First challenger to Ald. Gardiner in 2027 race announces candidacy

by BRIAN NADIG

A challenger to incumbent 45th Ward Alderman James Gardiner has announced their candidacy.

S Gronkiewicz-Doran said that an alderperson’s top responsibility is handling service requests and making sure city services are delivered to residents. “You are the people’s first line of contact with city services and that’s a serious responsibility.”

Gronkiewicz-Doran said that if elected about 80 percent of their time would be spent on service-related issues and about 20 percent on policy-related issues.

Gronkiewicz-Doran, who is 43 years old, is a 10-year resident of Jefferson Park, where they live with their husband Jason and two children who attend their neighborhood public school.

“I’m a transgender person,” Gronkiewicz-Doran said. “When I’m elected, I’ll be the first transgender person in the Council.”

They added, “I’m eager to meet new people (during the campaign) and show them” we share many of the same concerns, including a desire for good city infrastructure. “I’ve experienced basement flooding, (and) we all want to live in safer communities, whether Irving Park or Edgebrook.”

Gronkiewicz-Doran said that they have knocked on doors in every precinct in the 45th Ward in the past as part of campaigns for other candidates, and plan to campaign for alderperson in every neighborhood in the ward this time around. The Northwest Side ward includes all or parts of Jefferson Park, Portage Park, Independence Park, Old Irving Park, Gladstone Park, Norwood Park, Edgebrook and Wildwood.

Gronkiewicz-Doran is a graduate of Northwestern University and the University of Michigan Law School, and has worked for the past 18 years as a corporate attorney. They said that their law experience would give them a good background to deal with issues like zoning, budgeting and legislation.

They are a founding member of Neighbors for Affordable Housing, which pushed for the mixed-income housing development at 5150 N. Northwest Hwy., and the political organization United Northwest Side. They also serve as a community representative on the Schurz High School Local School Council.

As alderperson, Gronkiewicz-Doran said that they would work with local neighborhood and business groups to address some of the struggling business districts in the ward. They added that “creative” solutions are needed because much of today’s retail shopping occurs online and not in brick and mortar stores.

“I think the Northwest Art Trail (on Milwaukee Avenue) is a good first step.” A state grant last year brought several new sculptures to the area.

Gronkiewicz-Doran said that they have “trained hundreds of volunteers to share ‘Know Your Rights’ information and to protect our neighborhoods from ICE violence.”

“People are feeling the effects” of the federal government’s deportation efforts, they added.

The aldermanic elections will be held Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2027. To win, a candidate must get a majority of the votes, otherwise the top two vote-getters will face off in a runoff election in April.

Gardiner, a firefighter, won in 2019 by defeating the incumbent, John Arena. He avoided a runoff by getting a little more than 50 percent of the vote.

In 2023, Gardiner won a runoff election against Megan Mathias, an attorney.

Gardiner has had strong support from trade, police and fire unions, which have made some big donations to his campaigns over the years.

Gardiner also served one term as the 45th Ward Democratic committeeperson, choosing not to run for re-election in 2024.

Other 45th Ward aldermanic candidates are expected to announce this spring.

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