Jan Schakowsky is the U.S. Representative for Illinois's 9th congressional district, serving since 1999 as a member of the Democratic Party. She represents many of Chicago's northern suburbs and part of Chicago's North Side. Schakowsky is considered one of the most progressive members of Congress and frequently earns high ratings from liberal groups. She has been outspoken in her opposition to the Iraq War and support for issues like women's rights, healthcare reform, and action on climate change.

1. Jan Schakowsky
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Illinois's 9th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 1999
Preceded by Sidney Yates
Personal details
Born Janice Danoff
May 26, 1944
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Harvey Schakowsky
(1965–1980)
Robert Creamer (1980–present)
Children 2 (with Schakowsky)
Alma mater University of Illinois, Urbana-
Champaign
Religion Reform Judaism
Jan Schakowsky
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Janice Danoff "Jan" Schakowsky /ʃəˈkaʊski/ (born May 26, 1944) is the U.S.
Representative for Illinois's 9th congressional district, serving since 1999. She
is a member of the Democratic Party.
The district includes many of Chicago's northern suburbs, including Arlington
Heights, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Niles, Park Ridge, Rosemont,
Skokie, Wilmette, and Winnetka. It also includes a large portion of Chicago's
North Side bordering Lake Michigan.
Contents
1 Early life, education and career
2 U.S. House of Representatives
2.1 Boycott of Netanyahu's speech to Congress
2.2 Committee assignments
2.3 Party leadership and caucus memberships
3 Political campaigns
3.1 1998
3.2 2006
3.3 2008
3.4 2010
3.5 2012
3.6 2014
4 Electoral history
5 Personal life
6 References
7 External links
Early life, education and career
Schakowsky was born Janice Danoff in 1944 in Chicago, the daughter of Tillie
(née Cosnow) and Irwin Danoff.[1] Her parents were Jewish immigrants, her
father from Lithuania and her mother from Russia.[1][2]
Schakowsky graduated from the University of Illinois with a B.S. in elementary
education where she was a member of Delta Phi Epsilon sorority.[3] She was
Program Director of Illinois Public Action, Illinois' largest public interest group,
from 1976 to 1985. She then moved to the Illinois State Council of Senior
Citizens as executive director for five years until 1990, when she was elected
to the Illinois House of Representatives. She served there until 1998.[4]
U.S. House of Representatives
Schakowsky is among the most Progressive members of the current U.S. Congress.[5] She is a member of the Congressional
Progressive Caucus and frequently earns ratings of between 90 and 100 from liberal and progressive interest groups. In April
2009 Schakowsky pointedly criticized the tax day Tea Party protests, asserting that they were "an effort to mislead the public
about the Obama economic plan that cut taxes for 95 percent of Americans and creates 3.5 million jobs ... It's despicable that
right-wing Republicans would attempt to cheapen a significant, honorable moment of American history with a shameful
political stunt", she stated.[6]
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2. Schakowsky and Jeffrey Schoenberg in
Springfield, Illinois on the day of the
Barack Obama's presidential candidacy
announcement, 10 February 2007
As co-chair of the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, Schakowsky has been known for her support of women's issues
while in Congress.[7]
The Nation endorsed her for vice president in the United States presidential election, 2004, stating that she is 'the truest heir to
Paul Wellstone in the current Congress'.[8] She was, however, not selected as John Kerry's running mate. In response to concerns
about electoral irregularities in the state of Ohio during the 2004 presidential election, Schakowsky was one of 31 members of the
United States House of Representatives who voted not to accept Ohio's electoral votes.[9]
Schakowsky has been outspoken in her opposition to the Iraq War. She was one of the
earliest and most emphatic supporters of U.S. Senator Barack Obama prior to his victory
in the 2004 Illinois Democratic primary election, and actively supported his bid for the
2008 Democratic presidential nomination.[10]
In hearings held by the House Energy and Commerce Subcomittee in July 2006,
Schakowsky expressed concern that a report from the National Academy of Sciences
showing discrepancies among scientists studying global warming might be "used in a way
to discredit the whole notion that our country and the rest of the industrialized and
developing world ought to do anything about global warming".[11]
Schakowsky indicated interest in replacing Barack Obama in the United States Senate.[12]
Before his arrest, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich had reportedly been considering
Schakowsky among at least six candidates to fill the vacancy. Schakowsky was one of the
first figures in Illinois to voice interest in running in a special election to replace
