| Don Harmon | |
|---|---|
| Illinois State Senator Don Harmon | |
| Member of the Illinois Senate from the 39th district |
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2003 |
|
| Preceded by | Philip J. Rock |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 26, 1966 Oak Park, Illinois |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Teresa |
| Profession | Attorney |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Don Harmon is a Democratic member of the Illinois Senate, representing the 39th District since 2003. His district includes the Chicago neighborhood of Austin and the suburbs of Oak Park, Elmwood Park, Berkeley, Bensenville, Franklin Park, Melrose Park, Northlake, River Forest, River Grove, Rosemont, Schiller Park, and Stone Park. Senator Harmon serves as Vice-Chair of the Judiciary Committee, and on the Assignments, Environment, Executive, Executive Appointments, Redistricting, and Telecommunications and Technology Committees. In January 2009, incoming Senate President John Cullerton appointed Harmon Assistant Majority Leader.
Harmon was born and raised in Oak Park where he attended St. Giles Grade School. He graduated from St. Ignatius High School on Chicago's west side, Knox College in Galesburg, Illiniois, and the University of Chicago (law degree and MBA). After law school, Harmon served in Springfield on the House legal staff.
In August 2000, Don Harmon was nominated by members of the Democratic Party of Oak Park to fulfill the term of former Illinois Senate President Phil Rock as Oak Park Democratic Committeeman. He was then elected to his first full term as Committeeman in 2002 and has since been re-elected in 2006 and 2010. In 2010, Harmon was elected to serve as the Suburban Vice-Chair of the Democratic Party of Cook County.
First elected in the fall of 2002, Harmon has promoted a progressive agenda in the Illinois Senate. During his first term he served alongside then-State Senator and now U.S. President Barack Obama. Harmon sponsored legislation creating the Illinois Early Learning Council to create policy recommendations regarding the education of children from birth to age five. The result of that effort was the Pre-School for All program implemented throughout the state. He also authored the Illinois Civil Rights Act of 2003 to prohibit discriminatory policies by state, county or local governments, and to preserve for Illinois citizens civil rights protections eroded by recent U.S. Supreme Court Decisions.
Additionally he helped pass legislation to eliminate two obsolete taxing districts-the Cook County Tuberculosis Sanitarium District and the Cicero Township Trustee of Schools saving taxpayers millions of dollars.