A group of West Side and near South Side Democrats are meeting later this month to choose a successor to the late county commissioner Dennis Deer.
That selection process could be a family affair. Multiple sources close to the deliberations say Deer’s wife, Barbara, is among the interested candidates, as is the husband of Chicago City Clerk Anna Valencia and former 24th Ward Ald. Michael Scott, whose sister, Monique, is on the selection committee.
Democratic committeepeople whose wards and townships overlap with Deer’s district will gather on July 30 to take two votes, one filling Deer’s 2nd District board seat until December and another placing a nominee on the November ballot to complete the term through 2026.
Deer, a member of the Cook County Board since 2017, died last month at 51.
“As we mourn the loss of our friend and colleague Dr. Dennis Deer, we must also fulfill our duty to the residents of the 2nd District to select a replacement. I look forward to a fair and transparent process and encourage anyone interested in serving their community to apply,” 34th Ward Alderman and Democratic committeeman Bill Conway said in a release.
He has the largest share of Democratic voters in Deer’s district and will chair the selection committee to replace him.
The 2nd district stretches north to Division, south to 75th Street, east to King Drive and west to Laramie. It encompasses affluent communities like River North, South Loop and West Loop; as well as Austin, Englewood, Garfield Park and North Lawndale; and business corridors along Michigan Avenue and the Illinois Medical District.
Interested applicants can submit their resume and whether they want to be considered for the remainder of the term or to be placed on the ballot to Dist2selection@newdayconway.com by 5:00pm on Friday, July 26. Committeepeople will gather on July 30 at the University of Illinois-Chicago to interview candidates and make their pick.
Other members of the selection committee include 3rd Ward Ald. Pat Dowell, 27th Ward Ald. Walter Burnett, and 16th Ward Ald. Stephanie Coleman.
Deer’s widow, Barbara Deer, has been contacting committeepeople, according to multiple sources. Deer is a former speech language pathologist at Chicago Public Schools and head of the nonprofit Juneteenth Illinois. She did not immediately return requests for comment.
Former Ald. Scott, who exited City Council two years ago for a job at Cinespace Studios, told the Tribune Monday he had not yet decided whether to formally apply and was consulting with his family. Current Ald. Monique Scott, the committeeperson for the 24th ward, has 11% of the weighted vote.
Reyahd Kazmi, Clerk Valencia’s husband, has also expressed interest, party sources said. He applied for the job in 2017, as well. Kazmi runs his own consulting firm, Kazmi Advisors, and is a registered lobbyist with the city and state. That work — and questions over whether his business overlapped with her role as clerk — became an issue for Valencia during her recent run for Secretary of State. She denied any impropriety at the time. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
aquig@chicagotribune.com
