Diane Pappas is a
Democratic member of the
Illinois Senate. She was previously a member of the
Illinois House of Representatives for the 45th district from 2019 to 2021. The 45th district, located in northern
DuPage County
DuPage County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, and one of the collar counties of the Chicago metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 932,877, making it Illinois' second-most populous county. Its county seat ...
, includes all or parts of
Addison
Addison may refer to:
Places Canada
* Addison, Ontario
United States
*Addison, Alabama
*Addison, Illinois
*Addison Street in Chicago, Illinois which runs by Wrigley Field
* Addison, Kentucky
*Addison, Maine
*Addison, Michigan
*Addison, New York
...
,
Bartlett,
Bloomingdale,
Carol Stream,
Hanover Park,
Itasca,
Medinah
Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the second-holiest city in Islam, and the capital of the ...
,
Roselle,
Wayne,
West Chicago
West Chicago is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 27,086 at the 2010 census. It was formerly named Junction and later Turner, after its founder, John B. Turner, president of the Galena and Chicago Union Railroa ...
, and
Wood Dale.
Background and personal life
Pappas was born in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
and immigrated to the United States aged 11. She attended
Lake Park High School
Lake Park High School is a four-year public high school occupying two campuses, both located in Roselle, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago. Freshmen and sophomores attend the East Campus (the original campus built in 1956), located near Med ...
. She then earned a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...
from
Michigan State University and a
juris doctor from
Yale Law School
Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by '' U.S. News & Worl ...
.
Pappas is an attorney from
Itasca specializing in corporate negotiations and contracts. She has worked for
Motorola Solutions
Motorola Solutions, Inc., is an American video equipment, telecommunications equipment, software, systems and services provider that succeeded Motorola, Inc., following the spinoff of the mobile phone division into Motorola Mobility in 2011. Th ...
,
YRC Worldwide, and
Locke Lord. Pappas was previously President of the Friends of Itasca Community Library.
She is currently married to William Pappas. The couple has no children.
Illinois House of Representatives
2018 election
Pappas became politically involved in 2018 when she became an elected precinct committeewoman with the local Democratic organization in
Addison Township.
In the summer of 2018, Pappas was nominated by the local Democratic organizations in the district to run against the then-unopposed
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
incumbent
Christine Winger.
Pappas narrowly defeated Republican incumbent
Christine Winger with 50.8% of the vote to represent the Republican-leaning district.
2020 election
Pappas lost the 2020 general election to Republican candidate
Seth Lewis.
Tenure
Pappas was sworn into office on January 9, 2019. During the 101st General Assembly, Pappas served on the following committees: ''Adoption & Child Welfare''; ''Cities & Villages''; ''Cybersecurity, Data Analytics, & IT''; ''General Service Appropriations-General Service''; and ''Prescription Drug Affordability''.
Airport noise mitigation
Pappas proposed the creation of an income tax credit in an amount equal to the amount paid by the taxpayer for purchasing acoustical materials, other materials, labor, and professional services to soundproof a residential home located near airports against aircraft noise. This credit, if passed, would have allowed constituents living near
O'Hare International Airport's new flightpaths to soundproof their homes.
Healthcare
Along with
Deb Conroy
Deborah "Deb" O'Keefe Conroy is an American politician currently serving as chair of the county board of DuPage County, Illinois. She previously served as a member of the Illinois House of Representatives, representing the 46th district from 201 ...
, Pappas introduced legislation to provide coverage for the treatment of serious mental illnesses and serious emotional disturbances.
Diane Pappas is pro-choice on abortion and voted for the Reproductive Healthcare Act.
Dan Proft's conservative political publications and Republican legislators
Mark Batinick
Mark Batinick is a Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives who represents the 97th district. The 97th district includes all or parts of Oswego, Plainfield and Shorewood.
As of July 3, 2022, Representative Batinick is a memb ...
(R-
Plainfield) and
Darren Bailey
Darren Bailey (born March 17, 1966) is an American far-right politician who was a Republican member of the Illinois Senate for the 55th district. Previously, he was a member of the Illinois House of Representatives for the 109th district in So ...
(R-
Xenia) criticized Pappas for an alleged remark that invoked castration when speaking about female autonomy at a town hall.
Tax reforms
Pappas proposed House Bill 338 which would create an assessment freeze homestead exemption for persons receiving federal
Supplemental Security Income; a means tested program that is part of the
Social Security Act. Pappas voted to place a referendum on the 2020 general election ballot that would allow the state of Illinois to repeal its current
flat tax structure in favor of a
progressive tax structure if passed by 60% of voters. Pappas supported Senate Bill 1217, which lowered the amount of money that municipalities are required to devote to tourism from the hotel/motel tax from 100% to 75%. The change had been long sought by local leaders in smaller towns to fund economic development efforts and infrastructure improvements.
Senate
Pappas was appointed to the
Illinois Senate to succeed
Tom Cullerton
Tom Cullerton was a member of the Illinois Senate representing the 23rd district from 2013 to 2022. The 23rd district spans northern DuPage County and includes all or parts of Addison, Bloomingdale, Bartlett, Carol Stream, Glendale Heights, Ha ...
.
As of July 2022, Senator Pappas is a member of the following Illinois Senate committees:
* Energy and Public Utilities Committee (SENE)
* Insurance Committee (SINS)
* Transportation Committee (STRN)
* Veterans Affairs Committee (SVET)
Electoral history
References
External links
Official profileat
Illinois General Assembly
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pappas, Diane
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century American politicians
21st-century American women politicians
American politicians of Polish descent
Democratic Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives
Michigan State University alumni
People from Itasca, Illinois
University of Illinois Chicago alumni
Women state legislators in Illinois
Yale Law School alumni
Living people
1970s births