Mary Gill, the current executive director of the Mt. Greenwood Community and Business Association (MGCBA), has been appointed as the new state representative of the 35th District.

Gill was selected by a Democratic committee of elected officials after two candidate forums were held online on March 28.

 

She will succeed Fran Hurley, who resigned Feb. 28 to take a position with the Illinois Labor Relations Board.

 

Gill, of Mt. Greenwood, was selected among 16 candidates.

 

After the forums, the committee reconvened that evening to nominate candidates.

 

Gill and Lauren Glennon, a local attorney, were both nominated; after a private session, the committee members voted to select Gill.

 

Gill, a Beverly native, has led the MGCBA since it formed in 2013. She has also been a special-education teacher.

 

Hurley, also of Mt. Greenwood, had served since 2013. She said she hoped a woman would be selected to succeed her.

 

Gill was among eight women who applied.

 

The 35th District, which was slightly redrawn after the 2020 U.S. Census, includes Beverly, Mt. Greenwood and many southwest suburbs.

 

The other applicants were Keeley Binion, Joe Bird, Anna Carvlin, David Dewar, John Donners, Mary Esposito-Usterbowski, Shanya Gray, James Loughney, William Noble, Mark Piper, Megan Quigley, Greg Santomieri, Karen Vaughan and Eric Williamson.

The selection committee included City of Chicago aldermen Matt O’Shea, 19th Ward; Derrick Curtis, 18th Ward; and Howard Brookins, Jr., 21st Ward; along with Beth McElroy Kirkwood, of Orland Township; Robert E. Maloney, of Palos Township, and Patricia Joan Murphy, of Worth Township.

Hurley was re-elected in November 2022. 

When a state representative resigns, Illinois law calls for a committee of members from the legislator’s party to appoint a replacement from that same party.

Gill will fulfill a two-year term.

A full story will appear in the April 5 issue of The Beverly Review.