Tom Rooney (Illinois politician)

For other people named Tom Rooney, see Tom Rooney (disambiguation).

Tom Rooney
Member of the Illinois Senate from the 27th district
In office September 28, 2016 (2016-Sept-28) – January 9, 2019 (2019-Jan-09)
Preceded by	Matt Murphy
Succeeded by	Ann Gillespie
Mayor of Rolling Meadows
In office May 2011 (2011-May) – September 2016 (2016-Sept)
Preceded by	Ken Nelson
Succeeded by	Len Prejna
Personal details
Born	(1968-03-24) March 24, 1968 (age 56) Evanston, Illinois
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Sue Daniels Colleen Heffernan (d. 2005)
Children	4
Residence	Rolling Meadows, Illinois
Alma mater	Loyola University (B.A.) Northern Illinois University (M.P.A.)
Profession	Teacher

Tom Rooney (born March 24, 1968) is a former Republican member of the Illinois Senate, representing the 27th district from 2016 to 2019. Previously, he served as Mayor of Rolling Meadows and as a member of the Rolling Meadows city council.

Personal life

Rooney received a B.A. in History from Loyola University Chicago and an M.P.A. from Northern Illinois University. He is a graduate of Evanston Township High School and was elected Youth Governor in the Illinois State Youth and Government program.

He and his wife, Sue, have four sons: Chris, Brian, Adam, and Christopher.[1]

He has taught social studies at West Leyden High School for over 20 years, and continued to teach while serving in the legislature.[2]

Political career

In 2000, he was appointed to a vacancy on the Rolling Meadows city council, and he was re-elected in 2001 and 2005. He decided not to run for re-election in 2009 due to his commitment to term limits. In 2011, he was elected Mayor of Rolling Meadows and ran unopposed for a second term in 2015.[1] In the 2016 Republican Party presidential primaries, Rooney was a delegate pledged to the presidential campaign of Marco Rubio.[3]

In September 2016, he was appointed to the Illinois Senate to replace outgoing Senator Matt Murphy.[4][5] In the 2018 general election, he lost 52%-48% to Democratic candidate Ann Gillespie.[6]

References

1. "Tom Rooney: Candidate profile". Daily Herald. 2018-10-13. Retrieved 2019-02-02.
2. Press, Pioneer. "Split schedule to allow new state senator to continue teaching at West Leyden". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2019-02-02.
3. Robb, Tom (January 28, 2016). "Local Candidates For Presidential Delegate". Journal and Topics. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
4. Lester, Kerry (September 15, 2016). "Rolling Meadows' mayor to replace Murphy in state Senate". Daily Herald. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
5. Lester, Kerry (September 28, 2016). "Will Roskam debate for first time in 8 years?: Swearing in". Retrieved September 29, 2016.
6. Shields, Todd (November 7, 2018). "Democratic newcomer flips seat, wins Illinois Senate's 27th District". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 26, 2018.

External links

• Profile at Illinois General Assembly