Samuel "Sam" Panayotovich (July 6, 1946) is a former American politician. Born in

Hammond, Indiana Hammond ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. Located along Lake Michigan, it is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the only city in Indiana to border Chicago. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the Li ...

, Panayotovich received his bachelor's degree in business administration from

Southern Illinois University, Carbondale Southern Illinois University (SIU) is a public research university in Carbondale, Illinois, United States. Chartered in 1869, SIU is the oldest and flagship campus of the Southern Illinois University system. SIU enrolls students from all 50 sta ...

. He also received his teacher's certificate from

University of Indiana Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IU Indianapolis. The flagship campus of In ...

. Panayotovich lived in

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 ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. From 1983 to 1989, Panayotovich served in the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 representativ ...

as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

and then as a Republican. He then served as the chief of the Illinois Liquor Control Commission. Panayotovich also worked as a lobbyist. After his legislative tenure he moved to

Lansing, Illinois Lansing is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Lansing is a south suburb of Chicago. The population was 29,076 at the 2020 census. History The first family to settle in Lansing was that of August Hildebrandt in 1843. Henry, Georg ...

. As a Republican, he served as a member of the Illinois Republican Party's Central Committee from

Illinois's 2nd congressional district Illinois's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Illinois. It stretches south from Chicago's Kenwood community area through portions of the city's South Side and southern suburbs, extending into several m ...

. He was the party's nominee for Cook County Circuit Clerk, and ran for the Republican nomination for Illinois's 11th congressional district in 1992 and in 1994. In 1999, he became the Executive Director of the Illinois Liquor Control Commission. His wife Cynthia served on the Chicago Transit Authority's board from 2002-2009 and his son Sam is a sports reporter.

Notes

1946 births Living people Politicians from Chicago Politicians from Hammond, Indiana University of Illinois alumni Indiana University alumni Illinois Democrats Illinois Republicans Members of the Illinois House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Illinois General Assembly {{Illinois-Ilrepresentative-stub