Cook County Clerk

{{Infobox Political post

| post = Cook County Clerk

| insignia =

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| incumbent = Monica Gordon

| incumbentsince = December 2024

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| termlength = 4 years

| formation = March 1831 (appointed position)
August 1837 (elected position)

| succession =

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The Cook County Clerk is the clerk of county government in Cook County, Illinois.

History

The office of Cook County Clerk was established in 1831, the year that Cook County, Illinois was created. For the first several years, the clerk was appointed by the three-member Cook County Board of Commissioners. This was changed, and it became an elected office with a four-year term in 1837, with the first election being held in August of that year.{{cite web |title=Officers of Cook County The Names of Officer-Holders from the Beginning |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/353914470 |via=Newspapers.com |url-access=subscription |publisher=Chicago Tribune |access-date=5 February 2025 |language=en |date=December 12, 1867}}

Officeholders

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

! scope="col" | #

! colspan="2" |Clerk

! scope="col" |Term in office

! scope="col" |Party

! scope="col" |Notes

! scope="col" |Cite

style="height:2em;"

| 1st

! William Lee

| 1831

| Appointed in March 1831, resigned in December 1831

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| 2nd

| File:Richard J. Hamilton Ppld01 1079 full (1).jpg

! Richard J. Hamilton

| 1831–1837

| Democratic

| Appointed to the office in December 1831

| {{cite web |title=Papers Of Abraham Lincoln |url=https://papersofabrahamlincoln.org/persons/HA16764 |website=Papers of Abraham Lincoln |access-date=5 February 2025}}

style="height:2em;"

| 3rd

! George Davis

| 1837–1849

| The first elected Cook County Clerk (first elected in August 1837)

| {{cite book |author= |date=1886 |title=History of Chicago: From the Earliest Period to the Present Time |url= |location=Chicago |publisher=A.T. Andreas |page= |isbn=}}

style="height:2em;"

| 4th

! Edmund S. Kimberly

| 1849–1853

| Elected in August and November 1849

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| 5th

| File:C.B.Farwell.jpg

! Charles B. Farwell

| 1853–1861

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| 6th

| File:Laurin Hilliard Portrait.png

! Laurin P. Hilliard

| 1861–1865

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| 7th

| File:Edward Selig Salomon (1).jpg

! Edward S. Salomon

| 1865–November 1869

| Republican

| {{cite book |last1=Andreas |first1=Alfred Theodore |title=From 1857 until the fire of 1871 |year=1885 |publisher=A. T. Andreas |page=235 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F9A4AQAAMAAJ |access-date=26 December 2020 |language=en}}{{cite journal |last1=Benjaminson |first1=Eric |title=A Regiment of Immigrants: The 82nd Illinois Volunteer Infantry and the Letters of Captain Rudolph Mueller |journal=Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society |date=2001 |volume=94 |issue=2 |pages=137–180 |jstor=40193360 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40193360 |access-date=26 December 2020 |issn=1522-1067}}

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| 8th

| File:J.G. Gindele Portrait.png

! John G. Gindele

| 1869–January 1872

| Died in office

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| 9th

! George W. Wheeler

| 1873–December 1873

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| 10th

| File:(Brigadier General Herman Lieb of Co. B, 8th Illinois Infantry Regiment and 5th U.S. Colored Troops Heavy Artillery Regiment (USCT) in uniform) - Joslyn & Smith, Washington Gallery, Vicksburg and Jackson, Miss (cropped).jpg

! Hermann Lieb

| 1873–December 1877

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| 11th

| File:EFC Klokke Portrait.png

! Ernest F.C. Klokke

| 1877–December 1882

| Term extended, by law, for one year

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| 12th

! Michael W. Ryan

| 1882–December 1886

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| 13th

| File:Henry Wulff Portrait.png

! Henry Wulff

| 1886–1894

| Republican

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| 14th

| File:Philip Knopf.png

! Philip Knopf

| 1894–1902

| Republican

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| 15th

| File:Peter B Olsen Portrait.png

! Peter B. Olsen

| 1902–1906

| Republican

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| 16th

| File:Joseph F. Haas (1).png

! Joseph F. Haas

| 1906–1910

| Republican

| {{cite book |title=Chicago Daily News National Almanac for 1910 |year=1909 |publisher=Chicago Daily News |page=459 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MSAfAQAAMAAJ |accessdate=11 November 2020 |language=en}}

style="height:2em;"

| 17th

| File:Robert E. Sweitzer (1919).jpg

! Robert Sweitzer

| December 1910–December 1934

| Democratic

| Elected in 1910, 1914, 1918, 1922, 1926, 1930, 1934; resigned to serve as Cook County Treasurer in December 1934

