Robert Peters | |
|---|---|
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| Member of theIllinois Senate from the13th district | |
| Assumed office January 6, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Kwame Raoul |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1985-04-26)April 26, 1985 (age 40) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | Kansas State University (BA) |
Robert J. Peters (born April 26, 1985) is an American politician serving as aDemocratic member of theIllinois Senate for the 13th district.[1] The Chicago-based district, once represented byPresidentBarack Obama, includes all or parts ofEast Side,Hyde Park,Kenwood,South Chicago,South Shore, andWoodlawn.[2] Peters took office on January 6, 2019, after being appointed to succeedKwame Raoul.[3] He has since been elected in 2020 and again in 2024.
He served as the Senate Chair of theIllinois Legislative Black Caucus from 2021 to 2024 and has been the Majority Whip for the Senate Democratic Caucus since 2025. He is a candidate in the Democratic primary for the2026 election for Illinois' 2nd congressional district.
Peters was born inChicago, Illinois on April 26, 1985.[4][5] His biological mother suffered fromdrug andalcohol addiction.He was raised by hisadoptive parents, Thomas[6] and Cynthia (nee' Mikolas) Peters.[7] His father worked as a civil rights lawyer[8] and argued a few cases before theU.S. Supreme Court.[6] His mother worked as asocial worker.[4][9][10] Although he was borndeaf and with aspeech impediment, he regained full hearing ability at age 8 and full speech capability at age 12.[1][4] He attendedKansas State University from 2004 to 2009.[11] Peters isBlack andJewish.[12] He was devastated when his adoptive parents died, his father in 2011 and his mother in 2013.[8]
His initial engagement in electoral politics was duringToni Preckwinkle's successful campaign for Cook County Board Presidentin 2010.[11] He later worked forGroupon, before returning to politics as an organizer for thenon-profit Chicago Votes.[11][13]
Prior to his appointment, Peters was the political director for the People's Lobby and theirPAC, Reclaim Chicago.[11] The People's Lobby endorsed and mobilized on behalf of candidates includingKim Foxx in the2016 Cook County State's Attorney election and Bernie Sanders in the2016 Democratic presidential primary.[1] He also previously worked for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, and served as the political director forDaniel Biss' campaign for Governor of Illinoisin 2018.[10][11][13] He is a member of both the People's Lobby andUnited Working Families.[13]
Peters was appointed to the Illinois Senate to represent the 13th district in January 2019, to replace outgoing SenatorKwame Raoul upon the latter's election as Attorney General of Illinois.[1] Under Cook County's appointment process, theDemocratic Party committeepeople in the area of the district received weighted votes in choosing Raoul's replacement; in this case, the largest weighted votes were held by aldermanLeslie Hairston and Cook County Board PresidentToni Preckwinkle.[10][14] Upon his appointment, Peters signaled his commitment to continuing Raoul's emphasis on issues of bail reform and marijuana legalization.[10]
He successfully ran for electionin 2020, winning 53% of the vote in the Democratic primary election against Ken Thomas and winning the general election uncontested.[15][16][17][9] In the primary election, both candidates agreed on most issues but Thomas charged that Peters was appointed through a "backroom deal."[18][15][19] Peters was endorsed by a number of progressive organizations includingUnited Working Families,Equality Illinois, and Reclaim Chicago, and most of his campaign contributions came from labor unions.[20]
He was re-elected in2024, running uncontested in both the Democratic primary and the general election.
During the 2019–20 term, Peters was the chief co-sponsor of 13 bills that were signed into law, including legislation on banning private civil detention centers, ending"pay to stay" practices in correctional facilities, and expanding access toSNAP benefits, preventive HIV treatment, and apprenticeships for youth.[21] He has cited improving theDepartment of Children and Family Services as a top legislative priority, and three of his co-sponsored bills focused on this agency, requiring expansion of post-adoption support services, collection of feedback from youth transitioning out of foster care, and provision of preventive care to reduce homelessness, incarceration, and unemployment.[11][21]
Criminal justice reform has been one of Peters' main priorities in the State Senate. In 2020, along with Rep.Justin Slaughter, he introduced a bill called the Pretrial Fairness Act to end the use ofcash bail in Illinois.[22][23] In 2021, an amended version of this bill was enacted as part of theSAFE-T Act, making Illinois the first state to eliminate cash bail.[24][25] Peters was also a co-sponsor of the broader SAFE-T Act, which included various reforms on police training and use of force, sentencing, and services for crime victims.[26] Also in 2021, Peters and Slaughter were the chief sponsors of the successfully enacted Reimagine Public Safety Act, which provided funding for community violence intervention programs such as street outreach.[27] Peters has advocated for continued funding for community violence intervention and argued that it has been effective in reducing violence.[28][29][30] In 2025, he was the chief Senate sponsor of the FAIR Act, which established a statewidepublic defender's office.[31][32] Other bills sponsored by Peters include proposals to raise the minimum age at which children can be held in detention facilities,[33] decriminalize HIV transmission,[34] and require the presence of attorneys when police interrogate minors.[35]
In 2023, Peters co-sponsored the Temp Worker and Fairness Safety Act, which included provisions curtailwage theft and provide workplace training and transparency fortemporary workers.[36][37] The bill was passed into law later that year.[38]
Since 2023, Peters, along with Rep.Marcus Evans, has sponsored a bill that would enable and regulate offshore wind farms in Lake Michigan on the Southeast Side of Chicago, including a "Rust Belt To Green Belt" fund to support workforce diversity programs.[39][40][41] He has also advocated for state funding to preserve limestone barriers atPromontory Point and other parts of the Lake Michigan shoreline on theSouth Side of Chicago.[42][43]
Amid the Chicago Bears' efforts to secure state funding to build a new stadium adjacent to Soldier Field or at the former Michael Reese Hospital site, both of which are in the 13th district, Peters has generally expressed skepticism toward providing public funds and argued that the Bears should privately finance any stadium redevelopment.[44][45]
In December 2020, Peters was elected by his colleagues as the Senate Chair of theIllinois Legislative Black Caucus for the 2021-22 term, and served in the role again in the subsequent term.[46][47] In 2025, Peters joined the Senate Democratic Caucus leadership team as Majority Whip.[48]
In the 2019–20 term, he served as the inaugural chair of the Senate's Special Committee on Public Safety.[16][49] In the next term (2021–22), he continued as chair of the Committee on Public Safety and chaired subcommittees on Children & Family, Emergency Management, and redistricting for Chicago South.[50] In the 2023–24 and 2025–26 terms, he has chaired the Committee on Labor.[51][48]
On May 13, 2025, Peters announced his campaign for Congress inIllinois's 2nd congressional district, a seat made vacant afterRobin Kelly announced her run forSenate.[52] Leaders We Deserve endorsed Peters' campaign on May 15, 2025, the first endorsement by the group led byDavid Hogg and Kevin Lata.[53] He was also later endorsed byBernie Sanders andCollege Democrats of America.[54][55]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Robert Peters (Incumbent) | 64,018 | 100.00 | |
| Democratichold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Robert Peters (incumbent) | 22,553 | 100.0 | |
| Total votes | 22,553 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Robert Peters (incumbent) | 79,024 | 100.0 | |
| Total votes | 79,024 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratichold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Robert Peters (incumbent) | 21,646 | 53.26 | |
| Democratic | Ken Thomas | 18,997 | 46.74 | |
| Total votes | 40,643 | 100.0 | ||