Evanston School Board Member Running To Become State Rep.

EVANSTON, IL — An Evanston/Skokie District 65 School Board member has entered the race to replace state Rep. Laura Fine in the 17th District. Candance Chow announced Tuesday that she is running for the Democratic nomination for the seat in next March's primary. Fine said in June she is running for the 9th District State Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Daniel Biss' campaign for governor. Chow is in her second term on the District 65 school board, where she serves as board president and finance chair and helped passed last year's referendum to support schools with 80 percent approval. She is the president of InSight Consulting Group, where she helps nonprofits and emerging businesses improve services.

“I am inspired to run for State Representative because of my lifelong desire to ensure that every child has the best chance possible to fulfill her dreams,” Chow stated. “I am not a career politician. I am a working mom and a progressive Democrat who believes strongly that we all have an important role to play in supporting those who need it the most.”

After being raised by a single mother who struggled to pay the bills, Chow said she has spent her career focused on helping families like hers succeed through access to high quality education and well-resourced social services. She said she strongly believes that Illinois can and should do better by its residents.

“Here we are in some of the most resource rich communities in the country, while the Trump/Rauner agenda ignores working families who are struggling, and politicians entrenched in Springfield wage personal battles against each other at our expense,” Chow said. “We cannot allow right-wing ideologies and political agendas to erode the institutions that made it possible for families like mine to succeed. We must work together to find common sense and compassionate solutions.” (Get Patch real-time email alerts for the latest news for Evanston, Skokie, Glenview, Wilmette— or your Illinois community. And iPhone users: Check out Patch's new app.)

In addition to her service on the District 65 board, Chow sits on the board of Community Partners for Affordable Housing and is currently working with Connections for the Homeless to create a stability fund for families at risk of losing stable housing after the state dramatically cut funding over the last year, according to a news release announcing her campaign. She was also recently named as a McCormick Foundation Executive Fellow in Early Childhood Policy Leadership.

_{Top photo: Candance Chow | via Candance Chow for Illinois State Representative}