South Cook News

Democratic 1st District congressional candidate Chris Butler was recently in Orland Park to commend the possible overturning of Roe vs. Wade. 

"As a pastor who has walked with women and their families through the difficulties of unplanned and unwanted pregnancies, we must work together for both the life of the mother and the life of the infant," Butler wrote in a press release. 

Butler's campaign website said he is "focused on families and fighting for the hope, safety, and opportunity we all desire."

Nearly a decade ago, he started a boutique public affairs consulting firm that focused on "forging unlikely partnerships and leading tough conversations." 

Butler is also seen as a centrist. 

“Questions at the national level shouldn't be 'How do we make everyone the same?' Rather 'How do we create environments where everyone can thrive in their respective places?' so that we have a respect and a regard for one another. We can be different and yet not divided,” Butler recently said on Twitter.

Butler, a former Obama campaign worker, has also helped organize churches against violent crime as a member of the Chicago Peace Campaign. He has also worked for school choice advocates A+ Illinois and New Schools for Chicago as an organizer. He helped expand the number of school options that families in under-served communities can choose from.

Butler's name will be on the top of the ballot. 

He is one of 21 candidates hoping to succeed Rep. Bobby Rush (D) who in January announced he wouldn't run for re-election. Rush has been in the House since 1993. Illinois' 1st Congressional District has a population of 705,949 according to Ballotpedia. The district  includes much of Cook County, the South Side of Chicago, and continues southwest to Joliet.