Two Democrats, 1 Republican compete to replace state Rep. Kelly Burke

Rick Ryan, of Evergreen Park, and Sonia Khalil, of Palos Hills, are competing in the March 19 Primary while Christine McGovern Shanahan, of Oak Lawn, is unopposed on the Republican side.

With incumbent state Rep. Kelly Burke not seeking another term, two Democrats are squaring off for their party’s nomination in the 36th House District.

Rick Ryan, of Evergreen Park, and Sonia Khalil, of Palos Hills, are competing in the March 19 Primary while Christine McGovern Shanahan, of Oak Lawn, is unopposed on the Republican side.

Burke, also mayor of Evergreen Park, has been representative since January 2011.

Shanahan ran unsuccessfully as a Republican in 2022 in her bid to unseat state Sen. Bill Cunningham, D-Chicago, in the 18th state Senate race.

Ryan, 57, is an attorney in Oak Lawn and has the backing of Burke along with state Sen. Bill Cunningham, D-Chicago,19th Ward Ald. Matt O’Shea and organized labor including the Chicago Federation of Labor, Local 150 of the International Union of Operating Engineers, the Chicago Fire Fighters Union and the AFL-CIO.

Ryan, meeting voters Monday at an early voting site in Oak Lawn, said public safety is a concern he hears from voters, primarily in the district’s Chicago communities and suburbs such as Evergreen Park and Oak Lawn.

“They want to see more of a police presence in their communities, and they feel the Cook County state’s attorney’s office isn’t prosecuting enough crimes,” said Ryan, whose law practice is focused on personal injury cases. “The police are getting frustrated and the citizens are getting frustrated.”

Ryan said he spent several years coaching youth baseball, basketball and football in Evergreen Park, and has always been an active volunteer in the community.

“I think there is an opportunity for me to contribute more to my community,” he said of the state representative race.

Ryan said property taxes remain a concern for many voters, and more state funding for education could go a long way toward alleviating high tax bills.

“The state itself has to take on some of that burden,” he said. “We have got to start doing better as a state in funding that.”

Ryan and his wife, Maureen, have three adult children.

Khalil, 34, said property taxes are a common concern for voters, along with drug prescription prices and the overall high cost of health care.

“No matter where I go it’s an issue everyone talks about,” she said of property taxes.

She also said more state funding for education, and more equitable funding for schools, would be priorities as a way to bring down high property taxes.

Khalil said she also would seek to combat high prescription drug prices and make health care more affordable.

Khalil said she ran unsuccessfully some years back for alderman in Palos Hills, and became interested in elected office when she was young. Her father, Samir Khalil, founded the Arab American Democratic Club, and he got her involved in the  political process.

The organization is a coalition of Arab Americans that works to improve relations with elected officials and support candidates for office.

“He always stuck up for the person who didn’t have a voice,” she said of her dad, who remains involved in the organization.

Khalil said her background includes work in human resources for Cook County, and as an administrative services coordinator for Markham, but she took a leave from her job to focus on her campaign.

She has received endorsements from the Illinois Service Employees International Union and the Illinois Nurses’ Association.

At the end of 2023, Khalil showed receipts and other contributions during the final three months of the year of $62,000 and had $62,700 available to spend at the end of the year, according to campaign finance reports.

Since then, campaign filings show more than $159,000 in contributions received by her campaign.

During the final quarter of last year, Ryan’s campaign took in contributions of $123,000 and had about $85,500 available to spend at the end of the year, according to a campaign finance filing.

During January and February, he received donations and other contributions, largely from organized labor, of more than $468,000, according to campaign filings with the Illinois State Board of Elections.

The 36th House district includes all or portions of Beverly, Mount Greenwood and Wrightwood in Chicago as well as Chicago Ridge, Evergreen Park, Oak Lawn, Palos Heights, Palos Hills and Worth.