Miguel del Valle
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Miguel del Valle (born July 24, 1951) is an
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
politician and the former
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of
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
. He was an
Illinois State Senator The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the I ...
for two decades, representing the 2nd District of Chicago from 1987–2006. Del Valle lost his bid for mayor in Chicago's February 22, 2011 municipal elections, coming in third with 53,953 votes. He took office as the
President of the Chicago Board of Education The Chicago Board of Education is led by a president. The current President of the Chicago Board of Education is Miguel del Valle. Since the 1995 Chicago School Reform Amendatory Act went into effect, the president has been directly appointed b ...
on June 26, 2019, having been appointed to that position by Mayor
Lori Lightfoot Lori Elaine Lightfoot (born August 4, 1962) is an American attorney and politician serving since 2019 as the 56th mayor of Chicago. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Before becoming mayor, Lightfoot worked in private legal practice as ...
.


Personal life and early career

Del Valle was born in
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
and was brought to Chicago at the age of four by his parents. He grew up in the predominantly working class Latina/o West Town and Humboldt Park neighborhoods of Chicago. After graduating from Tuley High School (now
Roberto Clemente Community Academy Roberto Clemente Community Academy (commonly known as Clemente, Roberto Clemente High School) is a public 4–year high school located in the West Town community area of Chicago, Illinois. Operated by the Chicago Public Schools, the school is n ...
) in 1969, he went on to
Northeastern Illinois University Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU) is a public university in Chicago, Illinois. NEIU serves approximately 9,000 students in the region and is a Hispanic-serving institution. The main campus is located in the community area of North Park wi ...
. At Northeastern del Valle was a student organizer, joining the Union for Puerto Rican Students and serving as treasurer. He was also President of the Spanish Action Youth Committee during his early college days. After earning a bachelor's and a master's degree in Education and Guidance from Northeastern, del Valle served as Unit Director of the Barreto Boys & Girls Club and then as Executive Director of the Association House, a
non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
providing social services and educational programs on Chicago's northwest side. During his time as Executive Director of the Association House, del Valle was heralded by the ''
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'' as an "emerging young leader." In 1982, after organizing meetings, rallies, and lobbying Chicago's
Chicago City Council The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 alderpersons elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms. The council is gaveled into session regularly, usually mont ...
, del Valle was successful in re-instating city funding for Association House's successful jobs program for unemployed youth. Del Valle is married to Lupe, and has four children: Miguel Jr., Ivan, Esteban, and Vanessa.


Senate career

In 1987, del Valle was elected the first Hispanic Senator in the Illinois General Assembly after he defeated Edward Nedza in the Democratic primary. He was the Assistant Majority Leader in the Illinois Senate, and he was the first Latino to hold that position. He served as an outspoken advocate for Latino representation in the legislative and judicial branches of government. He was the Co-Chair of the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus and was the first Latino member of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus. His leadership in redistricting cases in 1981, 1991, and 2001 led to the creation of Latino majority districts on the city, county, and state levels. Del Valle sponsored legislation to protect homeowners by stopping the forgery of quitclaim deeds which is the process of transferring the title or deed of property to another individual or company. He has also sponsored legislation to provide harsher punishment for ATM crimes; provide Illinois with more Early Childhood Teachers; provide comprehensive health coverage for every child in Illinois; and increase funding for Advanced Placement courses in Illinois high schools. Del Valle is the founder of the Illinois Association of Hispanic State Employees (IAHSE). He is the co-founder of several Latino organizations, including the Illinois Latino Advisory Council on Higher Education (ILACHE); the Alliance of Latinos and Jews; and the Illinois Hispanic Democratic Council (IHDC). He also developed the annual Department of Children and Family Services Hispanic Families Conference. Del Valle was the Vice-Chairman of the Education Committee, Co-Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Education Funding Reform and the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus. He also served on the Senate Executive Committee, the Senate Labor Committee, and the Higher Education Committee. In the 2006 Illinois primary elections, Del Valle received local media attention for his support of
Ramon Ocasio III Ramon Ocasio III (born 1962) is a judge in the Circuit Court of Cook County, first elected in 2006 from the 6th Judicial Subcircuit. The 6th Judicial Subcircuit is located in Chicago's north side. Early life A lifelong resident of Chicago, Ocasi ...
for judge over the
Cook County Democratic Party The Cook County Democratic Party is a political party which represents voters in 50 wards in the city of Chicago and 30 suburban townships of Cook County. The organization has dominated Chicago politics (and consequently, Illinois politics) sinc ...
-endorsed candidate, Ed Lechowicz, son of former Cook County Commissioner and Illinois State Senator
Ted Lechowicz Thaddeus S. "Ted" Lechowicz (December 20, 1938 – January 5, 2009) was an American politician and businessman. Born in Chicago, Illinois, Lechowicz went to Weber High School in Chicago. He received his associate degree from Wright Junior Col ...
. Del Valle, who sponsored legislation to create the subcircuit system, stated that the system was created to give women and minorities the opportunity to serve on the bench. Del Valle was the first Latino male elected to the Illinois Democratic State Central Committee, where he served a four-year term. In 2008, del Valle served as an elected Obama delegate at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, where he had a speaking role. Del Valle established the Miguel del Valle Youth Leadership Development Foundation, which raised and distributed over $200,000 in support of numerous youth services.


