Dagmara Avelar

Dagmara Avelar

Democratic Party

Illinois House of Representatives District 85

Tenure

2021 - Present

Term ends

2027

Years in position

4

Predecessor

John Connor

Compensation

Base salary

$89,250/year

Per diem

$166/day

Elections and appointments

Last elected

November 5, 2024

Education

Bachelor's

Northeastern Illinois University

Graduate

University of Illinois, Chicago

Personal

Profession

Nonprofit executive

Contact

Official website

Official Facebook

Official Instagram

Official YouTube

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Personal Facebook

Personal Instagram

Personal LinkedIn

Dagmara Avelar (Democratic Party) (also known as Dee) is a member of the Illinois House of Representatives, representing District 85. She assumed office on January 13, 2021. Her current term ends on January 13, 2027.

Avelar (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the Illinois House of Representatives to represent District 85. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Biography

Dagmara Avelar was born in Quito, Ecuador, and lives in Bolingbrook, Illinois. She earned a bachelor's degree in justice studies from Northeastern Illinois University and a master's degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Avelar's career experience includes working as the director of programs at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.

Committee assignments

Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.

2023-2024

Avelar was assigned to the following committees:

• Appropriations-Public Safety Committee
• Cybersecurity, Data Analytics, and IT Committee
• Health Care Availability & Accessibility Committee
• Judiciary - Civil Committee
• State Government Administration Committee
• Transportation: Regulation, Roads & Bridges Committee

2021-2022

Avelar was assigned to the following committees:

• Appropriations-Public Safety Committee
• Cybersecurity, Data Analytics, and IT Committee
• Health Care Availability & Accessibility Committee
• Judiciary - Civil Committee
• State Government Administration Committee
• Transportation: Regulation, Roads & Bridges Committee

Sponsored legislation

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.

Elections

2024

See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2024

General election

General election for Illinois House of Representatives District 85

Incumbent Dagmara Avelar defeated Chris Metcalfe in the general election for Illinois House of Representatives District 85 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dagmara Avelar (D)	58.3	25,360
		Chris Metcalfe (R)	41.7	18,142

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 43,502
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85

Incumbent Dagmara Avelar advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85 on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dagmara Avelar	100.0	5,831

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 5,831
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85

Chris Metcalfe advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85 on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chris Metcalfe	100.0	3,882

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,882
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Avelar in this election.

2022

See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2022

General election

General election for Illinois House of Representatives District 85

Incumbent Dagmara Avelar defeated Chris Metcalfe in the general election for Illinois House of Representatives District 85 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dagmara Avelar (D)	57.6	17,644
		Chris Metcalfe (R)	42.4	12,975

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 30,619
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85

Incumbent Dagmara Avelar advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85 on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dagmara Avelar	100.0	6,554

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 6,554
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2020

See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2020

General election

General election for Illinois House of Representatives District 85

Dagmara Avelar defeated Ron Doweidt and Anna Schiefelbein in the general election for Illinois House of Representatives District 85 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dagmara Avelar (D)	59.0	26,560
	Submit photo	Ron Doweidt (R)	35.8	16,129
		Anna Schiefelbein (G)	5.2	2,326

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 45,015
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85

Dagmara Avelar advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85 on March 17, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dagmara Avelar	100.0	10,658

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 10,658
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85

Ron Doweidt advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 85 on March 17, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Ron Doweidt	100.0	3,001

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,001
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Dagmara Avelar did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Dagmara Avelar did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Candidate Conversations

Moderated by journalist and political commentator Greta Van Susteren, Candidate Conversations is a virtual debate format that allows voters to easily get to know their candidates through a short video Q&A. Click below to watch the conversation for this race.

Dagmara Avelar completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Avelar's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

My name is Dagmara "Dee" Avelar, and I decided to run for office because I was inspired by the number of first time candidates, particularly women of color, who ran in 2018.

