By Miriam Y. Cintron

In office since 2002, Kenneth Dunkin has focused on reducing domestic violence, sustaining and creating new businesses, preventing identity theft, and providing affordable child care and health care for the residents of the 5th district, which encompasses Washington Park, the Gold Coast, Old Town, Bronzeville, the Near South, the South Loop, and Chinatown.

He sponsored House Bill 4634, which passed the House and would create a program for prostate cancer diagnostic evaluation and treatment for men. Dunkin also supported gun control laws that would limit individuals to one handgun purchase per month and stiffen the penalties for parents who do not use gun locks for firearms in their homes when minors are present.

He also increased funding for energy-assistance programs for the poor and supported property tax exemptions.

To revive the state’s film industry, Dunkin supported extending the Film Production Services Tax Credit and ensured that the film productions employed state residents. The former social worker believes any tax increases aimed at balancing Illinois’ budget must be accompanied by reforms such as cuts to wasteful spending and pension reform. Dunkin also supports creating a slight sales tax on services.

If elected, Dunkin said his priority would be creating jobs. “People want to work,” he said, adding that stable employment helps provide stability to communities. He would also work to get funding for schools, after-school programs and job training programs. He noted that education funding is especially important as many high school students read below their level and access to education helps broaden students employment opportunities, thereby reducing poverty.

He added that he would ensure that federal stimulus dollars get to the community to fund and retain vital services such as homemaker services for disabled children, adults and seniors.

Dunkin serves on the Tourism and Conventions, Appropriations Higher Education, Financial Institutions, Insurance, and International Trade and Commerce Committees.

Challenger Gwendolyn Drake, an attorney with the firm Querry & Harrow, has served as an investigator with the U.S. Department of Labor, assistant counsel to the Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, and prosecuting attorney in the Child Support Enforcement Division of the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.

If elected, Drake would advocate for economic development “especially in the south end of the district, which has been ravaged by foreclosures,” she said. To accomplish that, Drake said she would support a property tax freeze that would provide homeowners relief from rising taxes even as home values are dropping. Drake also would work to secure funding for infrastructure improvement projects that will promote business development and job growth.

A vibrant economy also depends on a dependable mass transit system, according to Drake, who added that she would make sure that funds for the Chicago Transit Authority are appropriated as they should be.

In regard to education, Drake would invest in projects to ease overcrowding and college preparation. She also proposed fixing the currently used funding formulas that allow suburban schools to receive more funding than poorer urban schools.

As a representative of the district, Drake said she would be accessible to residents as well as increase the capital funding brought into the district to create job training programs, senior services, and youth programs designed to keep children and teenagers off the streets.

Attorney David Schroeder has worked on campaigns for Harold Washington, Barack Obama, and candidates for the Illinois General Assembly and U.S. Senate. If elected, Schroeder would make job creation a top priority.

He said a public works bill passed early last year would have created jobs, but failure in implementing the legislation meant projects that could have occurred in the 2009 construction season did not happen. Also, the bill contained too many earmarks for private businesses, he said.

Schroeder wants to raise funding for schools to allow smaller class sizes, more teacher training, and enough textbooks and equipment. Unlike the incumbent, he would have voted to roll back the 1% sales tax in Chicago and increase penalties for gun running. Schroeder, if elected, would implement ethics reform allowing voters to recall corrupt elected officials, establishing transparency across government, requiring ethics training for state employees, and reducing patronage positions in Illinois government.