Posted Thursday, March 10, 2005
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"My candidacy is kind of a message to the groups outside that the party is open and is ready to adopt people from different communities," said Khan, who has been volunteering in Republican campaigns for about five years since moving to Lombard from Chicago. "I happened to be in the right place at the right time."
Khan is one of an increasing number of minority candidates seeking local office in the collar counties. Next month, 42 blacks, Latinos and Asians will be on the ballot in the portions of northwest Cook, Lake, Kane, DuPage, McHenry and Will counties the Daily Herald covers.
That number includes 10 minority candidates in northwest Cook, 15 in DuPage, 11 in northern Kane and six in Lake. Nearly half - 20 - are black, with 12 Latinos and 10 of east and west Asian descent.
Concrete statistics on the number of suburban minority candidates over the decades are tough to come by, but political observers said they're not surprised by the anecdotal evidence of a recent increase.
"The 2000 census showed a lot of people of minority backgrounds are moving to the suburbs over the last 10 to 15 years," said Sharon Alter, professor emerita of political science at Harper College in Palatine. "Once people of any background who move to a new locale make certain ties, whether it's to schools or city services, they start feeling that they can contribute and perhaps do a better job."
Still, given the more than 800 offices on the ballot next month in the Daily Herald's coverage area, the 42 minority candidates running do not yet match the proportion with their suburban numbers. According to the 2000 census, the Daily Herald's territory is 11.5 percent Latino, 2.5 percent black and 6.8 percent Asian.
Among the suburbs, Elgin long has led the way in electing minority candidates. City Councilman Robert Gilliam, who is black, is trying for his ninth term. Joyce Fountain, also black, is running for another term on the Elgin Area Unit District 46 board, and fellow Elgin Community College professor Abraham Martinez-Cruz is hoping to join her.
Juan Figueora, the first Latino to serve on the city council, found that he had to appeal to more than just Latino voters to win election four years ago after being appointed in 1999.
"I found support and volunteers in the Latino community," said Figueora, who finished second to Gilliam last month in advancing to the April election. "In terms of voting power, it's not there yet. I can't rely solely on Hispanic power to win an election."
In Lake County, Delores Anderson got involved for the same reason many people decide to run for local office: She wasn't satisfied with village hall. In her case, that meant getting the crowded main drag in her townhouse complex turned into a one-way street. It took two years, so now she's part of a slate of candidates running for village board.
"I want to be a part of it because I have a daughter who's 9," said Anderson, a black woman whose job brought her from Racine to Hainesville about three years ago. "I want to be an advocate for the homeowners."
In northern Will County, the suburbs' rising Democratic tide has resulted in a fully contested election for the first time in years in DuPage Township, where Republicans hold all the offices. The contests feature six blacks, with four Democrats and two Republicans. Part of the credit goes to Democratic U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, who campaigned there last year as part of his successful run.
"He came to our picnic and energized the people," said Reginald Hanks, a trustee candidate and president of an employee benefits consulting firm who has lived in Bolingbrook for 26 years. "They (Democrats) were here but just discouraged because the area has had overwhelming Republican control out here."
In northwest Cook, Fred Crespo is trying to leverage his community involvement as Hoffman Estates' cultural awareness commission into a spot on the village board. If elected, he'd be the first minority in village history to serve on the board.
Jody Wadhwa, on the other hand, broke through in 1987 when he won election to the Oakton Community College board. He's running for his fourth term next month. Wadhwa, a retired Northbrook business executive who is Indian, tried for a promotion to the Illinois House in 2000 but lost in a Republican district.
While Wadhwa was unsuccessful, North and West suburban areas with significant minority populations already have sent two such candidates to Springfield: state Reps. Linda Chapa LaVia of Aurora and Eddie Washington of Waukegan. Harper's Alter said voters shouldn't be surprised to see more in the future.
"Local offices are the stepping stone to the state legislature," she said. "In 2006 and 2008, you might see more people with minority backgrounds running for state representative and senate."
Moon Khan can be reached at 630-889-0588. His website is www.friendsofmoonkhan.com