 		Website [9]
Donna More Candidate for Cook County State's Attorney in 2016
Former U.S. Attorney and Cook County Assistant State's Attorney 		Website Archived 2020-02-01 at the Wayback Machine [9]

Endorsements for the Democratic primary

[edit]
Bill Conway
Organizations
  • Chicago Fire Fighters Union Local 2[10]
  • International Union of Elevator Constructors[10]
  • Maine Township Democratic Organization[10]
  • United Hellenic Voters of America[10]
Elected officials
Bob Fioretti
Organizations
Kim Foxx
Newspapers
Organizations
Elected officials
Individuals
Donna More
Newspapers

Polls for the Democratic primary

[edit]
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin
of error 		Bill
Conway 		Bob
Fioretti 		Kim
Foxx 		Donna
More 		Undecided
WGN-TV/Emerson College/Nexstar[32][33] March 11–12, 2020 567 ± 4.1 20.3% 4.3% 36.3% 4.8% 34.2%
Ogden & Fry[34] March 7, 2020 466 ± 4.63 31.7% 9.0% 48.2% 11.1% –
19.5% 4.2% 33.0% 5.8% 37.5%
Anzalone Liszt Grove Research[35] February 13–16, 2020 600 ± 4.0 26% 5% 28% 4%
Anzalone Liszt Grove Research[35] January 22, 2020 16% 8% 32% 5%
Anzalone Liszt Grove Research[35] December 8, 2019 14% 11% 36% 6%

Results of the Democratic primary

[edit]
Cook County State's Attorney Democratic primary[36]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Kim Foxx (incumbent) 447,974 50.19
Democratic Bill Conway 276,341 30.96
Democratic Donna More 122,528 13.73
Democratic Bob Fioretti 44,794 5.02
Write-in Others 955 0.11
Total votes 892,592 100

Republican primary

[edit]

Pat O'Brien defeated Christopher Pfannkuche. Pfannkuche had been the Republican nominee for State's Attorney in 2016.

Candidates in the Republican primary

[edit]

The following candidates ran for the Republican party nomination for State's Attorney:

Candidate Experience Campaign Ref
Pat O'Brien Former Judge, Cook County Circuit Court 1st Municipal District Website [9]
Christopher Pfannkuche Lawyer Website [9]
Write-in candidates

Endorsements for the Republican primary

[edit]
Pat O'Brien
Newspapers
Christopher Pfannkuche
Newspapers
Organizations

Results of the Republican primary

[edit]
Cook County State's Attorney Republican primary[36]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Patrick W. "Pat" O'Brien 51,610 72.53
Republican Christopher E. K. Pfannkuche 19,122 26.87
Write-in Richard Mayers 1 0.00
Write-in Others 426 0.60
Total votes 71,159 100

General election

[edit]

Polls for the general election

[edit]
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin
of error 		Kim
Foxx 		Pat O'Brien Undecided
Ogden & Fry / Cook County Republican Party[A][52][53] October 18, 2020 473 ± 3.69 47.1% 40.6% 9.8%
Ogden & Fry[54] September 5, 2020 447 ± 3.77 48.1% 33.8% 18.1%

Endorsements for the general election

[edit]
Kim Foxx (D)
Organizations
Politicians
Individuals
Newspapers
Pat O'Brien (R)
Politicians
Newspapers
Christopher Pfannkuche
Newspapers
Organizations

Results of the general election

[edit]
Cook County State's Attorney election[62]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Kim Foxx (incumbent) 1,194,299 54.21 −17.85
Republican Patrick W. "Pat" O'Brien 861,108 39.08 +11.14
Libertarian Brian Dennehy 147,769 6.71 N/A
Total votes 2,203,176 100

Kim Fox's performance 54.21% vote share was the lowest performance by a Democratic nominee in a Cook County state's attorney election since 1996. It was also the worst that a re-nominated incumbent has performed in a general election for Cook County state's attorney since the same election, which saw Republican incumbent Jack O'Malley lose reelection. Conversely, O'Brien's 39.08% share of the vote was the best performance by a Republican since 1996 and Dennehy's 6.71% share of the vote was best performance by as third-party candidate since 1996.

Only Democrats have held this office ever since Richard A. Devine unseated Republican Jack O'Malley.[63]

