Toni Preckwinkle

Toni Preckwinkle
Preckwinkle in 2021
President of the Cook County Board of Commissioners
Assumed office
December 6, 2010
Preceded byTodd Stroger
Chair of the Cook County Democratic Party
Assumed office
April 18, 2018
Preceded byJoseph Berrios
Member of the Chicago City Council
from the 4th ward
In office
April 2, 1991 – December 6, 2010
Preceded byTimothy C. Evans
Succeeded byShirley Newsome
Personal details
Born
Toni Lynn Reed

(1947-03-17) March 17, 1947 (age 77)
Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Zeus Preckwinkle
(m. 1969; div. 2013)
Children2
EducationUniversity of Chicago (BA, MA)

Toni Lynn Preckwinkle (née Reed; born March 17, 1947)[1][2] is an American politician and the current County Board president in Cook County, Illinois, United States. She was elected to her first term as president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, the executive branch of Cook County government, in November 2010, becoming the first woman elected to that position.

Preckwinkle previously served as a five-term alderman in the Chicago City Council, representing Chicago's 4th ward centered in Hyde Park. During her tenure, she emerged as the council's prominent defender of affordable housing. She was also the runner-up in the 2019 election for mayor of Chicago.

Among other issues, she is known for championing the county's controversial sweetened beverage tax, sponsorship of living wage ordinances, concerns about the costs and benefits of Chicago bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics, and her strong stance against police brutality and excessive force.

  1. ^ "The Honorable Toni Preckwinkle's Biography". The HistoryMakers. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019. Retrieved March 8, 2019.
  2. ^ "The Choice for Mayor 2019: Toni Preckwinkle". WTTW. March 26, 2019. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2021.