Representatives for some of the Democratic presidential candidates made their case before dozens of New Trier Township residents at a recent endorsement session, but the end vote was too close to declare a winner.
The New Trier Democrats 2020 Endorsement Session was held Sunday at the Winnetka Community House and attracted candidates for several Democratic primary election races. The candidates detailed their credentials as they hoped to meet the 60% threshold required for an official endorsement heading into the March 17 election.
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But several of the key races debated at the event, which organizers call an “exercise in citizen democracy,” resulted in the front-runner coming up short of the 60% mark needed for an official endorsement from the group.
After a second vote on the top three presidential contenders, former Vice President Joe Biden led with 42% of the votes, followed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren with 32% and former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg with 25%.
U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston), who has endorsed Warren’s presidential bid, urged the crowd to avoid listening to those who tell them to focus on the so-called “electability” factor.
Schakowsky also gave a shout out to incumbent Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx in her re-election bid.
Foxx did not attend the endorsement session, which featured impassioned remarks from her three challengers. Bill Conway, a former assistant state’s attorney; former Chicago alderman Bob Fioretti; and longtime prosecutor Donna More all attended.
While Foxx proved the leader in a second ballot run-off at the event, garnering about 56% of the vote to Conway’s 44%, the state’s attorney race also ended with no endorsement, as neither candidate netted the required 60%.
All four Democratic candidates for Clerk of the Circuit Court promised to resurrect the long beleaguered office run by the departing Dorothy Brown. Candidate Michael Cabonargi, a former senior advisor to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, won 69% of the vote, granting him an endorsement from the New Trier group. Jacob Meister, Iris Y. Martinez and Richard R. Boykin are also running in the race.
The local Democrats also endorsed Michael Hyman, who is running for for the 1st District, 3rd Division judge of the Illinois Appellate Court in the Democratic primary. He is running against Maureen Patricia O’Leary, Carolyn J. Gallagher and Sandra Gisela Ramos.
Richard Brill, a spokesman and board member with the New Trier Democrats, said while the endorsement sessions have been held every two years for the past three decades, this year’s event involved much higher stakes than in the past.
“There’s a lot of excitement right now about the presidential race, without a doubt,” Brill said. “We have a lot of great people hoping to run in the Democratic primary.”
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