March 28, 2024
Local News

Joliet Democrat announces run for McDermed's state house seat

McDermed won district by wide margin for GOP in 2018

A Democrat from Joliet launched her campaign to flip a state House seat in 2020.

Michelle Fadeley, 36, is running for the Illinois House of Representatives in the 37th District, a seat held by state Rep. Margo McDermed, R-Mokena. McDermed announced in July she would not seek reelection in 2020.

The Joliet resident officially launched her campaign in Frankfort on Saturday.

“I am ready and able to be a strong voice and a hard worker and fighter for this district,” Fadeley said at her announcement.

She added that with a seat open for others to run for, she’s felt the excitement from residents in her party who are “fired up” to flip the district from red to blue.

Fadeley is originally from northwest Indiana and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in marketing, international business and distribution management at Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis.

She works as a global marketing manager for an employee-owned business in the personal and professional industry, according to a news release.

She is also the president of the Illinois Chapter of the National Organization for Women. In 2016, she co-founded ERA Illinois, which successfully pushed for the adoption of the Equal Rights Amendment by the state.

Fadeley added that given her work with NOW and on the ERA, issues of equality are central to her reasons for running for state office. She said this is her first time running for any public office.

“I want to make sure everyone has a level playing field, equal access to opportunity,” she said. “So anything that really is about fairness and justice are things that really are my passion.”

If she wins the Democratic nomination, Fadeley will face either New Lenox Mayor Tim Baldermann or former Joliet Junior College Board member Patty Deiters, who are running for the Republican nomination.

Winning will be a tall task for Fadeley, at least in the Will County portion of the district, as McDermed defeated her Democratic opponent by more than 6,000 votes, or about 17 percentage points last year.

The 37th District includes parts of Joliet, New Lenox, Mokena, Frankfort, Tinley Park, Homer Glen, Lockport and Orland Park.

Alex Ortiz

Alex Ortiz

Alex Ortiz is a reporter for The Herald-News in Joliet. Originally from Romeoville, Ill., he joined The Herald-News in 2017 and mostly covers Will County government, politics, education and more. He earned his bachelor's degree at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a master's degree from Northwestern University.