Obama.[13]
In April 2009, she stated her support for a public option in health insurance, arguing that it would put health insurance companies
out of business and lead to single-payer health care, which she supports.[14]
In March 2015, Schakowsky was criticized by the Orthodox Union after saying that Jewish politician Joel Pollak was a "Jewish,
Orthodox, Tea Party Republican" at a J Street event. She later apologized for her comments.[15][16]
Boycott of Netanyahu's speech to Congress
In March 2015, Schakowsky did not attend the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu's speech to congress, because, she
wrote in the Huffington Post, it could scuttle delicate negotiations with Iran: "The prime minister wants the negotiations to end,
and his purpose in speaking to the Congress is to convince us that the president is about to agree to a deal that threatens Israel's
existence. He believes the president is naïve in thinking that he and the P5+1 can achieve any agreement that will stop Iran
from rushing toward a bomb ... What is the alternative to an agreement? Yes, the United States will increase sanctions. But does
anyone doubt that Iran will build a nuclear weapon regardless of sanctions? Then the choices will be ugly: accepting a nuclear-
weaponized Iran or accepting military action (i.e., war with Iran). For me it's obvious that we must give the negotiations a
chance. And, in the meantime, Iran has essentially halted its weapons program under the Joint Plan of Action while the talks are
ongoing."[17]
Committee assignments
Committee on Energy and Commerce
Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade
Subcommittee on Health
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
Party leadership and caucus memberships
Chief Deputy Whip
Steering and Policy Committee
Founding member of the Out-of-Iraq Caucus
Democratic Vice Chair of the bipartisan Women's Caucus
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3. Vice Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus
Political campaigns
1998
Sidney Yates, who had represented the 9th District since 1949 (except for an unsuccessful run for the Senate in 1962), had
announced in 1996 that he wouldn't run for re-election in 1998. Schakowsky easily won the Democratic primary, which all but
assured her of election in the heavily Democratic 9th. She won in November with 75 percent of the vote and has easily won
reelection four times with 70 percent or more of the vote. She is only the third person to represent the district since 1949.
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
Electoral history
Illinois's 9th congressional district: Results 1998–2014[18]
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct
1998 Janice D. Schakowsky 107,878 75% Herbert Sohn 33,448 23%
Michael
D. Ray
Libertarian 3,284 2%
2000 Janice D. Schakowsky 147,002 76% Dennis J. Driscoll 45,344 24%
2002 Janice D. Schakowsky 118,642 70% Nicholas M. Duric 45,307 27%
Stephanie
"Vs. The
Machine"
Sailor
Libertarian 4,887 3%
2004 Janice D. Schakowsky 175,282 76% Kurt J. Eckhardt 56,135 24%
2006 Janice D. Schakowsky 122,852 75% Michael P. Shannon 41,858 25% *
2008 Janice D. Schakowsky 178,829 75% Michael B. Younan 52,841 22%
Morris
Shanfield
Green 7,969 3%
2010 Janice D. Schakowsky 114,969 66% Joel Barry Pollak 54,274 31%
Simon
Ribeiro
Green 4,374 3%
2012 Janice D. Schakowsky 194,869 66% Timothy Wolfe 98,924 34%
2014 Janice D. Schakowsky 141,000 66.1% Susanne Atanus 72,384 33.9%
Phillip
Collins
Independent 66 0.03%
2016 Janice D. Schakowsky 217,306 66.5% Joan McCarthy Lasonde 109,550 33.5%
*Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 2006, write-ins received 3 votes.
Personal life
Schakowsky lives in Evanston, Illinois with her husband Robert Creamer. She has three children.[19]
In 2005, Schakowsky's husband pleaded guilty to failure to collect withholding tax and bank fraud for writing checks with
insufficient funds. All of the money was repaid. Schakowsky was not accused of any wrongdoing.[20] While Schakowsky served
on the organization's board during the time the crimes occurred,[21] and she signed the IRS filings along with her husband,[22] the
U.S. district judge noted that no one suffered "out of pocket losses", and Creamer acted not out of greed but in an effort to keep
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4. his community action group going without cutting programs, though Creamer paid his own $100,000 salary with fraudulently
obtained funds. Creamer served five months in prison.[23]
In 2015, Schakowsky was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame as a Friend of the Community.[24]
References
Stone, K.F. (2010). The Jews of Capitol Hill: A Compendium of Jewish Congressional Members. Scarecrow Press. p. 549.
ISBN 9780810877382. Retrieved September 13, 2015.
1.
"Glenn Beck Slammed By Polish Group For Butchering Schakowsky's Name". The Huffington Post. Retrieved September 13, 2015.2.
"Delta Phi Epsilon International Sorority". DPhiE.org. Retrieved August 23, 2010.3.
