Illinois's 7th House of Representatives district explained

State:	Illinois
District:	7
Chamber:	House of Representatives
Representative:	Emanuel "Chris" Welch
Party:	Democratic
Residence:	Hillside
Incumbentsince:	2013
Percent White:	30.5
Percent Black:	41.4
Percent Hispanic:	21.9
Percent Asian:	3.1
Percent Native American:	0.1
Percent Pacific Islander:	0.0
Percent Multiracial:	2.5
Percent Other Race:	0.4
Population:	109,744
Population Year:	2020
Created:	1983–present 1849–1873, 1957–1973
Notes:	https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?t=Hispanic%20or%20Latino%3APopulation%20Total&g=0400000US17%246200000&y=2020&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2

Illinois's 7th House of Representatives district is a Representative district within the Illinois House of Representatives located in Cook County, Illinois and DuPage County, Illinois. It has been represented by Democratic Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch since January 9, 2013. Democrat Cory Foster was the previous incumbent for a couple of months.

Located in the Chicago metropolitan area, the district covers all or parts of Bellwood, Berkeley, Broadview, Elmhurst, Forest Park, Hillside, Hinsdale, La Grange Park, Maywood, Melrose Park, Northlake, Oak Brook, River Forest, Westchester, and Western Springs.

Prominent representatives

Representative	Notes
John Cullerton	Elected President of the Illinois Senate (2009 – 2020)
Emanuel Chris Welch	Elected the 70th Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives (2021 – present)

List of representatives

1849 – 1873

Representative^[1]	Party	Years	General Assembly (GA)	Electoral History	Counties Represented
7th Representative district established with 1848 Illinois Constitution.
Samuel Snowden Hayes		Democratic^[2]	January 1, 1849 – January 6, 1851	16th	Elected in 1848 Was not re-elected in 1850.	White
Samuel H. Martin	Unknown	January 6, 1851 – January 3, 1853	17th	Elected in 1850 Was not re-elected in 1852.
Daniel L. Jones	Democratic^[3] ^[4]	January 3, 1853 – January 1, 1855	18th	Elected in 1852 Was not re-elected in 1854.
P. E. Hosmer	January 1, 1855 – January 5, 1857	19th	Elected in 1854 Was not re-elected in 1856.	Perry Washington
Hawkins S. Osborn	Unknown	January 5, 1857 – January 3, 1859	20th		Elected in 1856 Was not re-elected in 1858.
John D. Wood		Democratic^[5]	January 3, 1859 – January 7, 1861		21st	Elected in 1858 Was not re-elected in 1860.
Orson Kellogg	Unknown	January 7, 1861 – January 5, 1863	22nd		Elected in 1860 Was not re-elected in 1862.
James R. Ford		January 5, 1863 – January 2, 1865	23rd	Elected in 1862 Was not re-elected in 1864.	Clinton Washington
Isaac Miller		Unionist^[6]	January 2, 1865 – January 7, 1867	24th		Elected in 1864 Was not re-elected in 1866.
Daniel Hay	Unknown	January 7, 1867 – January 4, 1869	25th	Elected in 1866 Was not re-elected in 1868.
George Gundlach		Republican^[7]	January 4, 1869 – January 4, 1871	26th		Elected in 1868 Was not re-elected in 1870.
Addison Reese, Jr.		Democratic^[8]	January 4, 1871 – January 8, 1873	27th	Elected in 1870 Was not re-elected in 1872.	Williamson
District abolished with 1872 Reapportionment as 3 Representatives were now elected cumulatively from Legislative districts.

1957 – 1973

Representative	Party	Party Control	Years	General Assembly (GA)	Electoral History	Counties Represented
District re-established in 1957.
Frances L. Dawson	Republican	2 Republicans 1 Democrat	January 9, 1957 – January 6, 1965	70th 71st 72nd 73rd	Elected in 1956 Re-elected in 1958 Re-elected in 1960 Re-elected in 1962 Ran in the At-large district election and won re-election in 1964.	Cook
Marion E. Burks	January 9, 1957 – January 9, 1963	70th 71st 72nd	Elected in 1956 Re-elected in 1958 Re-elected in 1960 Ran for Republican nomination in Illinois's 13th congressional district in 1962 and lost.
Jeanne Hurley Simon	Democratic	January 9, 1957 – January 4, 1961	70th 71st	Elected in 1956 Re-elected in 1958 Retired.
Robert Marks	January 4, 1961 – January 6, 1965	72nd 73rd	Elected in 1960 Re-elected in 1962 Retired.
Alan R. Johnston		Republican	January 9, 1963 – January 6, 1965	73rd	Elected in 1962 Ran in the At-large district election and won re-election in 1964.
The district was temporarily abolished from 1965 to 1967 due to the Redistricting Commission in 1963 failing to reach an agreement. An at-large election was held electing 177 Representatives from across the state.
Joseph G. Sevcik	Republican	2 Republicans 1 Democrat	January 4, 1967 – January 10, 1973	75th 76th 77th	Elected in 1966 Re-elected in 1968 Re-elected in 1970 Redistricted to the 7th Legislative District and re-elected in 1972.	Cook
Henry Klosak
Gerald W. Shea		Democratic
District abolished with 1971 Reapportionment as Representatives were once again elected from Legislative districts.

