Christian Mitchell, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, stressed affordability as a campaign issue when he met with party activists in Evanston Sunday.

Mitchell, a former state legislator and vice president for civic engagement at the University of Chicago, was selected as Pritzker’s running mate to replace Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, who is seeking to replace the retiring Dick Durban in the U.S. Senate.

In a conversation with Evanston Now, Mitchell pointed to key issues like cost of living and affordability as driving factors for voters this November, and despite the state being considered a deeply Democratic seat where he and Pritzker are heavily favored, still described Illinois as a “purple state.”

“We have a lot of blue in Illinois, right? But Illinois is, in some ways, a purple state,” Mitchell said. “There are a lot of GOP-led counties … we’re gonna go around and try to win votes in every single one of them, and regardless of whether we win them or not, we’re gonna try to govern for everybody. “

Across the country, rural communities are raising the alarm about the increase in data center development, a key issue in Illinois as well, though not something likely to impact an already dense community like Evanston.

Despite that, Mitchell said the impacts could still be felt here and doubled down on regulations Pritzker has been pushing in Springfield.

“And frankly, because everything is connected through the regional transmission authority, something that happens a little further north or a little further south or east or west is going to potentially have an impact on the people of Evanston,” Mitchell said.

“So we are fighting to make sure that insofar as we have data centers, they’re bringing in their own energy, that they’re being held to environmental standards, that they’re gonna be having closed-loop water systems, so they’re not infecting local aquifers with issues. So yeah, it affects everybody.”

Mitchell called the issue of affordability “pretty universal,” even if the “manifestation may be a bit different,” placing blame largely on President Donald Trump for starting a war with Iran that has driven up costs nationwide.

And when it comes to housing, a key issue in Evanston, Mitchell lent his support to Pritzker’s BUILD plan, a set of sweeping statewide housing bills that largely stalled in the last legislative session but are likely to remain an issue in the coming months.

“I think BUILD is still something that we’re gonna care about a great deal,” Mitchell said. “What I would say to folks is, ask yourself, ‘is the cost of your mortgage, is the cost of your rent, sustainable?’ and in many cases, the answer to that question is ‘no, the pressures keep rising.’”

At the end of May, when BUILD stalled in Springfield, concerns rose in suburban communities about potential overreach of the state’s authority in local zoning and housing decisions, but Mitchell said he and Pritzker intend to “listen to locals and take their concerns in hand.”

“I understand people always look up and say, well, this is gonna change the face of my community,” Mitchell said. “And the truth is, we need more middle-market housing, basically everywhere in the state of Illinois, and I hear that no matter where I am.”

Party business

At their backyard party in the 6th Ward members of the Democratic Party of Evanston nominated new board members. They expanded the board to 15 members and filled two vacancies.

State Rep. Robyn Gabel (D-Evanston), the House Majority Leader, became the Democratic Party of Evanston’s commiteeperson in March, succeeding Mayor Daniel Biss, who had served in the role since January 2024.

Top local Democratic officials were present as DOPE members voted on the seven new appointees to the board — Loren Berlin, Andy Chusid, Ana Croegaert, Hyrum Flores, Ald. Krssie Harris, Nick Pyati and Jackson Paller.

Current board members and officers, President Kathy Hayes, Secretary Ryan Flynn and Treasurer Dan Jordan, were slated for reappointment as five others remained on the board.