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ share of registered voters casting a ballot in Cook County[1][2]
  2. ^ share of registered voters casting a vote for State's Attorney; this statistic excludes ballots which undervoted by leaving a "blank vote" for State's Attorney[1][2]
  1. ^ Foxx's campaign committee was created prior to her previous run for the office in the 2016 election. This amount counts all donations received by the committee after December 1, 2016, when Foxx first took office.
  2. ^ Fioretti's campaign committee had been active for several of his prior runs for office. This amount counts all donations received by the committee since April 2019, after the end of the 2019 Chicago mayoral election where Fioretti last ran for office.
  1. ^ The Cook County Republican Party nominated O'Brien prior to the sampling period.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "TABULATED STATEMENT OF THE RETURNS AND PROCLAMATION OF THE RESULTS OF THE CANVASS OF THE ELECTION RETURNS FOR THE NOVEMBER 3, 2020 PRESIDENTIAL GENERAL ELECTION HELD IN EACH OF THE PRECINCTS IN COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS" (PDF). Cook County Clerk. 24 November 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 11, 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  2. ^ a b "TABULATED STATEMENT OF THE RETURNS AND PROCLAMATION OF THE RESULTS OF THE CANVASS OF THE ELECTION RETURNS FOR THE NOVEMBER 3, 2020 GENERAL ELECTION HELD IN EACH OF THE PRECINCTS IN ALL OF THE WARDS IN THE CITY OF CHICAGO" (PDF). Chicago Board of Elections. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  3. ^ "What Kim Foxx's Reelection Says About Racial Politics, Fear And Justice In Chicago And Beyond". WBEZ Chicago. 7 November 2020. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
  4. ^ Blakely, Derrick (2020-03-01). "Another Record Breaking Race in Illinois: Cook County State's Attorney Battle Features Billionaires' Cash for Leading Contenders – Center for Illinois Politics". Center for Illinois Politics. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
  5. ^ Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. "Friends of Bill Conway". Illinois Sunshine. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  6. ^ Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. "Friends for Foxx". Illinois Sunshine. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  7. ^ Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. "More For State's Attorney". Illinois Sunshine. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
  8. ^ Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. "Friends of Bob Fioretti". Illinois Sunshine. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
  9. ^ a b c d e f "Municipal elections in Cook County, Illinois (2020): State's Attorney". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Endorsements". Bill Conway for State's Attorney. Retrieved 2020-03-18.
  11. ^ a b c "FOP Primary Election Endorsements — Fraternal Order of Police | Chicago, Lodge 7". Fraternal Order of Police | Chicago, Lodge 7. 18 February 2020. Archived from the original on March 6, 2020. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  12. ^ CST Editorial Board (2020-02-10). "ENDORSEMENT: Kim Foxx for state's attorney in Cook County Democratic primary". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2020-02-11.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Foxx gains more endorsements for re-election | The Crusader Newspaper Group". The Chicago Crusader. January 23, 2020. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  14. ^ a b "January 2020 CTU Endorsements for Illinois March 17, 2020 Election". Chicago Teachers Union. 2020-01-09. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  15. ^ a b "Artist John Legend and Color Of Change PAC Endorse Cook County SA Kim Foxx". VotingWhileBlack. 2020-01-22. Retrieved 2020-03-06.
  16. ^ a b Brown, Mark (2019-08-16). "Cook County Democrats endorse Kim Foxx, Michael Cabonargi". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  17. ^ a b "The 2020 endorsement results are in!". Democratic Party of Evanston. 10 February 2020. Archived from the original on 17 February 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  18. ^ a b "Endorsed Candidates « Equality Illinois".
  19. ^ a b "Endorsed Candidates for the 2020 Primary Election". www.iviipo.org. Independent Voters of Illinois Independent Precinct Organization. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  20. ^ a b "Endorsements | The People's Lobby". Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  21. ^ a b "Reclaim Chicago Endorsements | Reclaim Chicago". Reclaim Chicago. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  22. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Rep. Jesús "Chuy" García and several other Latinx elected officials unanimously endorse Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx". Kim Foxx for Cook County State's Attorney. January 25, 2020. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  23. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Capitol Fax.com – Your Illinois News Radar » Pritzker, Lightfoot, Preckwinkle, Durbin, Duckworth and others endorse SA Foxx reelection bid". capitolfax.com. 2019-11-21. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  24. ^ a b Kapos, Shia; Hurst, Adrienne (2020-02-18). "BLACK VOTERS SPLIT HERE, TOO — KINZINGER WEEKEND WEDDING! — KAMALA BACKS FOXX". Politico. Retrieved 2020-02-18.
  25. ^ a b Kapos, Shia. "J.B., LORI WITH A TWIST — PRITZKER ENDORSES BIDEN — LIPINSKI'S MISSED VOTE". POLITICO. Retrieved 2020-03-16.
  26. ^ a b Otterbein, Holly. "Sanders endorses progressive lightning rod Chicago DA". Politico. Retrieved 2020-02-13.
  27. ^ a b Kapos, Shia; Hurst, Adrienne (2020-03-06). "WARREN DELEGATES WALLOW — CITY'S BOSS TWITTER HANDLE — SCHOCK SHOCKS — 5th CORONAVIRUS CASE IN ILLINOIS". POLITICO. Retrieved 2020-03-06.