Will County has been my home, primarily the Bolingbrook and Romeoville areas, since 2001. This is the district that welcomed me with open arms when my family decided to immigrate from Ecuador to the United States. As a proud product of our public school system, I know first-hand the pivotal role that educators play in the development of healthy children and communities. I want to be able to be a legislator that champions education and continues to fight for the community that has invested in me.

For over a decade, I have dedicated my life to advocating for working families particularly focusing on projects addressing the barriers of low-income, limited English proficient Illinois residents. A community organizer at heart, I have been involved in civic engagement efforts to get out the vote of low-propensity voters in the southwest suburbs since I was in college. I have also advocated in efforts to increase the minimum wage and have been a fierce fighter in Springfield during the fight for a fair budget that puts working families first.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Will fight to make healthcare more affordable
• Advocate to prepare the next generation for the Jobs of Tomorrow
• Our campaign is rooted in economic, social and racial justice.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am very passionate about healthcare access, education and uplifting working families.

Healthcare Access - Healthcare is a human right and a matter of life or death for many. We cannot live in a society where families are going bankrupt or have to choose between basic needs or paying their healthcare bills. My own family has gone through those hardships and I am committed to being a strong advocate for affordable healthcare. My commitment to our communities includes assuring that our families have access to quality medical care, affordable medication and the continuing fight for reproductive rights.

Investment in education - A key priority in our district is education. Investments in education means that our state continues to make concerted efforts in supporting our public school system, community colleges, universities, vocational and trade schools. Demand for skilled workers in Illinois is strong yet the number of people who have completed vocational or trade school training has decreased. This is a significant issue as a diverse workforce will make our state stronger.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

My life has been surrounded by great, inspiring, kick butt women. My mother instilled in me resiliency and empathy. She was my age when she decided to immigrate to the United States, I have been thinking about that alot. I have been reflecting on how her journey has directly impacted our entire family. Anytime I felt afraid, she was there to look me in the eye and say "Do not falter hija, you are capable of doing anything you work hard for".

My sister and I have taken that to heart, which leads me to my other mentor. My sister is my backbone, my journey is her journey and vice versa. Moving from Ecuador to the suburbs, presented challenges and we knew we had each other to rely on. I have learned from her the meaning of standing up for what you believe in.

She is a close adviser in my campaign along with my campaign manager, Eli. Eli is another one of my role models. A fierce, thoughtful DACAmented woman who leads by her social justice values. Our campaign is a grassroots campaign and as such we are relying on our community to inform our platform with a social justice centered lens. I would be disingenuous for me to say that this campaign has been easy. One of our main obstacles, as I am sure it has been for many, has been campaigning during a pandemic. A key takeaway that we have been reflecting on is that the pandemic has highlighted our chronic problems with income inequality and healthcare access. I have a responsibility to make sure that I do everything in my power to make sure that working families do not continue to bear the brunt of it .

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

Yes, Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds by adrienne maree brown

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

Over the last decade, I have been involved in political advocacy, community organizing and human services management. I love going into work everyday, and fighting for people. It is with that same passion that I envision going to Springfield and being a champion for families. As a proud product of our public school system, I know first-hand the pivotal role that educators play in the development of healthy children and communities. I want to be able to be a legislator that champions education and continues to fight for the community that has invested in me.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

The main responsibility of an elected official is to truly reflect the values of their district and stand up for what it right.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My very first job was at a local bakery in Bolingbrook when I was in high school. I remember being excited about it because I was finally going to be able to buy concert tickets.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

I believe that having a wide range of people with experience in multiple sectors is beneficial to all. While having experience in government and politics may be helpful, what is more important in my opinion, is the ability to be able to listen to the needs and concerns of community members who live in the district and turn that into good policy making solutions.

What do you perceive to be your state’s greatest challenges over the next decade?