Wasniewski, Matthew Andrew (2006). Women in Congress, 1917-2006. Government Printing Office. p. 908.
ISBN 978-0-16-076753-1.
4.
"GovTrack: The Political Spectrum". Govtrack.us. October 17, 2009. Retrieved July 16, 2010.5.
Zimmerman, Eric (April 16, 2009). "Schakowsky: Tea parties 'despicable'" (http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/lawmaker-
news/36720-schakowsky-tea-parties-despicable), TheHill.com; accessed October 22, 2016.
6.
Rettig, Jessica (July 9, 2010). "Jan Schakowsky Leads the Fight for Women". US News and World Report.7.
"The Beat". The Nation. Abu Dhabi. Retrieved July 16, 2010.8.
"FINAL VOTE RESULTS FOR ROLL CALL 7". Clerk.house.gov. Retrieved September 13, 2015.9.
"Obama's Day in Iowa" (http://www.progressive.org/mag_wx010408), by Matthew Rothschild, The Progressive, January 4, 2008.10.
"Science In the House of Pain". TCS Daily. Retrieved July 16, 2010.11.
"Schakowsky among those wanting Senate seat". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press. November 5, 2008. Retrieved November 11,
2008.
12.
Schakowsky throws her hat in (http://jta.org/news/article/2008/12/12/1001495/shakowsky-throws-her-hat-in), Jewish Telegraphic
Agency (JTA), December 12, 2008.
13.
Post-gazette.com, The health-care shuffle (http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09228/990934-373.stm), Jack Kelly, Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette, August 16, 2009
14.
"Congresswoman Apologizes Referring to Political Rival as 'Orthodox Jew' ". The Jewish Daily Forward. March 24, 2015. Retrieved
March 30, 2015.
15.
Yashar, Ari (March 24, 2015). "Democrat Apologizes for 'Orthodox Jew' Slur at J Street Event". Arutz Sheva. Retrieved March 30,
2015.
16.
"An Israel Supporter Who Won't Be at the Prime Minister's Speech", Huffington Post, February 26, 2015.17.
"Election Statistics". Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Archived from the original on July 25, 2007. Retrieved
October 2, 2015.
18.
"Jan Schakowsky: Full biography". Schakosky.house.gov. Retrieved December 16, 2015.19.
"Congresswoman's husband pleads guilty to two felonies". USA Today. Associated Press. August 31, 2005. Retrieved September 26,
2009.
20.
Flannery, Mike (April 5, 2006). "Congresswoman's Husband Gets Jail Time For Bank Fraud". WBBM TV.21.
Newbart, Dave (March 12, 2004). "Schakowsky's husband indicted in bank fraud". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved September 26,
2009.
22.
Korecki, Natasha (April 6, 2006). "Schakowsky's husband given 5 months for check-kiting: Prosecutors sought 3 years for bank fraud
that aided nonprofit". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved September 26, 2009.
23.
"Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame". Glhalloffame.org. Retrieved 2016-10-20.24.
External links
Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (http://schakowsky.house.gov/) official U.S. House website
Jan Schakowsky for Congress (http://www.janschakowsky.org/)
Jan Schakowsky (https://www.dmoz.org/Regional/North_America/United_States/Illinois/Government/Federal
/US_House_of_Representatives/Jan_Schakowsky_%5BD-9%5D) at DMOZ
Biography (http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=s001145) at the Biographical Directory of the United
States Congress
Profile (https://www.votesmart.org/candidate/6387) at Project Vote Smart
Financial information (federal office) (http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommitteeDetail.do?&tabIndex=1&
candidateCommitteeId=H8IL09067) at the Federal Election Commission
Legislation sponsored (https://www.congress.gov/member/janice-schakowsky/1588) at The Library of Congress
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5. United States House of Representatives
Preceded by
Sidney Yates
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Illinois's 9th congressional district
1999–present
Incumbent
Preceded by
Lois Capps
Chair of the Congressional Women's Caucus
2009–2011
Succeeded by
Cynthia Lummis
United States order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by
in the 115th Congress with Paul
Ryan as Speaker,
Grace Napolitano
D-California
United States Representatives by seniority
81st
Succeeded by
Mike Simpson
R-Idaho
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jan_Schakowsky&oldid=768238408"
Categories: 1944 births American people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent American people of Russian-Jewish descent
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives
Female members of the United States House of Representatives Illinois Democrats
Jewish members of the United States House of Representatives Living people
Members of the Illinois House of Representatives Members of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois
People from Evanston, Illinois Politicians from Chicago Politicians from Cook County, Illinois
Women state legislators in Illinois 21st-century American politicians 21st-century women politicians
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