Kelly M. Burke is a Democratic 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 ...

, representing the 36th District since January 2011. The 36th District includes all or parts of the Beverly, Mount Greenwood and Auburn-Gresham neighborhoods in the City of Chicago as well as the all or parts of the surrounding suburbs of Oak Lawn, Evergreen Park, Chicago Ridge,

Hometown Hometown, HomeTown, or Home Town may refer to: *A hometown, the town where someone lives or the town that they come from, typically their place of birth. *In developing nations particularly: native place, village of origin in newly urbanized soci ...

and

Palos Hills Palos Hills is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a southwest suburb of Chicago. The city was established in 1958 and had reached a population of 18,530 in the 2020 census. It is the home of Moraine Valley Community College as ...

. Burke is not seeking reelection to the Illinois House in the 2024 general election.

Early life and career

Kelly M. Burke has a B.A. from the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

and a law degree from John Marshall Law School. She was a legislative aide to State Representative Andrew J. McGann while he was in office. She served on the Evergreen Park Public Library Board including a stint as its president. At the time of her election, she was a lawyer for

Saint Xavier University Saint Xavier University (or SXU) is a private Roman Catholic university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1846 by the Sisters of Mercy, the university enrolls 3,749 students. History Saint Xavier University was founded as a women's college by ...

Political career

Illinois House of Representatives

Burke was elected in the 2010 general election to succeed appointee Michael J. Carberry. On January 12, 2023, Speaker

Emanuel Chris Welch Emanuel Christopher Welch (born February 6, 1971), known as Chris Welch, is a lawyer and politician who is the Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives. A Democrat, he represents the 7th district, which includes all or parts of River Fo ...

appointed Burke to serve as an Assistant Majority Leader. As of July 3, 2022, Representative Burke is a member of the following Illinois House committees: * Appropriations - Higher Education (HAPI) * (Chairwoman of) Campaign Finance Subcommittee (SHEE-CFIN) * (Chairwoman of) Election Administration & Ballot Access Subcommittee (SHEE-ELEC) * (Chairwoman of) Ethics & Elections Committee (SHEE) * (Chairwoman of) Government Transparency & Accountability Subcommittee (SHEE-GTAC) * Health Care Licenses Committee (HHCL) * (Chairwoman of) Lobbying Subcommittee (SHEE-LOBY) * Personnel & Pensions Committee (HPPN) * Redistricting Committee (HRED)

Mayor of Evergreen Park

In 2021, Burke was overwhelmingly elected Mayor to succeed longtime incumbent James Sexton who had declined to run for a sixth term. In her capacity as mayor, Burke is an appointee to the Cook County Land Bank Authority. She was appointed to a three year term on March 17, 2022.

Electoral history

Burke was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in 2010, and reelected against Republican candidates in 2012 and 2022 and reelected without opposition in 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2020.

References

External links

Representative Kelly Burke (D) 36th District
at the Illinois General Assembly **By session
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at Illinois House Democrats 21st-century American legislators 21st-century American women politicians Democratic Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives Illinois lawyers Living people People from Evergreen Park, Illinois University of Illinois Chicago School of Law alumni University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni Women state legislators in Illinois Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Illinois politicians {{Illinois-Ilrepresentative-stub