1983 – Present

Representative	Party	Years	General Assembly (GA)	Electoral History	Counties Represented
District re-established with representatives now elected one per district with the passage of the Cutback Amendment
John Cullerton	Democratic	January 12, 1983 – January 31, 1991	83rd 84th 85th 86th	Redistricted from 12th Legislative district and re-elected in 1982 Re-elected in 1984 Re-elected in 1986 Re-elected in 1988 Re-elected in 1990 Appointed to the 6th Legislative district in 1991.	Cook
87th
	Vacant		January 31, 1991 – 1991
	Ann Stepan	Democratic	1991 – January 13, 1993	Appointed in 1991 Retired.
Eugene Moore	January 13, 1993 – January 1999	88th 89th 90th	Elected in 1992 Re-elected in 1994 Re-elected in 1996 Re-elected in 1998 Appointed Cook County Recorder of Deeds in January 1999.
		91st
Vacant			January 1999 – January 29, 1999
Wanda Sharp	Democratic		January 29, 1999 – January 10, 2001	Appointed in 1999 Lost renomination in 2000.
Karen Yarbrough	January 10, 2001 – December 2012	92nd 93rd 94th 95th 96th	Elected in 2000 Re-elected in 2002 Re-elected in 2004 Re-elected in 2006 Re-elected in 2008 Re-elected in 2010 Elected Cook County Recorder of Deeds in 2012 and resigned in December.
97th
	Vacant		December 2012 – December 2012
	Cory Foster	Democratic	December 2012 – January 9, 2013	Appointed in 2012 for the remainder of Yarbrough's term.
Emanuel Chris Welch	January 9, 2013 – present	98th 99th 100th 101st 102nd 103rd	Elected in 2012 Re-elected in 2014 Re-elected in 2016 Re-elected in 2018 Re-elected in 2020 Re-elected in 2022

Historic District Boundaries

Years	County	Municipalities/Townships	Notes
2023 – present	Cook DuPage	Bellwood, Berkeley, Broadview, Elmhurst, Forest Park, Hillside, Hinsdale, La Grange Park, Maywood, Melrose Park, Northlake, Oak Brook, River Forest, Westchester, Western Springs	^[9]
2013 – 2023		Bellwood, Berkeley, Broadview, Forest Park, Hillside, La Grange Park, Maywood, Melrose Park, Northlake, Oak Brook, River Forest, Westchester, Western Springs	^[10]
2003 – 2013	Cook	Chicago	^[11]
1993 – 2003		Chicago	^[12]
1983 – 1993		Chicago	^[13]
1967 – 1973		Parts of Berwyn Township, Cicero Township, parts of Lyons Township, parts of Proviso Township, Riverside Township, and parts of Stickney Township	^[14]
1957 – 1965		Evanston Township, New Trier Township, and parts of Northfield Township	^[15]
1871 – 1873	Williamson	Attila, Bainbridge, Blainesville, Bolton, Carterville, Crab Orchard, Fredonia, Grainville, Jeffersonville, Loeust Grove, Marion, Sarahsville, Sugar Creek, Sulphur Spring,	^[16] ^[17] ^[18]
1863 – 1871	Clinton Washington	Ashley, Aviston, Breese, Carlyle, Clement, Clifton, Collins, Coloma, Covington, Elkhorn, Glass, Grants Point, Hoyleton, Jamestown, Keyesport, Looking Glass, Nashville, Okaw (Okawville), Pleasant Grove, Richview, Sassafras Hill, Trenton, Venedy, Wertenberg	^[19] ^[20] ^[21]
1855 – 1863	Perry Washington	9 Mile Prairie, Appleton, Ashley, Centralia, Colonia, Covington, Denmark, Du Quoin, Elkhorn, Galum, Grand Cote, Grand Point, Mt. Hawkins, Nashville, Okaw (Okawville), Old Du Quoin, Pinckneyville, Prairie, Richview, St. Johns, Sassafras Hill, Tamaroa, Venedy	^[22] ^[23] ^[24]
1849 – 1855	White	Bon Pas, Burnt Prairie, Carmi, Concord, Duncanton, Emma, Enfield, Grayville, Phillipstown, Tecumseh	^[25] ^[26] ^[27] ^[28]