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| 18th

! Michael J. Flynn

| 1935–1950

| Democratic

| Appointed in 1935; elected in 1938, 1942, 1946

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| 19th

| File:Richard J. Daley (JFKWHP-AR7347-A).jpg

! Richard J. Daley

| December 1950 – 1955

| Democratic

| Elected in 1950 and 1954; resigned in 1955 to serve as mayor of Chicago

style="height:2em;"

| 20th

| File:Edward J. Barrett, circa 1945 (3x4).jpg

! Edward J. Barrett

| 1955–1973

| Democratic

| Appointed in 1955; elected in 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970; resigned in 1973

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| 21st

! Stanley Kusper

| 1973–December 1990

| Democratic

| Appointed in 1973, elected in 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986

| {{cite web |last1=Hardy |first1=Thomas |title=STANLEY KUSPER HAS FEW REGRETS ABOUT PATH HIS CAREER HAS TAKEN |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1990-02-26-9001160846-story.html |website=chicagotribune.com |publisher=Chicago Tribune |accessdate=21 November 2020 |date=26 February 1990}}

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| 22nd

| File:David Orr on Live from the Heartland July 23 2012 (1).png

! scope="row" |David Orr

| December 1990–December 2018

| Democratic

| Elected in 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014

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| 23rd

| File:Karen Yarbrough 2013-08-16 (1).png

! scope="row" |Karen Yarbrough

| December 2018–April 2024

| Democratic

| Elected in 2018 and 2022; died in office in April 2024

|{{cite news|url=https://wgntv.com/news/cook-county/cook-county-clerk-karen-yarbrough-dies-at-73/|title=Cook County Clerk Karen Yarbrough dies at 73|first1=Sean|last1=Lewis|first2=Andrew|last2=Smith|publisher=WGN 9|date=April 7, 2024|accessdate=April 7, 2024}}

–

! Cedric Giles
(acting)

| 2024

| Acting clerk

24th

! Monica Gordon

| December 2024–present

| Democratic

| Elected in 2024

|{{cite web |last1=Nolan |first1=Mike |title=Harvey Park District Director Named to Replace Monica Gordon on Cook County Board |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/11/harvey-park-district-director-replaces-monica-gordon-cook-county-board |website=Chicago Tribune |access-date=12 January 2025 |date=11 January 2025}}

Recent election results

| colspan=16 style="text-align:center;" |Cook County Clerk general elections

!Year

!Winning candidate

!Party

!Vote (pct)

!Opponent

!Party

! Vote (pct)

!Opponent

!Party

! Vote (pct)

!Opponent

!Party

! Vote (pct)

|1986{{cite web |title=OFFICIAL FINAL RESULTS GENERAL ELECTION COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 1986 |url=http://www.voterinfonet.com/results/archive/1986NovCombinedSummary.pdf |website=voterinfo.net |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081003205005/http://www.voterinfonet.com/results/archive/1986NovCombinedSummary.pdf |archivedate=3 October 2008}}

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Stanley Kusper

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | 929,949 (68.35%)

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Diana Nelson

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Republican

|{{party shading/Republican}} | 430,568 (31.35%)

|1990{{cite web |title=OFFICIAL FINAL RESULTS GENERAL ELECTION COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 1990 |url=http://www.voterinfonet.com/results/archive/1990NovCombinedSummary.pdf |website=voterinfo.net |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081003205145/http://www.voterinfonet.com/results/archive/1990NovCombinedSummary.pdf |archivedate=3 October 2008}}

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | David D. Orr

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | 799,884 (63.48%)

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Sam Panayotovich

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Republican

|{{party shading/Republican}} | 353,531 (28.06%)

|Text style="background:#D2B48C | Heldia R. Richardson

|Text style="background:#D2B48C | Harold Washington Party

|Text style="background:#D2B48C | 106,588 (8.46%)

|1994

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | David D. Orr

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} |

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Edward Howlett

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Republican

|{{party shading/Republican}} |

|Text style="background:#D2B48C | Herman W. Baker, Jr.

|Text style="background:#D2B48C | Harold Washington Party

|Text style="background:#D2B48C |

| Curtis Jones

| Populist

|1998{{cite web |title=OFFICIAL FINAL RESULTS GENERAL ELECTION COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1998 |url=https://results.cookcountyclerkil.gov/electionresults/110398/1998NovemberCombinedSUMMARY.pdf |website=results.cookcountyclerkil.gov }}