City clerk

In 2006, Miguel del Valle was appointed
City Clerk of Chicago The City Clerk of Chicago is in charge of record-keeping for the city of Chicago and its elections. When the Chicago City Council is in session, the City Clerk serves as council secretary. This position is a citywide elected office, one of three ...
by Mayor
Richard M. Daley Richard Michael Daley (born April 24, 1942) is an American politician who served as the 54th mayor of Chicago, Illinois, from 1989 to 2011. Daley was elected mayor in 1989 and was reelected five times until declining to run for a seventh term ...
after the previous clerk,
James Laski James J. "Jim" Laski (born 1954) was the City Clerk of Chicago, Illinois from 1995–2006. The former congressional aid and city alderman resigned from the City Clerk's office following his indictment for obstruction of justice Obstruction o ...
, was indicted on federal charges. Del Valle won a citywide election to the post in 2007, becoming the first
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
elected to the Chicago City Clerk's office. As city clerk, del Valle's office is responsible for maintaining official city government records, distributing approximately 1.3 million vehicle stickers and residential parking permits, and issuing city business licenses. Clerk del Valle is focused on bringing more efficiency and visibility to city clerk services by providing greater access to public records, including web casting of City Council meetings, expanding community outreach programs, modernizing operations to expedite the sale of dog registrations, city stickers and residential parking. Significant
City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...
transparency efforts include posting nearly 700,000 pages of searchable City Council records to the City Clerk website, www.ChiCityClerk.com. This includes every ordinance passed since 1981, the Byrne Administration, as well as city budgets and Mayoral
Executive orders ''Executive Orders'' is a techno-thriller novel, written by Tom Clancy and released on July 1, 1996. It picks up immediately where the final events of ''Debt of Honor'' (1994) left off, and features now-U.S. President Jack Ryan as he tries to d ...
going back nearly 30 years. In addition, for the first time ever, City Council meetings can be watched live or on demand via a City Council video archive on the City Clerk website, www.ChiCityClerk.com.


Campaign for mayor

After Mayor Daley announced that he would not run for another term, del Valle was the first to declare his candidacy in the
2011 Chicago mayoral election The city of Chicago, Illinois held a nonpartisan mayoral election on Tuesday, February 22, 2011. Incumbent Mayor Richard Michael Daley, a member of the Democratic Party who had been in office since 1989, did not seek a seventh term as mayor. T ...
. He was the first candidate to air a campaign ad on television, the first to have a
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and
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page, and the first (and only) candidate to publicly declare he would not accept campaign contributions from companies that do business with the city. Del Valle ran a grassroots campaign, which was energetic, but underfunded. Del Valle ran as a reformer, taking stands on issues such as campaign finance reform and advocating increased powers for the city's inspector general. Del Valle's campaign strategy focused on the city's neighborhoods, and sought to portray him as an individual who would foster ground-up change focused on working with and working in the city's communities. He hoped to mobilize enough progressives across the city to participate in his campaign to allow him to run successfully despite having a low budget. He also sought to project a "man of the people" image, emphasizing his Latino identity and his ties to the city. He also touted his record from his tenure as a state senator. On the issue of schools, del Valle supported an eventual transition to an elected school board with districts, a stance which contrasted with Gery Chico,
Rahm Emanuel Rahm Israel Emanuel (; born November 29, 1959) is an American politician and diplomat who is the current United States Ambassador to Japan. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served two terms as the 55th Mayor of Chicago from 2011 ...
, and
Carol Moseley Braun Carol Elizabeth Moseley Braun, also sometimes Moseley-Braun (born August 16, 1947), is a former U.S. Senator, an American diplomat, politician, and lawyer who represented Illinois in the United States Senate from 1993 to 1999. Prior to her Senate ...
's opposition to an elected school board. He supported lengthening both the school day and school year. He also supported negotiating with the
Chicago Teachers Union The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) is a labor union that represents teachers, paraprofessionals, and clinicians in the Chicago public school system. The union has consistently fought for improved pay, benefits, and job security for its members, an ...
a stronger system for teacher evaluation. Of the top four candidates running, his stances were the most in-line with those of the Chicago Teachers Union. While del Valle sought to garner Latino support, he ran at a deficit to fellow Hispanic candidate
Gery Chico Gery J. Chico ( ; born August 24, 1956) is an American politician, Chicago lawyer, public official and former Democratic primary candidate for United States Senate. Chico served as the Chief of Staff to Mayor Richard M. Daley from 1992 to 1995, ...
in garnering Latino support. However, he received the endorsements Hispanic politicians such as Rey Colón,
William Delgado William "Willie" Delgado (born October 31, 1956) is a former Democratic member of the Illinois Senate, representing the 2nd district from 2006 until June 2016. He was first elected in 2006, replacing Miguel del Valle, who was elected Chicago C ...
,
Jesús "Chuy" García Jesus ( AD 30 or 33) was a Jewish preacher and religious leader who most Christians believe to be the incarnation of God and Muslims believe was a prophet. Jesus may also refer to: People Religious figures * Elymas Bar-Jesus, a Jew in the ''Ac ...
,
Elizabeth Hernandez Elizabeth Hernandez or Hernández may refer to: * Elizabeth Hernández (model), Puerto Rican television personality, author, spokesperson, professional model, entrepreneur, and motivational speaker * Elizabeth Hernandez (politician) (born 1961), ...
,
Edwin Reyes Edwin Reyes was the Cook County Commissioner for the County’s 8th district, in northwest Chicago. He held the position as a Democrat from 2009–2014. Education Reyes attended Northern Illinois University in the early 1980s, after which he enli ...
, and
Cynthia Soto Cynthia Soto is a Democratic former member of the Illinois House of Representatives, who represented the 4th District from 2001 to 2019. Early life Soto attended James Otis Elementary School in West Town, St. Procopius High School and Harp ...
. Del Valle also won the endorsements of
Robyn Gabel Robyn Gabel (born February 7, 1953) is the Majority Leader of the Illinois House of Representatives. A Democrat, she has represented the 18th District since April 19, 2010. The district includes the suburbs of Evanston, Wilmette, Kenilworth, No ...
, Northside
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and
Independent Voters of Illinois-Independent Precinct Organization The Independent Voters of Illinois-Independent Precinct Organization (IVI-IPO) is an independent, not-for-profit, Illinois political organization. Often referred to by its acronym, IVI-IPO, has roots dating to 1944, when the Independent Voters of ...
. Del Valle's campaign lacked funds. He was only able to raise less than $132,000 in donations. He was only able to produce single televised advertisement campaign. Despite his efforts, the grassroots support his campaign strategy had been counting on failed to materialize. In the election he came in third in a field of six, with about nine percent of the vote. In his concession speech he promised to continue to push for a progressive agenda, though he would soon leave office as City Clerk.