Electoral history

1960 – 1956

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2021-2022 ILLINOIS BLUE BOOK. 2021-11-04. Office of the Illinois Secretary of State. Illinois Secretary of State.
2. Web site: List of members composing the Illinois state legislature, assembled at the Capitol in Springfield, Monday, January 1st, 1849. 2021-08-25. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State.
3. Web site: List of the members composing the eighteenth General Assembly of the State of Illinois, convened in extra session, February 9, 1854. 2021-08-25. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State.
4. Web site: List of the members composing the nineteenth General Assembly of the State of Illinois. 2021-08-25. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State.
5. Web site: List of the members and officers, twenty-first General Assembly of the State of Illinois, Springfield, January 3, 1859. 2021-08-25. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State.
6. Web site: Manual for the use of the twenty-fourth General Assembly of the State of Illinois. Prepared and compiled pursuant to a resolution of the House of Representatives, adopted Jan. 3, 1865. 2021-08-25. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. 43.
7. Web site: Manual of the twenty-sixth General Assembly of the State of Illinois. 2021-08-25. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. 54.
8. Web site: Rummel's Illinois hand-book and legislative manual for 1871. 2021-08-25. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. 185.
9. Web site: STATE LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP (2022): Illinois - State House District 7 . 2022-10-12 . 2023-01-24 . United States Census Bureau.
10. Web site: STATE LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: State House District 7 (Illinois). United States Census Bureau. May 18, 2013. August 25, 2021.
11. Web site: Illinois blue book, 2003-2004. 2021-04-22. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. 66.
12. Web site: Illinois blue book, 1993-1994. 2021-04-22. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. 57.
13. Web site: Illinois blue book, 1983-1984. 2021-04-22. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. 63.
14. Web site: Illinois blue book, 1967-1968. 2021-04-22. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. 319.
15. Web site: Illinois blue book, 1955-1956. 2021-04-22. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. 333.
16. Web site: Illinois blue book, 1903-1904. 2021-04-14. Illinois Digital Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. 281–286.
17. Web site: Campbell's topographical & sectional map of Jefferson, Franklin and Williamson counties. (Drawn by R.A. Campbell and H.F. Walling). Entered ... 1869 by R.A. Campbell ... Pennsylvania. (1870). 2021-09-27. David Rumsey Map Collection. Campbell. R.A.. R.A. Campbell. Walling. H.F.. Published by S.A. Mitchell, Jr.. 1870. Chicago. Philadelphia. Mitchell. Samuel Augustus.
18. Web site: Maps showing the Indiana & Illinois Central Railway.. 2021-09-27. David Rumsey Map Collection. G.W. & C.B. Colton & Co.. G.W. & C.B. Colton. 1872. New York.
19. Web site: Colton's Illinois. (inset) Vicinity of Chicago. Published By J. H. Colton. No. 172 William St. New York.. 2021-09-27. David Rumsey Map Collection. Colton. G.W.. J.H. Colton. Fisher. Richard Swainson. 1865. New York.
20. Web site: Illinois. Entered ... 1864 ... New York.. 2021-09-27. David Rumsey Map Collection. Schonberg & Co.. Schonberg & Co.. Bancroft. H.H.. 1867. New York. San Francisco. Goodspeed & Co..
21. Web site: County map of the state of Illinois. (with) Vicinity of Springfield. Entered ... 1870 by S. Augustus Mitchell, Jr. ... Pennsylvania.. 2021-09-27. David Rumsey Map Collection. Mitchell. Samuel Augustus. R.A. Campbell. Campbell. R.A.. Published by: S.A. Mitchell, Jr.. 1870. Philadelphia. Walling. H.F..
22. Web site: Illinois. (with) Vicinity Of Chicago. Published By J.H. Colton & Co. No. 172 William St. New York. Entered ... 1855 by J.H. Colton & Co. ... New York. No. 44.. 2021-09-27. David Rumsey Map Collection. Colton. G.W.. J.H. Colton. 1856. New York.
23. Web site: Johnson's Illinois By Johnson & Browning. No. 40.. 2021-09-27. David Rumsey Map Collection. Johnson. A.J.. Johnson and Browning. 1860. New York.
24. Web site: Johnson's Illinois Published By Johnson and Ward.. 2021-09-27. David Rumsey Map Collection. Johnson. A.J.. Johnson and Ward. Colton. J.H.. 1864. New York. McLellan & Bros.. D..
25. Web site: Illinois. (Written and engraved by Jos. Perkins. 1845). 1845-01-01. 2021-09-07. David Rumsey Map Collection. Tanner. Henry S.. Tanner's Geographical Establishment. New York.
26. Web site: A New Map of Illinois with its Proposed Canals, Roads & Distances from Place to Place along the Stage & Steam Boat Routes. By H.S. Tanner. Entered according to Act of Congress in the 1841 by H.S. Tanner - in the Clerk's Office of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 31.. 2021-09-07. David Rumsey Map Collection. Frederick. Bourquin. Samuel Augustus Mitchell. Mitchell. Samuel. 1848. Philadelphia. Tanners. Henry S..
27. Web site: New sectional map of the state of Illinois.. 2021-09-07. David Rumsey Map Collection. Colton. J. H.. J. H. Colton & Co.. Mathewson. A. J.. 1852. New York. Messinger. John. Peck. J. M..
28. Web site: Illinois. No. 44. Published by J.H. Colton & Co., No 172 William St., New York. Entered according to the Act of Congress in the year 1855 by J.H. Colton & Co. in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern District of New York.. 2021-09-07. David Rumsey Map Collection. Colton. G. W.. J. H. Colton. 1857. New York.