Elgie R. Sims, Jr.

Senator Elgie R. Sims Jr. serves as state senator for the 17th Illinois Senate District. Prior to joining the Illinois Senate, he served nearly four terms as state representative of Illinois’s 34th House District. A member of the Illinois Senate Criminal Law Committee, Sims is one of Illinois’s leading voices in the effort to reform the state’s criminal justice system. Sims has also spearheaded efforts to pass a comprehensive criminal justice reform bill that will change the current use of force policy and how courts impose bail and sentence people. Sims led efforts to move Illinois away from the use of cash bail through passage of the Bail Reform Act of 2017. Sims holds a BA in political science from Illinois State University, an MPA from the University of Illinois, and a JD from Loyola University Chicago School of Law.