Illinois General Assembly Candidate Hopes to Make History

Illinois General Assembly Candidate Hopes to Make History

CHICAGO—

Much of the attention in next Tuesday's Illinois primary election focuses on the candidates trying to win the party's presidential nomination¹. But one Chicago community organizer and businessman on the ballot², Harish Ibrahim Patel, hopes to make history in the state.

The Illinois General Assembly’s 40th District on Chicago’s northwest side is the place Paul Sack calls home, even if he doesn't like the way he sees politics working locally.

"Supposedly, we have thousands of politicians who are representing us at the city, the county, the state level and other districts, but really there are only a few guys that are in charge," said Sack.

But a knock on the door to his apartment last year gave him new hope.

"This campaigner told me a little bit about him, and he seemed like he believed in the same things I believed in," he recalled. "And with the state and the mess that it’s in, it seemed like it was the right time for me to get involved with something."

So on March 15, Sack’s top choice for the general assembly is a Muslim American immigrant who has never before held public office.

Patel bills himself as an "independent Democrat," someone who isn’t beholden to the state party.

"My state has not respected or responded to the needs of my community. So in this district, I feel like there is a crisis of democracy," said Patel.

When the India native came to the U.S. in 1999 with his widowed mother, he didn't speak any English. But thanks to public programs, he got an education and a college degree. Now he wants to give back.

"All of this is possible because of the investment the community has made in me.... And now is sort of my time to figure out how to keep those programs so other people coming to this neighborhood, or other people who built this neighborhood, have the same access that I got," Patel said. 

Chicago’s 40th is one of the most ethnically³ diverse in the state. It also is home to three mosques⁴ and a large population of Muslim Americans.

The primary is a two-man race between Patel and incumbent⁵ Jaime Andrade. Whoever wins is likely to win the general election in November because there is currently no Republican challenger.

If Patel wins, he would make history as the first Muslim American immigrant elected to the Illinois General Assembly. Sack hopes to witness that not just as a voter but also as a new member of Patel's campaign. 

"It is great that somebody from another country, somebody who didn’t learn English until he was 14, might be my representative," said Sack.

Winning the election may be the easy part. The General Assembly next year will face many issues, including how to solve the state’s $9 billion annual budget deficit⁶.

1 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

2 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

3 ethnically   

adv.人种上，民族上

参考例句：

• Ethnically, the Yuan Empire comprised most of modern China's ethnic groups. 元朝的民族成分包括现今中国绝大多数民族。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• Russia is ethnically relatively homogeneous. 俄罗斯是个民族成分相对单一的国家。 来自辞典例句

4 mosques   

清真寺； 伊斯兰教寺院，清真寺； 清真寺，伊斯兰教寺院( mosque的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Why make us believe that this tunnel runs underneath the mosques? 为什么要让我们相信这条隧洞是在清真寺下？
• The city's three biggest mosques, long fallen into disrepair, have been renovated. 城里最大的三座清真寺，过去年久失修，现在已经修复。

5 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

6 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。