Our budget. Fixing our state's budget problems require long term solutions. We need to work on pension reform legislation, taxing of high-end services as well as closing corporate loopholes. What we cannot afford to do is have our much needed human services and education budgets bear the brunt of spending cuts as they are essential. Also, Income inequality has continued to grow and we can no longer continue to have our working and middle class families carry the burden of our current tax system.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Voters should pick who represents them, rather than politicians picking their voters. Districts should be drawn in a way that promotes equal representation. It is imperative that transparency and an equity centered approach is used in the process. If elected, I would work hard to collaborate with my colleagues in both chambers as well as the Black, Latino, and Asian caucuses to try to unite all of us around a principle that representation matters and that redistricting should benefit everyone equitably.

If you are not a current legislator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

I would be interested in being part of the following committees: Appropriations-Higher Education Committee, Appropriations-Public Safety Committee, Economic Opportunity & Equity Committee, Energy & Environment Committee and Transportation: Regulation, Roads & Bridges Committee

If you are not currently a member of your party’s leadership in the legislature, would you be interested in joining the leadership? If so, in what role?

As a first time candidate and a potential first time legislator I am interested in primarily beign able to serve the people of the 85th district well, before considering joining the leadership.

Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?

As a first time candidate and a potential first time legislator I am interested in primarily being able to serve the people of the 85th district well, before considering running for any other political office.

Both sitting legislators and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

Yes, while canvassing one of the areas in the district a small business owner and I were able to have a candid and honest conversation about income inequality and the lack of economic development in this specific area. He told me his concerns and as I listened I got goosebumps when he said that we need more people who have worked with the community to be running for office. He also mentioned that the best thing that can be done to improve the community would be to get people the opportunity to be able to thrive in good paying jobs that allows for them to take care of their families.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign finance summary

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Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Dagmara Avelar campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	Illinois House of Representatives District 85	Won general	$177,238	$149,553
2022	Illinois House of Representatives District 85	Won general	$284,874	$131,369
2020	Illinois House of Representatives District 85	Won general	$268,875	N/A**
Grand total			$730,986	$280,922
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Illinois

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

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Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Illinois scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.

2024

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show].

In 2024, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 16 to May 29. Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Illinois Humane Society Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to pets and wildlife. Illinois Realtors Legislators are scored on votes on bills affecting real estate and private property. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2023

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show].
In 2023, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 11 to May 27. Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Illinois Realtors Legislators are scored on votes on bills affecting real estate and private property.

2022

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show].

In 2022, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 5 to April 9. Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Illinois Realtors Legislators are scored on votes on bills affecting real estate and private property. Planned Parenthood Illinois Action Legislators are scored on their stances on policies related to reproductive health issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Technology and Manufacturing Association Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to manufacturing issues.

2021

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show].

In 2021, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 13 to June 1. Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Illinois Humane Society Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to pets and wildlife. Illinois Realtors Legislators are scored on votes on bills affecting real estate and private property. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

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Candidate

Illinois House of Representatives District 85

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Illinois House of Representatives District 85

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by John Connor (D)	Illinois House of Representatives District 85 2021-Present	Succeeded by -

[show]

Current members of the Illinois House of Representatives

Leadership

Speaker of the House:Emanuel Welch

Majority Leader:Robyn Gabel

Minority Leader:Tony McCombie

Representatives

District 1

Aaron Ortiz (D)

District 2

Elizabeth Hernandez (D)

District 3

Eva Delgado (D)

District 4

Lilian Jiménez (D)

District 5

Kimberly du Buclet (D)

District 6

Sonya Harper (D)

District 7

Emanuel Welch (D)

District 8

La Shawn Ford (D)

District 9

Yolonda Morris (D)

District 10

Jawaharial Williams (D)

District 11

Ann Williams (D)

District 12

Margaret Croke (D)

District 13

Hoan Huynh (D)

District 14

Kelly Cassidy (D)

District 15

Michael Kelly (D)

District 16

Kevin Olickal (D)

District 17

Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz (D)

District 18

Robyn Gabel (D)

District 19

Lindsey LaPointe (D)

District 20

Brad Stephens (R)

