Ira I. Silverstein (born October 10, 1960) is a former Democratic member of the

Illinois Senate The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the ...

, representing the 8th district from 1999 to 2019. The 8th Senate District consists of Forest Glen, North Park and West Ridge in the

City of Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and its surrounding suburbs of Park Ridge, Morton Grove, Niles, Lincolnwood and Skokie, as of the

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following the 2010 United States Census.

Early life

Silverstein's father was a public school teacher. Silverstein attended Boone Elementary School and Mather High School and then earned his bachelor's degree from

Loyola University Chicago Loyola University Chicago (Loyola or LUC) is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1870 by the Society of Jesus, Loyola is one of the largest Catholic Church, ...

. He later received his J.D. degree from the John Marshall Law School.

Senate career

Silverstein was the Chairman of the Senate Executive Committee, and he served on the Senate Judiciary and Licensed Activities committees, and the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR). JCAR reviews regulations imposed by state departments on business and citizens to ensure they are in accordance with the department's legal authority. In 2013, Silverstein introduced the "Internet Posting Removal Act" which sought to require web site admins to "upon request, remove any posted comments posted by an anonymous poster unless the anonymous poster agrees to attach his or her name to the post and confirms that his or her IP address, legal name, and home address are accurate. The bill was the subject of much derision, and was later withdrawn. He also introduced a modification to the Illinois Vehicle Code to make operating a motor vehicle with a wearable computing headset illegal. In 2017, he was accused of sexual harassment by victims rights advocate Denise Rotheimer, who released a series of flirtatious messages the two had exchanged. He resigned his position as Senate Democratic whip after she named him publicly during legislative hearings. Rotheimer claimed Silverstein made unwanted comments about her appearance and late-night phone calls she felt pressured to accept in order to advance legislation. The inspector general of the Illinois General Assembly released a report in January 2018 saying he did not engage in sexual harassment but he "did behave in a manner unbecoming of a legislator in violation of the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act." In the March 20, 2018 Democratic primary, Silverstein was defeated by more than 20 points by Ram Villivalam in the first competitive primary he faced since taking the seat. Silverstein resigned a few days before the start of the 101st General Assembly allowing his successor to be sworn in the weekend before inauguration. Also in 2018, Debra Silverstein, his wife, replaced Ira Silverstein as the Democratic Party's committeeperson (until 2018 legal name change, "committeeman") for Chicago's 50th Ward. In early 2020, Ira Silverstein ran for election for the 9th Subcircuit judge of the Cook County Judicial Circuit Court in Illinois. Silverstein lost in the Democratic primary on March 17, 2020.

Personal life

Silverstein is a practicing attorney. He maintains offices in downtown Chicago and a neighborhood office on Devon Avenue, serving small business owners and residents in matters such as elder law, estate planning and business issues. Silverstein is married to Chicago

Alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...

Debra Silverstein, and they have four children. Silverstein is an

Orthodox Jew Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tran ...

. As a state senator, he shared an office suite with fellow senator and future U.S. president

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

, who would often assist Silverstein with various tasks on the Sabbath.

References

External links

Senator Ira I. Silverstein (D)
at the Illinois General Assembly **By session
99th98th97th96th95th94th93rdIllinois State Senator Ira I. Silverstein
constituency site *
Senator Ira I. Silverstein
at Illinois Senate Democrats {{DEFAULTSORT:Silverstein, Ira 1960 births Living people Illinois state senators Jewish state legislators in Illinois Politicians from Chicago Loyola University Chicago alumni University of Illinois Chicago School of Law alumni Mather High School alumni 21st-century American Jews 21st-century members of the Illinois General Assembly