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | David D. Orr

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | 988,136 (77.30%)

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Judie A. Jones

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Republican

|{{party shading/Republican}} | 290,256 (22.70%)

|2002{{cite web |title=TABULATED STATEMENT OF THE RETURNS AND PROCLAMATION OF THE RESULTS OF THE CANVASS OF THE ELECTION RETURNS FOR THE GENERAL ELECTION HELD IN EACH OF THE PRECINCTS IN ALL THE WARDS IN THE CITY OF CHICAGO ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2002 A.D. |url=https://app.chicagoelections.com/documents/proclamations/Proc-2002-11-05.pdf |publisher=Chicago Board of Election Commissioners |accessdate=18 June 2020}}{{cite web |title=SUBURBAN COOK COUNTY RESULTS |url=http://www.voterinfonet.com/results/11502results/ |website=voterinfonet.com |publisher=Cook County Clerk |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20050209124209/http://www.voterinfonet.com/results/11502results/ |archivedate=9 February 2005 |url-status=dead}}

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | David D. Orr

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | 992,441 (76.11%)

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Kathleen A. Thomas

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Republican

|{{party shading/Republican}} | 311,552 (23.89%)

|2006{{cite web |title=Cook County and the City of Chicago Combined Summary Report November 2006 General Election Tuesday, November 7th, 2006 |url=https://www.cookcountyclerk.com/sites/default/files/2006NovemberCombinedSUMMARY.pdf |publisher=Cook County Clerk's Office |accessdate=16 March 2020 |archive-date=September 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210922154748/https://www.cookcountyclerkil.gov/sites/default/files/2006NovemberCombinedSUMMARY.pdf |url-status=dead }}

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | David D. Orr

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | 1,034,263 (80.78%)

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Nancy Carlson

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Republican

|{{party shading/Republican}} | 246,044 (19.22%)

|2010{{cite web |title=Cook County General Election November 2, 2010 Combined Summary Report |url=https://www.cookcountyclerk.com/sites/default/files/Combined_Summary_Report_110210.pdf |publisher=Cook County Clerk's Office |accessdate=16 March 2020}}

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | David D. Orr

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | 1,047,462 (77.77%)

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Angel Garcia

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Republican

|{{party shading/Republican}} | 299,449 (22.23%)

|2014{{cite web |title=General Election Cook County and The City of Chicago Tuesday, November 4, 2014 Combined Summary |url=https://www.cookcountyclerk.com/sites/default/files/CombinedSummaryReport110414%20%281%29.pdf |publisher=Cook County Clerk's Office |accessdate=16 March 2020 |archive-date=January 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220128082518/https://www.cookcountyclerkil.gov/sites/default/files/CombinedSummaryReport110414%20(1).pdf |url-status=dead }}

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | David D. Orr

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | 1,061,515 (100%)

|2018{{Cite web |title=Cook County and The City of Chicago General Election November 6, 2018 Combined Summary |url=https://www.cookcountyclerk.com/sites/default/files/CombinedSummary.pdf |access-date=March 9, 2020 |publisher=Cook County Clerk's Office |archive-date=July 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210708233020/https://www.cookcountyclerkil.gov/sites/default/files/CombinedSummary.pdf |url-status=dead }}

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Karen Yarbrough

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | 1,415,244 (99.07%)

| Others

| Write-ins

| 13,120 (0.93%)

|2022{{cite web |title=Tabulated Statement of the Returns and Proclamation of the Results of the Canvass of the Election Returns for the November 8, 2022 Gubernatorial General Election Held in Each of the Precincts in Cook County, Illinois Including the City of Chicago |url=https://www.cookcountyclerkil.gov/sites/default/files/pdfs/November%208%2C%202022%20Proclamation%20Cook%20and%20Chicago.pdf |website=www.cookcountyclerkil.gov |publisher=Cook County Clerk |access-date=6 December 2022 |date=2022}}

|{{party shading/Democratic}} |Karen Yarbrough

|{{party shading/Democratic}} | Democratic

|{{party shading/Democratic}} |1,003,854 (71.58%)

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Tony Peraica

|{{party shading/Republican}} | Republican

|{{party shading/Republican}} |368,095 (26.26%)

|{{party shading/Libertarian}} | Joseph Schreiner

|{{party shading/Libertarian}} | Libertarian

|{{party shading/Libertarian}} |30,514 (2.18%)

|2024

References

External links

{{official website|https://www.cookcountyclerkil.gov/}}