District 21

Abdelnasser Rashid (D)

District 22

Angelica Guerrero-Cuellar (D)

District 23

Edgar Gonzalez (D)

District 24

Theresa Mah (D)

District 25

Curtis Tarver (D)

District 26

Kambium Buckner (D)

District 27

Justin Slaughter (D)

District 28

Robert Rita (D)

District 29

Thaddeus Jones (D)

District 30

William Davis (D)

District 31

Michael Crawford (D)

District 32

Lisa Davis (D)

District 33

Marcus Evans (D)

District 34

Nicholas Smith (D)

District 35

Mary Gill (D)

District 36

Rick Ryan (D)

District 37

Patrick Sheehan (R)

District 38

Debbie Meyers-Martin (D)

District 39

Will Guzzardi (D)

District 40

Jaime Andrade (D)

District 41

Janet Yang Rohr (D)

District 42

Terra Howard (D)

District 43

Anna Moeller (D)

District 44

Fred Crespo (D)

District 45

Martha Deuter (D)

District 46

Diane Blair-Sherlock (D)

District 47

Amy Grant (R)

District 48

Jennifer Sanalitro (R)

District 49

Maura Hirschauer (D)

District 50

Barbara Hernandez (D)

District 51

Nabeela Syed (D)

District 52

Martin McLaughlin (R)

District 53

Nicolle Grasse (D)

District 54

Mary Beth Canty (D)

District 55

Martin Moylan (D)

District 56

Michelle Mussman (D)

District 57

Tracy Katz Muhl (D)

District 58

Bob Morgan (D)

District 59

Daniel Didech (D)

District 60

Rita Mayfield (D)

District 61

Joyce Mason (D)

District 62

Laura Dias (D)

District 63

Steven Reick (R)

District 64

Tom Weber (R)

District 65

Dan Ugaste (R)

District 66

Suzanne Ness (D)

District 67

Maurice West (D)

District 68

Dave Vella (D)

District 69

Joe Sosnowski (R)

District 70

Jeff Keicher (R)

District 71

Daniel Swanson (R)

District 72

Gregg Johnson (D)

District 73

Ryan Spain (R)

District 74

Brad Fritts (R)

District 75

Jed Davis (R)

District 76

Amy Briel (D)

District 77

Norma Hernandez (D)

District 78

Camille Lilly (D)

District 79

Jackie Haas (R)

District 80

Anthony DeLuca (D)

District 81

Anne Stava-Murray (D)

District 82

Nicole La Ha (R)

District 83

Matt Hanson (D)

District 84

Stephanie Kifowit (D)

District 85

Dagmara Avelar (D)

District 86

Lawrence Walsh (D)

District 87

Bill Hauter (R)

District 88

Regan Deering (R)

District 89

Tony McCombie (R)

District 90

John Cabello (R)

District 91

Sharon Chung (D)

District 92

Jehan Gordon-Booth (D)

District 93

Travis Weaver (R)

District 94

Norine Hammond (R)

District 95

Mike Coffey (R)

District 96

Sue Scherer (D)

District 97

Harry Benton (D)

District 98

Natalie Manley (D)

District 99

Kyle Moore (R)

District 100

C.D. Davidsmeyer (R)

District 101

Chris Miller (R)

District 102

Adam Niemerg (R)

District 103

Carol Ammons (D)

District 104

Brandun Schweizer (R)

District 105

Dennis Tipsword (R)

District 106

Jason Bunting (R)

District 107

Brad Halbrook (R)

District 108

Wayne Rosenthal (R)

District 109

Charles Meier (R)

District 110

Blaine Wilhour (R)

District 111

Amy Elik (R)

District 112

Katie Stuart (D)

District 113

Jay Hoffman (D)

District 114

Kevin Schmidt (R)

District 115

David Friess (R)

District 116

Dave Severin (R)

District 117

Patrick Windhorst (R)

District 118

Paul Jacobs (R)

Democratic Party (78)

Republican Party (40)