Evanston City Clerk Stephanie Mendoza announced Wednesday, Aug. 5, that she is running for mayor, becoming the first sitting elected official and the fifth confirmed candidate in the special election to replace outgoing Mayor Daniel Biss.

Mendoza, 33, centered her campaign launch on housing affordability, fiscal responsibility and what she called "Trump-proofing" the city. She is a two-term clerk first elected in 2021 and the first Latina to hold elected office in Evanston. If elected, she would also be the city's first Latina mayor.

"As Mayor, I will be laser focused on making Evanston a place where everyone can afford to live and afford to stay," Mendoza said in a statement reported by Patch. "I will demand high-quality City services for everyone no matter the ward."

Mendoza's entry reshapes a field that already includes former 8th Ward Alderwoman Ann Rainey, Jeff Boarini, business attorney Jade Carpenter and 22-year-old union steward Elliot Oats, according to the Evanston Roundtable.

The daughter of Mexican immigrants and a first-generation college graduate, Mendoza moved to Evanston from Tennessee in 2010 as a young mother. She earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Loyola University Chicago and got her start in local politics working on campaigns, including former 6th Ward Ald. Mark Tendam's 2017 mayoral run. She is a past president of Evanston Latinos and a former board member of the Democratic Party of Evanston.

As clerk, Mendoza implemented a citywide records management policy, restored Vital Records services and expanded public access to government documents. Outside City Hall, she and her husband own a small construction business.

She would also take a pay cut if elected: her current clerk salary is $83,349, roughly two and a half times the mayor's $32,928 stipend. The clerk is the only elected city official paid on a full-time basis. And because the mayor's seat is the only city office on next year's ballot, Mendoza will have to recuse herself from administering the election as part of her clerk duties.

The race ahead

Biss submitted his resignation effective Oct. 18, triggering the special election as he campaigns for Congress in Illinois' 9th District. Candidates must collect between 946 and 1,513 signatures from registered Evanston voters and file petitions between Oct. 19 and Oct. 26 to qualify for the ballot. The signature collection window opened July 28.

The primary is set for Feb. 23, 2027. If no candidate wins more than 50% of the vote, the top two advance to the April 6, 2027, general election. The winner would be sworn in at the first City Council meeting after results are certified, expected to be May 10, 2027, and would serve the remainder of Biss's term through 2029.

In 2024, Mendoza was on the Cook County Democratic Party's shortlist to replace the late Cook County Clerk Karen Yarbrough on the ballot, but the party chose then-Commissioner Monica Gordon instead.