Candidate Spotlight: Christian Mitchell for State Representative 26th District

Christian Mitchell
Democrat
Illinois House, 26th District 
Website: http://www.friendsofchristianmitchell.com/


Christian Mitchell is 100% pro-choice and he has been endorsed by Planned Parenthood Illinois Action.

Issues: Ethics Policy – Budget & Reform Measures. Transportation Policy – Transportation Infrastructure & Transit Options

Biography: Christian was raised by his mother, who has been a nurse for 30 years, and his grandfather, who was a union steelworker and an elder at his church in Maywood. Their hard work and commitment to community inspired him to enter public service after graduating from the University of Chicago.

Christian began his career as a faith based community organizer in the south suburbs and Southside. As a community organizer, Christian worked with single mothers like his own who were fed up with the quality of their neighborhood schools, with homeowners concerned about losing their homes to foreclosure or the kind of flooding he’d endured in his youth, and with families concerned about being able to provide for aging loved ones – an experience he could relate to after caring for ailing grandparents.

As an organizer, Christian worked with people, in their communities, to fight for living wage jobs, adequate housing, improved transportation, and equitable schools. In 2009, in consultation with community leaders and the members of the general assembly, Christian drafted legislation that would become the Urban Weatherization Initiative, a $425 million dollar state jobs program focusing on insulation, weatherproofing and upgrading of single family homes in low and moderate urban areas in the state of Illinois – and a requirement to hire workers from those communities.

Christian’s efforts as an organizer also led to several other measurable improvements. The state legislature passed a law to create a universal fare card for transit systems in Chicago and the South Suburbs, drafted in part by Christian. Christian graduated from the University of Chicago with a bachelor’s degree in Public Policy Studies. He is a resident of the Bronzeville community.

* To see a list of all Planned Parenthood Illinois Action endorsed candidates click on this link. http://www.plannedparenthoodactionillinois.org/campaigns/endorsed_campaigns.php

* To search for your district and elected officials, click here.

Technorati tags: Planned Parenthood, Christian Mitchell, Illinois House, 26th District