| Bill Conway | |
| Office: | Member of the Chicago City Council from the 34th ward |
| Term Start: | May 15, 2023 |
| Predecessor: | Carrie Austin |
| Birth Name: | William Elias Conway III |
| Birth Date: | 8 May 1978 |
| Birth Place: | Chicago, Illinois, U.S |
| Party: | Democratic |
| Relatives: | William E. Conway Jr. (father) |
| Education: | University of Pennsylvania (BS) Georgetown University (JD) University of Chicago (MBA) |
| Branch: | United States Navy |
William Elias "Bill" Conway III[1] (born May 8, 1978)[2] is an American politician, attorney, businessman, and military veteran. He is the alderman for the 34th ward in the Chicago City Council, having won the 2023 election for the office.[3] [4]
Conway previously served as an assistant state's attorney for Cook County, Illinois and currently serves as adjunct professor at DePaul University. He unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic Party's primary for Cook County state’s attorney in 2020.
William Conway was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois,[2] the son of Joanne Boosalis Conway and William E. Conway Jr., an American billionaire businessman and philanthropist.[1] He attended the Latin School of Chicago,[5] a private school in the Gold Coast neighborhood on the Near North Side.[1] Conway entered The Wharton School, where he earned a bachelor's degree in Accounting in 2000.[6] He received a Juris Doctor degree from Georgetown University Law Center in 2006.[6] [7] Conway then graduated from the University of Chicago with an MBA degree in 2013.[6] [7] [8]
From 2006 to 2012, Conway served as Assistant State's Attorney for Cook County State's Attorney's Officer under Richard A. Devine and Anita Alvarez,[9] working on embezzlement cases in the public corruption office.[8] [10] The DePaulia notes that during his tenure "Conway prosecuted high level corruption and financial crime cases, including the police officers who embezzled one million dollars from the Chicago Sergeants Union in 2012."[11] [12]
Conway served for 5 years as Military Intelligence Officer in the United States Navy and Air Force Central Command and Senior Intelligence Director in the U.S. European Command in 2017-2021.[8] [7] [13] During his military career, he received an Air Force Commendation Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.[7] Conway continues to serve in the U.S. Navy at the rank of Lieutenant Commander.[7]
In July 2013, he joined the Investment Banking/ Diversified Industries Division of J.P. Morgan in Chicago as an investment banker managing portfolios of large manufacturers such as Ford Motor Company and General Motors. Conway left the company in 2016.
Since 2016, Conway has been serving as adjunct professor at the Department of Finance & Real Estate of DePaul University, teaching various courses on Finance and Real Estate.[6] He also works as a venture partner and manager on several investments funds including Hyde Park Angels, Boos Brothers Investments, Luxe Bloom, LLC., Raputs, LLC. and Green Street Renewables, LLC.[6] [14]
In 2020, Conway ran for the Cook County State's Attorney office in Illinois, where he took 2nd place with 31% of the vote in the Democratic primary but lost to the incumbent Kim Foxx (50.19% of the vote) on March 17, 2020.[15] Kim Foxx ultimately won the general election by defeating Republican Pat O'Brien. Various sources note that Conway's campaign was mostly sponsored by his father William E. Conway Jr with over $10 million,[16] while Kim Foxx's campaign was supported large donations from Michael Sacks, Fred Eychaner, SEIU, Chicago Federation of Labor, EMILY's List, and George Soros.[17] [18] According to The Chicago Reporter, "the Cook County state’s attorney’s race has already become the most expensive in Cook County history, with candidates raising almost $16 million combined, which is more than double that of the 2016 primary."[19]
In 2023, Conway was elected as an alderman on the Chicago City Council. During his election campaign, Conway addressed the crime situation in Chicago and pledged to allocate additional funds for security, suggesting an increase in the number of police officers and equipment to address crime in the city. Conway won the election with approximately 2/3 of the vote.[20] Candidate Jim Ascot, who conceded the race, received about 33% of the votes[21] [22] Some sources have reported that Conway may be considering a run in the upcoming Chicago mayoral election.[23] [24]
He is married to Brittany Conway. They have a daughter, Bella.[25]