Openly gay Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison has decided to run for the Cook County clerk position that opened following Karen Yarbrough's death, according to Politico Illinois Playbook.
Playbook added that Morrison also wants to run for the seat in November. He worked alongside the office over the past five years, including working to expand languages from four to 12 options on suburban Cook County ballots.
Should he prevail in November, Morrison would be the first openly LGBTQ+ individual elected to a Cook County county-wide office.
Yarbrough—who died April 1 at age 73—was a constant in local politics, serving as a state lawmaker and later as the first Black person and first woman to serve as Cook County clerk, per The Chicago Sun-Times. Also, she was the treasurer of the Cook County Democratic Party.
Windy City Times has reached out to Morrison for a statement.
—Andrew Davis