  28. ^ a b Cheney-Rice, Zak (2020-01-28). "Elizabeth Warren Wants You to Vote in Your Local Prosecutor Election". Intelligencer. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  29. ^ a b Donovan, Lisa (2020-01-22). "John Legend gives encore endorsement of Kim Foxx in Cook County state's attorney's race". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  30. ^ "Editorial: Kim Foxx's judgment lapses: Why Donna More is better suited to be Cook County state's attorney". Editorial. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2020-03-16.
  31. ^ The Daily Herald Editorial Board (2020-02-22). "Endorsement: More for Cook County state's attorney in Democratic primary". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2020-03-16.
  32. ^ Bradley, Tahman; Muck, Jordan (12 March 2020). "Poll shows Joe Biden leading in Illinois, Kim Foxx ahead in Cook County". WGN-TV. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  33. ^ "Illinois 2020: Biden Leads Sanders in the Prairie State". emersonpolling.com. Emerson Polling. 12 March 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  34. ^ "Cook County Democratic State's Attorney". Politico. Ogden & Fry. 7 March 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  35. ^ a b c "February 24, 2020 From: Brian Stryker Re: State of the race – Cook County State's Attorney". Politico. Anzalone Liszt Grove Research. 24 February 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  36. ^ a b "Cook County and The City of Chicago Primary Election March 17, 2020 Combined Summary" (PDF). Cook County Clerk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 April 2020. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  37. ^ "March 17, 2020 Write-in Candidates | Cook County Clerk's Office". www.cookcountyclerk.com. Cook County Clerk. Archived from the original on 17 March 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  38. ^ "'I snookered them': Illinois Nazi candidate creates GOP dumpster fire". Politico.com. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  39. ^ "Jewish candidate files against alleged supremacist". November 10, 2009. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  40. ^ "Man Delivers Nazi Salutes at Hearing - Gay Lesbian Bi Trans News Archive". Windy City Times. 27 July 2005. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  41. ^ McNeil, Tribune staff reporter, Brett. "White supremacist faces charges". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  42. ^ a b c d e f "Alleged white supremacist running for Congress in 3rd District". Rblandmark.com. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  43. ^ Bell, Barbara. "Man is arrested for Nazi salutes". Chicago Tribunem. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  44. ^ "Results" (PDF). chicagoelections.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-03-06. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
  45. ^ "STATISTICS OF THE CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION FROM OFFICIAL SOURCES FOR THE ELECTION OF NOVEMBER 6, 2018 SHOWING THE VOTE CAST FOR EACH NOMINEE FOR UNITED STATES SENATOR, REPRESENTATIVE, RESIDENT COMMISSIONER, AND DELEGATE TO THE ONE HUNDRED SIXTEENTH CONGRESS, TOGETHER WITH A RECAPITULATION THEREOF" (PDF). Office of the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  46. ^ "3 mayoral candidates booted from ballot". Chicago Sun-Times. 27 December 2018. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  47. ^ "Richard Mayers". Ballotpedia. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  48. ^ a b c "LIST OF PERSONS WHO FILED A DECLARATION OF INTENT TO BE A WRITE-IN CANDIDATE" (PDF). Kane County Clerk. January 16, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  49. ^ "ENDORSEMENT: Pat O'Brien for state's attorney in Cook County Republican primary". Chicago Sun-Times. 14 February 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  50. ^ "Endorsements: A summary of Daily Herald recommendations in March 17 primary". Daily Herald. 14 March 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  51. ^ a b "2020 Illinois Primary" (PDF). Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  52. ^ Hinton, Rachel (October 19, 2020). "Attack ad, poll shift, six-figure donations bring heated Foxx-O'Brien state's attorney battle to a boil". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved October 20, 2020.
  53. ^ "New Poll has Judge Pat O'Brien surging and within single digits of embattled incumbent Kim Foxx". Cook County Republican Party. 2020-10-19. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  54. ^ Kapos, Shia (2020-09-22). "NEW CASH IN UPENDED HOUSE RACE — FOXX v. O'BRIEN REDUX — CASTEN, IVES SPAR". POLITICO. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
  55. ^ a b c d e f g h i "KIM FOXX FOR COOK COUNTY STATE'S ATTORNEY". KIM FOXX FOR COOK COUNTY STATE'S ATTORNEY. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  56. ^ "Chicago Progressive Caucus Endorses Kim Foxx for Cook County State's Attorney". chicagoprogressivecaucus.com. 2020-10-28. Archived from the original on 2020-11-04. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  57. ^ Washington, Laura (24 October 2020). "Why Mayor Lightfoot tweeted for Kim Foxx". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  58. ^ "Here are the candidates we endorse in the Illinois primaries". Chicago Sun-Times. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  59. ^ Hinton, Rachel (2020-10-27). "Republican Pat O'Brien picks up support of Ald. Brendan Reilly in run against State's Attorney Kim Foxx". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  60. ^ "2020 General Election" (PDF). Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  61. ^ "Endorsement: Pat O'Brien for Cook County state's attorney". Daily Herald. 25 September 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  62. ^ "Cook County and The City of Chicago General Election November 3, 2020 Combined Summary" (PDF). Cook County Clerk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 January 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  63. ^ Hinton, Rachel (19 March 2020). "Republicans: O'Brien has 'really decent chance' to oust Foxx in November". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 16 June 2020.