Former Illinois Appellate Court Justice Eileen O’Neill Burke speaks to reporters before filing her nominating petitions in the state's attorney race last December. [Michael McDevitt/The Daily Line]

Former Illinois Appellate Court Justice Eileen O’Neill Burke has won the race to become the next Cook County State’s Attorney after being declared the winner Tuesday evening in the race to succeed outgoing State’s Attorney Kim Foxx. The Associated Press declared O’Neill Burke the victor Tuesday just before 9 p.m.

In a statement after declaring victory, O'Neill Burke said she was "honored" to take on the role.

"I ran for this office because I had a stubborn belief that we could make Cook County safer and build a justice system that is fair and truly works for everyone," O'Neill Burke said in a news release. "Together, that’s exactly what we’re going to do."

With 64.8 percent of the vote, O’Neill Burke, a Democrat, defeated Republican opponent Bob Fioretti, a former Chicago alderperson, and Libertarian Andrew Charles Kopinski. Fioretti earned 30.8 percent and Kopinski earned 4.4 percent.

O’Neill Burke formerly worked as an assistant attorney in the state’s attorney’s office handling felony appellate cases, juvenile cases and felony review work before she became a criminal defense attorney and was later elected to the Circuit Court of Cook County in 2008. She was also previously president of the Illinois Judges Association.

"The State’s Attorney’s Office has a noble mission – to represent victims, uphold the law, and make justice accessible to everyone," O'Neill Burke also said in the statement. "This is a mission I will carry out with humility and dedication."

The state’s attorney-elect said during the campaign she would reverse Foxx’s decision to raise the threshold for prosecuting retail thefts as felonies from $300 to $1,000. She has also promised to seek detention for those charged with violent and gun-related crimes and create a restorative justice bureau to steer people charged with non-violent felonies and lower-level offenses to drug, mental health or veterans' courts.

One of O’Neill Burke’s signature policy proposals is to establish a “choice protection unit” within the state’s attorney’s office that specializes in preparing for lawsuits filed by anti-abortion groups and in prosecuting protesters that threaten and intimidate people seeking abortions. 

Foxx, who has been in office since December 2016, chose not to seek reelection. 

This story will be updated throughout the night.