48th Ward - 2023 Aldermanic Race
Larry Svabek - 2023 Aldermanic Candidate
Raised in the south suburbs of Chicago, Larry Svabek works as a lecturer and fellow at the University of Chicago, where he received his PhD in Political Science. While pursuing his doctorate, Svabek did research on attempted harmony and interracial democracy in the wake of the civil war. Svabek cited this research as what sparked his interest in local government. He isn’t new to working in politics, as he served a short stint as a Congressional intern to Rep. Dan Lipinksi (D-IL) while he was an undergraduate student at Northwestern University. He’s running on a progressive platform of police reform and oversight, promoting affordable housing and increasing community engagement. Svabek has not yet officially launched his campaign, but he said he plans to host a campaign kick-off event at the end of September.
Isaac Freilich Jones - 2023 Aldermanic Candidate
Currently serving as Illinois’ Assistant Attorney General, Isaac Freilich Jones is a lifelong Chicago resident who has built his career on public and social services. Freilich Jones became a cancer survivor his senior year of high school, which cemented his belief in universal health care. His early career background is in consulting, when he worked as an associate with O-H Community Partners where he advised foundations, local governments and nonprofits on advancing environmentally sustainable development projects. Freilich Jones went on to attend Harvard Law School before returning to Chicago to work in private practice, in which he provided pro bono legal services to low-income renters who faced eviction. He’s also been active in local nonprofits, as he served as the Board President for the Howard Area Community Center. Some of Freilich Jones’s core issues bolstering affordable and public housing, overseeing the completion of the Lawrence-Brywn Mawr modernization project and expanding early childhood education.
Nick Ward - 2023 Aldermanic Candidate
Nick Ward moved to Chicago in 2004 to pursue his theatre career after receiving his bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Miami University in Ohio. The son of two public school teachers, Ward was raised in suburban Detroit. While working in the Chicago’s burgeoning live theatre scene, Ward waited tables where he saw first-hand “how our world is organized to privilege the few over the many, which is why he is determined to build a Chicago where working families are centered and supported,” according to his campaign website. He published his debut book of essays “All Who Belong May Enter” in 2021. Aside from his artistic pursuits, Ward has served as the membership co-chair to the progressive neighborhood group 48th Ward Neighbors for Justice and the community representative to the local school council at Goudy Elementary.
Nassir Faulkner - 2023 Aldermanic Candidate
Nassir Faulkner has worked for Illinois State Comptroller Susana Mendoza’s office and has worked on U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley’s political campaign. Faulkner was “an inaugural member” of the Obama Foundation’s Community Leadership Corps, and in that capacity he sought to increase civic and voter participation, according to his website. He attended DePaul University, where he was president of the university’s College Democrats. Faulkner also used his time in the leadership corps to advocate for the creation of a tuition-funded program at his alma mater which provides financial aid to undocumented students who cannot qualify for federal aid.
Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth - 2023 Aldermanic Candidate
A lifelong Chicagoan, Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth is a small business owner and community organizer who has lived in Andersonville for over two decades. Manaa-Hoppenworth has a long background in dance as a classically trained ballerina and graduate of the Chicago Academy for the Arts. She later received her bachelor’s degree in physical therapy from the University of Illinois at Chicago before going on to open the dancewear store Chicago Dance Supply in Andersonville. She’s also worked as a senior account executive with the Chicago Reader since 2018. Manaa-Hoppenworth discovered her knack for politics and organizing during the 2016 presidential election, when she founded two chapters of the Indivisible Project (Indivisible Illinois and Indivisible Illinois 9th District Anderson-Edgewater).
Roxanne Volkmann - 2023 Aldermanic Candidate
Roxanne Volkmann says she’s running to bring “working mom sensibility” to the City Council, according to a Twitter thread she posted announcing her candidacy. Volkmann’s campaign centers around stemming violent crime, increasing mental health resources and pushing back against what she portrays as “out of control” property taxes.
In the thread, she mentioned her son has been a crime victim himself, saying “My son was robbed at gunpoint over the summer. I’ve experienced the phone call that many parents dread and I know it could have been much worse. I will work hard to make it much better.” Volkmann works for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Brian Haag - 2023 Aldermanic Candidate
Brian Haag is one of the founders of Green Element Resale, a thrift shop in Edgewater. Haag’s campaign is focused on increasing environmental sustainability policies such as composting and using vacant lots for community gardens. He promises to use aldermanic menu dollars to subsidize people who want to plant native plants and wildflowers on land.
Joe Dunne - 2023 Aldermanic Candidate
Peloquin worked on U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth’s 2012 Congressional campaign and Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon’s unsuccessful 2014 campaign for Illinois State Comptroller. On his campaign website, Peloquin lists numerous boards, organizations and efforts he’s been involved with, including as a member of the Friends of the Edgewater Library and serving as the Edgewater representative on the Chicago Association of Realtors’ Diversity Committee.
Andy Peters - 2023 Aldermanic Candidate
Andy Peters is a political consultant and the owner of TrueNorth Cafe, which had locations in Andersonville and Hyde Park, though the Andersonville location has closed. Peters unsuccessfully ran in the Democratic primary in June 2022 for House District 13 in the Illinois General Assembly.
During his run for the state legislature Peters told the Windy City Times “My Andersonville cafe is very political. We have had multiple candidates come here. During the 2018 Democratic gubernatorial primary, JB Pritzker, Chris Kennedy and Daniel Biss and multiple mayoral candidates came [there].”
According to his LinkedIn, Peters worked in former Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office in 2011 as a coordinator of special projects, and Peters spent three years working for the Illinois Restaurant Association as a government relations and event manager. His consultant work includes political action committees, Chicago aldermen and state legislators.
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