Litesa E. Wallace (born 1978) is an American politician who served as a member of the
Illinois House of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...
for the 67th district from August 2014 to January 2019.
Early life and education
Wallace was born in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from
Western Illinois University
Western Illinois University (WIU) is a public university in Macomb, Illinois. It was founded in 1899 as Western Illinois State Normal School. As the normal school grew, it became Western Illinois State Teachers College.
History
Western Illin ...
, followed by a Master of Arts in marriage and family counseling and a Ph.D. in educational psychology from
Northern Illinois University.
Career
Illinois House of Representatives
Wallace was appointed to the
Illinois House of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...
in August 2014 by the Winnebago County Democratic Party, succeeding
Charles E. Jefferson. Wallace had previously served as chief of staff to Jefferson.
2018 Illinois gubernatorial campaign and aftermath
Wallace ran for
lieutenant governor of Illinois in the 2018 Democratic primary alongside State Senator
Daniel Biss
Daniel Kálmán Biss (born August 27, 1977) is an American mathematician and politician serving as mayor of Evanston, Illinois, Evanston, Illinois. He previously served as a member of both the Illinois House of Representatives and Illinois Senate. ...
, replacing Biss's initial pick, Chicago alderman
Carlos Ramirez-Rosa. In a video announcing the joint ticket, Wallace commented that she and Biss had both "fought for childcare assistance, a $15 minimum wage, to expand healthcare, and to make millionaires pay their fair share." Biss and Wallace lost the Democratic primary to
J. B. Pritzker and his running mate
Julianna Stratton
Juliana Stratton (née Wiggins; born September 8, 1965) is an American lawyer and politician, serving as the 48th lieutenant governor of Illinois since 2019. She previously served as a Democratic member of the Illinois House of Representatives ...
.
In the
2020 Democratic presidential primary
Presidential primaries and caucuses were organized by the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party to select the 3,979 pledged delegates to the 2020 Democratic National Convention held on August 17–20 to determine the party's nomin ...
, Wallace was a supporter of
Bernie Sanders' 2020 presidential campaign.
2022 congressional election
In November 2021, Wallace declared her candidacy for
Illinois's 17th congressional district
The 17th congressional district of Illinois is represented by Democrat Cheri Bustos. It includes most of the northwestern portion of the state, with most of its population living on the Illinois side of the Quad Cities, as well as parts of Peor ...
in the 2022 election.
References
External links
Illinois General Assembly PageOfficial Website Rep Litesa WallaceLitesa Wallace for Congress
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wallace, Litesa E.
1978 births
21st-century American politicians
21st-century American women politicians
African-American state legislators in Illinois
African-American women in politics
Candidates in the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections
Living people
Democratic Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives
Northern Illinois University alumni
Politicians from Rockford, Illinois
Western Illinois University alumni
Women state legislators in Illinois