IL State Senate candidates Van Pelt and Fioretti to faceoff at BCO meeting

Patricia Van Pelt, the current Illinois State Senator for the 5th District, and Bob Fioretti, former mayoral candidate and former 2nd Ward Alderman will face off at the Bucktown Community Organization's (BCO) Candidate Forum in the Bucktown-Wicker Park Library, 1701 N. Milwaukee Ave., Mon., Feb. 22, from 5:30 until 7 p.m. 

They will face each other in the Democratic primary on Mar. 15. The Republicans have no one slated. Thus, whoever wins the Democratic ticket, during the primary, will be the Illinois State Senator for the 5th District. It's a job that pays an annual salary of $67,836 plus a $111 per day during a session. It covers parts of  many diverse neighborhoods. 

Patricia Van Pelt
Van Pelt like Fioretti ran as a candidate for Chicago's Mayor. She ran in 2011. The field included Carol Moseley Braun, Gery Chico, Danny Davis, Miguel del Valle, Rahm Emanuel and William "Dock" Walls III.  

Her next attempt was to garner the appointment to the Illinois State Senate 5th District seat after Rickey Hendon, who served in the office since 1993 abruptly resigned in February 2011. 

In March 2011 Annazette Collins was nominated by Secretary of State Jesse White who also served as the 27th Ward Committeeman. Then in the March 2012 election campaign for the seat, Collins became embroiled in a residency issue. 

At that point Van Pelt was supported by White. She told the Chicago Journal that she was not surprised. 

“We deserve good representation that is not distracted,” said Van Pelt, who unsuccessfully vied to replace Hendon as well before Collins eventually nabbed the seat. “We deserve representation where people actually live in this district, not live somewhere else. It is clear that her heart and mind has not been here.” [Referring to Collins.]

Furthermore, Fioretti, who was then the 2nd Ward Alderman also supported her saying, “Her integrity is beyond reproach….She will roll her sleeves up and research the issues and make the right decisions for all the people. She won’t be beholden to the special interests that control Springfield right now.” 

However, in December 2015, Better Government Association’s Brett Chase wrote a story in the Chicago Sun-Times, reporting that Van Pelt had been recruiting people into a home-based sales organization for the last year-and-a-half. Called 5Linx, other politicians who were part of the company included Jesse White as well as Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown. 

A couple of You Tube videos confirm her involvement as she talks about her rapid rise in the company which has given her financial stability for her home and her BMW and Bentley cars. 

The one is from February 2015 when she became a Platinum Senior Vice President of 5Linx. The other was posted in July 2015 and on it she talks about her 5Linx Platinum lifestyle. 

Chase's report says, however, that in June last year she left 5Linx and joined a similar company called Ariix which contributed $10,800 to her political campaign in September. 

While it is true that being a State Senator is a part-time job, the ethics of using that position while recruiting people to one's other business is being questioned. 

According to the Illinois government site, Van Pelt was born Nov. 12, 1957, in Chicago. She holds a Bachelor's degree from Roosevelt University (1996); Master's degree from Spertus Institute (1996); and a Doctorate, Capella University (2009). She is also a CPA. The mother of one, she is listed as being the CEO of TARGET Area Development Corp. 

According to other reports, Van Pelt was a community activist who founded Target Area Development Corp., a social justice organization that has worked to reform criminal justice, education, public safety and job development.  

Robert "Bob" Fioretti
Firoetti who, like Van Pelt, is a Chicagoan. He served as the 2nd Ward Alderman starting in 2007 and was re-elected in 2011, also serving as the 2nd Ward Democratic Committeeman. 

Under the redistricting, the new 2nd Ward and the "old" 2nd Ward did not share one blade of grass. In fact, Fioretti no longer lived in his Ward, which had covered neighborhoods from Bronzeville, East Garfield Park, Illinois Medical District, Little Italy, the Loop, Near West Side, Prairie District, South Loop, University Village to the West Loop. 

Fioretti became a mayoral candidate in 2014 and came in fourth in the election. 

Born in 1953, Fioretti earned his law degree from Northern Illinois University College of Law where he continues on the adjunct faculty. While an alderman, he spent little time in his law practice. 

According to Wikipedia, he has practiced law in the public sector where he served as the Senior Supervising Attorney of the General Litigation Division for the Corporation Counsel of the City of Chicago. In his duration with the Corporation Counsel, Fioretti was involved in over 500 civil-rights cases, and his personal trial experiences have led to over 100 state and federal verdicts and appellate court decisions.

According to his website, he believes that the following actions need to be covered as Senator: 

• Work to reform the Illinois income tax formula
• Fight for increased state funding for schools
• Fight to freeze property taxes
• Expand Chicago's economy and job creation
• Work to expand funding for law enforcement and mental health programs 

Constituents
Bring your questions to Monday's event.