The CloutCast

Rep. Mary Beth Canty on her first months in Springfield

Rep. Mary Beth Canty, a Democrat from Arlington Heights, was elected to the Illinois House in November 2022 after previous years of public service on the Arlington Heights Village Board and Regional Transportation Authority board. In her first few months as a state lawmaker, Canty has pushed major pieces of legislation that would require all Illinois school districts to offer all-day kindergarten and would require all job postings to have salary ranges and information about benefits.

Ald. Matt Martin on why Chicago should try ranked choice voting

Ald. Matt Martin (47) introduced a City Council resolution in January calling for a hearing to discuss the possibility of using ranked choice voting in future Chicago elections. Advocates argue the system, in which voters rank candidates by preference in races with three or more people, not only produces elected officials more representative of voters but also can save cities money from not having to run costly runoff elections.

Rep. Greg Harris on his work as House Majority Leader

Greg Harris retired from the General Assembly as House Majority Leader following over a decade representing the North Side of Chicago. Harris is the first person to serve who openly lives with HIV and is one of the first openly gay lawmakers in Illinois history. During his tenure in the House, Harris oversaw budget negotiations for House Democrats and led key pieces of legislation on health care reform.

Rep. Mark Batinick on his time as House Republican floor leader

After eight years in the Illinois House and four as House Republican floor leader, Rep. Mark Batinick (R-Plainfield) decided not to run for another term in 2022. The Daily Line’s Ben Szalinski sat down with Batinick to talk about his career in the House, why he decided to elected office, and his observations about the House Republican caucus and the workings of the Illinois House of Representatives.

Larry Suffredin on 20 years of problems solved and unsolved

Larry Suffredin was elected to the Cook County Board of Commissioners in 2002 as an insurgent looking to shake up the county's old ways to make the government more efficient and service-focused. Now, 20 years later, at the age of 74, Suffredin is staring down retirement and reflecting on the changes he and his allies were able to force in the county’s government and political structure. Suffredin spoke to The Daily Line’s Alex Nitkin about his battles with John Stroger, why the Cook County Forest Preserve needs a taxpayer infusion and what county offices can do to head off crippling staff shortages.