Tara Stamps (third from left) and Zerlina Smith-Members (fourth from left) were among the six finalists for Brandon Johnson’s old Cook County Board seat. (Photo by Igor Studenkov)

The two candidates running for Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s old Cook County Board seat have taken strong and contrasting positions on two major issues within the 1^st District – the migrant crisis and public safety.

When Johnson was sworn in as mayor, the Democratic Party committeepersons put out a call for a replacement to fill the seat until the November 2024 election. The six finalists were interviewed on June 20, 2023 and the committeepersons chose labor activist and former Chicago 37^th Ward candidate Tara Stamps. Now, Stamps is facing off against another finalist, community activist and former 29^th Ward candidate Zerlina Smith-Members, in the March 19 Democratic primary.

Stamps said she wanted to continue Johnson’s progressive political legacy on the board, and previously described herself as the mayor’s “mentor-teacher.” Smith-Members said that one of the major reasons why she’s running was to oppose the Chicago Teachers Union, which backed both elected officials, and where Johnson used to be the organizer.

The two candidates took opposing views on supporting asylum-seekers who are being bused into Chicago, with Stamps favoring county support and Smith-Members arguing that it isn’t something the county should be doing in the first place. When it comes to public safety, Smith-Members emphasized enforcement, while Stamps emphasized creating more opportunities for youth, treating trauma and generally providing support for those who got out of jail so that they are able to build stable lives. But there are issues where the two candidates are on the same page — both believe that the property taxes are a burden on the residents and want to do something to reduce it, and both believe that health services should be more widely available in place where people can easily access them.

The 1st District includes much of the Chicago West Side, including all of Austin, most of West Garfield Park, portions of East Garfield Park, Humboldt Park and small sections of a few Northwest Side neighborhoods. The suburban portion includes all of Oak Park, Forest Park, Maywood, Bellwood, all but a small section of Broadview, about half of Westchester and small sections of Hillside and North Riverside.

The winner of the March 19 primary will face off against Libertarian candidate Jaimes Humay in the general election.

Stamps is CTU’s new teacher development administrator. Smith-Members is a victim services coordinator for Together Chicago, a West Side nonprofit that provides support for victims of crime. Both women are familiar fixtures on the West Side in general and Austin in particular.

City support for asylum-seekers who mostly came from Central and South American countries and were bused to Chicago by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott became a hot-button issue in Austin last fall. In early October 2023, the city announced that it was planning to use the fieldhouse in Amundsen Park, one of the community’s major parks, to house migrant families. Smith-Members was among a large group of residents who held multiple protests in front of the building. The city decided to “pause” the proposal before abandoning it altogether.

Stamps said that she understood why the issue caused so much backlash in a majority-Black community like Austin. The descendants of enslaved Africans had to fight for their rights for as long as they’ve been in United States, she said, even after the 14^th Amendment guaranteed them citizenship.

“We [still] have to fight so that our rights are protected and that our people get what they deserve,” Stamps said. “I think it’s why [seeing a group that aren’t citizens of United States getting help] is particularly raw and sensitive. I want to own and acknowledge the righteous pain the Black people are feeling at this moment.”

Indeed, Smith-Members said that, if elected, she would push to freeze any county funding for asylum-seekers until it assesses how much funding goes to “the country residents.” When asked whether she believes the county should be supporting migrants in the first place, she replied with a simple “no.”

Later during the interview, Smith-Members said that, based on what she heard while canvasing, she believes many voters are with her.

“People are saying — am I against the migrant funding?” she said. “People don’t want their dollars to do to the migrants.”

Stamps said that she didn’t believe making sure that African-Americans get what they deserve and supporting asylum-seekers is mutually exclusive. She said supported the county already committing $100 million to support migrants, mostly by providing healthcare through the Cook County Health system, and she would support more funding.

“Cook County is trying to be humane in that moment, because history will judge us on how we operate in this moment, [whether we] clothe the naked and help the hurting,” Stamps said.

Public Safety

Smith-Members said she would work with city and suburban police departments, the Office of Cook County Sheriff, Office of the Cook County State’s Attorney and social service agencies to tackle root causes of crime by providing social services and ramp up enforcement. She said that she would work with the county sheriff and the State’s Attorney to “make sure they’re not letting criminals back out onto the streets to commit crimes.”

“We’re letting repeat offenders return back to the community,” Smith-Members said. “We need to work hand-in-hand with the State’s Attorney and Cook County Sheriff and make sure that they have the space [in jail].”

She would advocate for putting $100 million toward preventing opioid overdoses, $100 million to pay stipends to residents who enroll in job training, certification programs or “educational advancement” programs. That would collectively account for about 2.15 percent of the county’s 2024 budget.

Stamps, who has advocated for more support for youth who ended up in juvenile justice system, said she would focus on addressing root causes and helping those who serve their times get good jobs and other resources.

“We know that public safety is more than just policing, and public safety is not overpolicing,” Stamps said. “Public safety is making sure those needs are met, and there are places for young people to not just survive in the city in the City of Chicago and County of Cook but thrive.”

She added that she wanted to make sure existing programs, especially those for young people, “are working and sustainable,” and that there is a way to track success. Any solutions need to involve civic institutions such as schools and churches.

“We want to make sure we’re stopping the bleeding, and that we’re not only stemming the blood flow, btu that we’re preventing the harm in the first place, especially for young people,” Stamps said. “It has to be a comprehensive approach.”