Career after elected office

Del Valle was also appointed by Illinois Governor Pat Quinn on February 8, 2013, to a five-year term on the
Illinois Commerce Commission The Illinois Commerce Commission is a quasi-judicial tribunal that regulates public utility services in the U.S. state of Illinois. The mission of the ICC is "to pursue an appropriate balance between the interest of consumers and existing and emer ...
("ICC"). The ICC's mission is to balance the interests of consumers and utilities to ensure adequate, efficient, reliable, safe, and least-cost public utility services, while promoting the development of an effectively competitive energy supplier market. The ICC also oversees transportation activities, including railroad safety, trucking insurance and registration, relocation and safety towing, and household goods moving companies. He took office as the
President of the Chicago Board of Education The Chicago Board of Education is led by a president. The current President of the Chicago Board of Education is Miguel del Valle. Since the 1995 Chicago School Reform Amendatory Act went into effect, the president has been directly appointed b ...
on June 26, 2019, having been appointed to that position by Mayor
Lori Lightfoot Lori Elaine Lightfoot (born August 4, 1962) is an American attorney and politician serving since 2019 as the 56th mayor of Chicago. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Before becoming mayor, Lightfoot worked in private legal practice as ...
.


Additional leadership roles

Del Valle is a founding member of Advance Illinois and served on the Board of Directors until 2016. He was appointed by Illinois Governor Pat Quinn to the Illinois P-20 Council where he served as Chairman. Additionally del Valle served on several non-profit organizational boards, including Josephinium High School, the Latino Institute, the Spanish Coalition for Housing, and Federation for Community Schools. In 2013, del Valle was appointed by Governor Pat Quinn to the Illinois Students Assistance Commission ("ISAC"), where he served as Vice-Chairman. ISAC's mission is making college accessible and affordable for Illinois students. Del Valle has served on the Judicial Candidate Screening Advisory Committee established by Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis of the Illinois Supreme Court. He has also served as Chairman of the Mayor Harold Washington's Advisory Commission on Latino Affairs, and taught a class at Roosevelt University called "Latinos and Public Policy." In 2008, del Valle was awarded an honorary degree from
National Louis University National Louis University (NLU) is a private university with its main campus in Chicago, Illinois. NLU enrolls undergraduate and graduate students in more than 60 programs across its four colleges. It has locations throughout the Chicago metropol ...
for his "inspirational leadership."


References


External links


Del Valle for MayorMiguel del Valle — Chicago City ClerkMiguel del Valle — Illinois General Assembly Senator Miguel del Valle — Project Vote Smart
{{DEFAULTSORT:Del Valle, Miguel 1951 births American politicians of Puerto Rican descent Puerto Rican people in Illinois politics City and town clerks Living people Democratic Party Illinois state senators Northeastern Illinois University alumni People from Vega Baja, Puerto Rico Politicians from Chicago Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in Illinois Presidents of the Chicago Board of Education