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John Stroger | |
|---|---|
| President of theCook County Board of Commissioners | |
| In office December 5, 1994 – August 1, 2006 | |
| Preceded by | Richard Phelan |
| Succeeded by | Bobbie L. Steele |
| President of theNational Association of Counties | |
| In office 1992–1993 | |
| Member of the Cook County Board of Commissioners | |
| In office December 1994 – August 1, 2006 | |
| Preceded by | district established |
| Succeeded by | William Beavers |
| Constituency | 4th district |
| In office December 1970 – December 1994 | |
| Succeeded by | constituency abolished |
| Constituency | Chicago |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1929-05-19)May 19, 1929 |
| Died | January 18, 2008(2008-01-18) (aged 78) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Residence | Chicago |
| Occupation | Politician |
John H. Stroger Jr. (May 19, 1929 – January 18, 2008) was an American politician who served from 1994 until 2006 as the firstAfrican-Americanpresident of the Cook County Board of Commissioners (the primaryexecutive officer ofCook County,Illinois). A member of theDemocratic Party. From 1992 to 1993, Stroger also served as a member of theCook County Board of Commissioners (the legislative body of the county) from 1970 until 2006. He additionally served as president of theNational Association of Counties from 1992 through 1993.
Cook County'sStroger Hospital was renamed in his honor.
John Stroger was born May 19, 1929, inHelena, Arkansas. In 1953, he graduated fromXavier University inLouisiana with a B.S. in business administration.[citation needed]
In 1953, Stroger relocated toChicago and became active in theDemocratic Party organization in theSouth Side of Chicago. After only a year, Stroger was appointed as an assistant auditor in theMunicipal Court of Chicago. Stroger then served as personnel director at theCook County Jail from 1955 to 1961. Stroger attendedlaw school at theDePaul University College of Law and graduated in 1965. While earning a law degree he worked for the financial director of the State of Illinois. In 1968, Stroger was elected 8th Wardcommitteeman.[citation needed]
In 1970, Stroger was elected to theCook County Board of Commissioners as one of several members representing Chicago.[citation needed] (at the time, ten members were elected to represent Chicagoat-large, while another seven members were elected to represent suburban Cook County at-large).[1]
In his time on the county board, Stroger spent time as a chair of every major committee (including finance, health, building and zoning). He sponsored legislation on the committee aimed at assisting minority- and female-owned businesses.[citation needed]
In 1980, Stroger unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic nomination inIllinois's 1st congressional district against incumbentBennett Stewart. Both lost toHarold Washington.
Stroger served as president of theNational Association of Counties from 1992 through 1993.[citation needed]
In 1994, Stroger was both electedcounty board president while also winning re-election to the board. He would hold both positions simultaneously until 2006.[citation needed] The 1994 election was the first in which board members were elected to representsingle-member districts,[1] and Stroger was elected to represent the4th district.
As president, ultimately Stroger completed much of what he set out to do when he campaigned in 1994. This included balancing the county's $2.9 billion budget. He also instituted a Juvenile Drug Court, appointed a Commission on Women's Issues and opened a newAIDS treatment and research facility. Stroger served on the Chicago Metropolitan Healthcare Council and the board of South Shore Hospital. The new Cook County Hospital was renamed theJohn H. Stroger Jr. Cook County Hospital after Stroger while he was serving as county board president.[citation needed]
In the 1990s, he was appointed by U.S. PresidentBill Clinton to serve as a member of theU.S. Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations.[citation needed]
In the Democratic primary of the 1994 county board presidential election, Stroger defeated two opponents. Incumbent presidentRichard Phelan had forgone re-election that year in order to unsuccessfully run for Democratic nomination for governor, which left the county president race open. In the general election, Stroger trounced RepublicanAurelia Pucinski. To the surprise of many "machine" watchers, he even beat her in many of Chicago's white ethnic wards.[citation needed]
In the1998 Democratic primary, he defeated a suburban challenger, Cook County commissionerCalvin Sutker.
In 2002, Stroger had no Democratic primary challenger and went on to rout Republican challenger Christopher Bullock by a margin of more than two to one.[citation needed]
Stroger came under increased fire in the later years of his presidency for what his critics call a scandal- and patronage-ridden administration. Stroger supporters counterclaimed that he dedicated his public career to providing quality and affordable health care for the poorer residents of Cook County.[citation needed]
In 2006, Stroger initially sought a fourth term as county president and as a board member. For president, was challenged in the Democratic primary by Cook County CommissionerForrest Claypool. Claypool who ran as a reform candidate, and accused Stroger of presiding over a "bloated" government.[citation needed]
The 2006 election was among the most controversial in the colorful history of Cook County politics.[citation needed] Despite suffering a severestroke just a week before the primary election and falling intobrain death, John Stroger still managed to secure his party's support by a final margin of 53 percent to 47 percent over Claypool. The severity of Stroger's condition was concealed from voters both before the primary election and for three months thereafter, possibly allowing his primary victory and preventing independent opposition to the replacement Democratic candidate in the general election. Although he had overcome health complications in the past, questions still lingered regarding his ability to serve another term as Cook County Board President.[2]
However, after securing the Democratic nomination, Stroger's health became an issue. Stroger had an extensive history of medical complications. He was adiabetic, had battledprostate cancer and underwent a quadruple bypass in 2001. In March 2006, he suffered a severestroke which caused him to suffer partialparalysis. Other neurological complications also occurred. After the stroke, Stroger never again appeared in public.[citation needed] Details about Stroger's condition was released to the public through indirect disclosures. In July 2006,WBBM-TV reported that he was back in the hospital after suffering seizures.[3] Stroger's sonTodd broke a long public silence in December 2007, telling theChicago Sun-Times that his father had been improving until the seizures began. Todd said, "it's [now] just a matter of making sure he's comfortable." He stated that, "he's not been better since [he began experiencing seizures].,"[4]
Due to his health issues, in late-June Stroger withdrew and was replaced by his son Todd as the Democratic nominee for county president[5] and byWilliam Beavers as the Democratic nominee for the 4th district seat on the county board.[citation needed] Many Republicans and some Democrats characterized the nomination of Stroger's son asnepotism, and Claypool even told theChicago Sun-Times that he would not vote in the November general election.[6] In the general election, Todd Stroger faced a challenge in from RepublicanTony Peraica –a vocal critic of the John Stroger administration. Chicago MayorRichard M. Daley blasted Claypool (who was previously Daley's own chief of staff) for refusing to support Todd Stroger, and warned that in his refusal Claypool risked "destroying [his] political career".[7] Todd Stroger received strong support from Mayor Daley and theCook County Democratic Party. While Peraica did very well in suburban Cook County, Todd Stroger's strength among Chicago voters allowed him to win the election with 54% of the total vote.[citation needed]
In addition to ending his re-election campaigns, Stroger also resigned from his county offices effective August 1. He was replaced as president byBobbie L. Steele (appointed as interim president).[8]
John Stroger was a longtime member of St. FelicitasCatholic Church on the South Side of Chicago. He and his wife, Yonnie, were the parents of three children, two of whom survive him: son Todd and daughter Yonnie Lynn. Another son, Hans Eric, died a year after graduating from his father's alma mater, Xavier University of Louisiana. Todd Stroger succeeded John as Cook County Board president.[citation needed]
John Stroger died on January 18, 2008, age 78. He cast an absentee ballot for Barack Obama in the Illinois Democratic Presidential Primary before he died.[9]
| Preceded by | Cook County Board President 1994–2006 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
