North Cook News

Charles Hutchinson, a candidate for Illinois State House District 18, has drawn attention to an article about Eileen O’Neill Burke. Published on April 1, the article suggests that O’Neill Burke may not be the 'tough-on-crime' choice she purports to be. Hutchinson, who is set to challenge incumbent Democrat Robyn Gabel in the general election, highlighted on his Facebook post that O’Neill Burke had endorsed her challenger, Bob Fioretti.

"Eileen O'Neill Burke apologized to voters saying she misread the job application and thought she was running for Cook County State's Public Defender, noting that she is not the "Tough-on-Crime" candidate and endorsed Bob Fioretti," said Hutchinson, according to Facebook.

In his social media post, Hutchinson shared a link to the April 1 Chicago Sun-Times piece which centered on the Democratic nominee for Cook County State’s Attorney. The article noted that while O’Neill Burke maintains she won't shift her priorities in the election, her messaging could use refinement.

Screenshot of Charles Hutchinson's April 4 Facebook post | Charles Hutchinson's campaign Facebook page

"I think a lot of the concern was unfair that I was going to be very hard on crime. I want to be effective. That doesn't mean we're going to lock everybody up," O’Neill-Burke stated during a speech at the Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Local Union 130.

She expressed her desire to create new programs aimed at helping "get people turned around" and asserted that this is how effectiveness should be measured. "Not how many people we lock up, but how many people we get turned around, how quickly we can get our crime rates down."

The same article also featured criticism from Fioretti towards O’Neill Burke. "Almost half of the Democratic primary voters picked my opponent because she repeatedly said she would be very tough on crime. If there is any confusion, it is because the candidate misled voters," Fioretti said in a statement quoted by the Chicago Sun-Times.

Hutchinson is a Wilmette-based lawyer with deep ties to his community through various roles including President of the Chamber of Commerce, Chairman of the Historic Preservation Commission and Board member for the Wilmette Theatre. His campaign, as outlined on his website, is driven by a shared objective of strengthening community connections and advocating for key issues such as parental rights, education, neighborhood safety, and tax reduction.

The 18th District covers north Cook County communities including Evanston, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Northbrook, Northfield, Winnetka and Glencoe. The incumbent is Robyn Gabel (R-Evanston), who took office in 2010 and is nearing the end of her current term which concludes on Jan. 8, 2025. Gabel is seeking re-election to continue representing the district in the Illinois House of Representatives, according to Ballotpedia.