Eugene G. Doherty

Eugene G. Doherty

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Nonpartisan

Illinois 4th District Appellate Court

Tenure

2022 - Present

Term ends

2034

Years in position

3

Prior offices

Illinois 17th Circuit Court

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Report an officeholder change

Compensation

Base salary

$268,190

Elections and appointments

Last elected

November 5, 2024

Appointed

July 11, 2022

Education

High school

Boylan Catholic High School

Bachelor's

Northern Illinois University, 1983

Law

Northern Illinois University College of Law, 1989

Personal

Profession

Judge

Contact

Official website

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Eugene G. Doherty is a judge of the Illinois 4th District Appellate Court. He assumed office on July 14, 2022. His current term ends on December 4, 2034.

Doherty (Republican Party) ran for re-election for judge of the Illinois 4th District Appellate Court. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Doherty completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Education

Eugene G. Doherty earned a high school diploma from Boylan Catholic High School, a bachelor's degree from Northern Illinois University in 1983, and a law degree from the Northern Illinois University College of Law in 1989.

Career

• 2022-present: Judge, Illinois Fourth District Appellate Court
• 2007-2020: Judge, Illinois Seventeenth Judicial Circuit Court
• 1991-2007: Attorney, Holstrom & Kennedy
• 1989-1991: Staff attorney and clerk to Justice Philip Reinhard, Illinois Second District Appellate Court
• 1986-1988: Legislative assistant to U.S. Representative Lynn Martin

Elections

2024

See also: Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2024

General election

General election for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court

Incumbent Eugene G. Doherty won election in the general election for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Eugene G. Doherty (R)	100.0	723,391

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 723,391
= 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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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court

Incumbent Eugene G. Doherty advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Eugene G. Doherty	100.0	119,401

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 119,401
= 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.

Endorsements

To view Doherty's endorsements as published by their campaign, click here. Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Doherty in this election.

2014

See also: Illinois judicial elections, 2014

Doherty was retained to the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit Court with 82.8 percent of the vote on November 4, 2014.  

Evaluations

The Illinois State Bar Association and participating attorneys rated Eugene G. Doherty as Recommended for retention in a 2014 poll.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Eugene G. Doherty completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Doherty'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.

I am first and foremost committed to my oath: to uphold the constitution and laws of the United States and the State of Illinois. What enables me to keep this commitment is my experience (16 years as a trial court judge, 4 as chief judge, and 2 years on the appellate court), my aptitude (graduated first in my law school class and have continued to participate in the continued education of judges and lawyers), and the support of my family. I am aware that the cases that come before me represent not just issues or precedents, but people. Those people deserve a case that is decided fairly, without favor to any person, party, or characteristic. Fairness to me means that a judge listens to learn about the litigants views, and then resolves the issues not according to any personal preference, but according to the law.

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?

• The essential role of a judge is to resolve a case fairly, which means according to the neutral application of the law.
• Adherence to the oath of upholding our constitutional system and laws is the most important commitment that a judge makes.
• It is the role of legislators to tell the public their positions on policy issues and to allow the voters to choose accordingly. It is the role of judges to disregard their own or anyone else's policy preferences and rule according to the law.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

If our courts are to be respected by the people they serve, they must take every reasonable measure to help ease public access to the court system.

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

The Constitution of the United States of America.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

For a judge, the most important principle is to understand the limited but critical role courts play in our democratic system. Our job is not to make the law according to our own policy preferences, but to uphold it regardless of our own personal views.

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

Any judge must show legal competence, be committed to fair process, and strive to ensure that every litigant's voice is heard.

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

I loved baseball when I was a kid, but pretty soon I had to admit I didn't have the talent to keep playing the game competitively. When I was about 15, I started umpiring, which was a way to remain part of the game I loved so much. Looking back, it was in that job that I learned about the essence of judging: to know the rulebook, to call them like you see them, and to give both teams your best effort.

Are there any little-known powers or responsibilities held by this office that you believe more people should be aware of?

This is a great question! At the circuit court level, I could list many. At the appellate level (where I serve), most of what we do is fairly obvious: we hear appeals brought by the losing side in a case who argues that an error led to the judgment against them.

How would you describe your legal philosophy?

I believe that a judge cannot provide "fairness" or "justice" by referring to his or her own code of policy preferences or beliefs; that describes a king, not a judge. Our democratic system depends on a judicial system that defers to the policy judgments of the political branches so long as they do not conflict with the Constitution.

Is there a particular judge, past or present, whom you admire?

I admire Justice Antonin Scalia for his dogged pursuit of a method of constitutional and textual interpretation that helps keep judges focused on constitutional/legislative intent -- to the exclusion of their own personal beliefs. I strongly agree with Chief Justice John Roberts' analogy of a judge to an umpire; it's an oversimplification, but it is fundamentally true.

Do you believe that empathy is an important quality for a judge?

Yes. Sometimes even the right rulings have negative effects on the losing side. A judge should know and understand those effects as motivation to make sure that the answer given is the legally correct one.

Have you ever been rated by a Bar Association? If so, what was the rating?

Yes, in 2008, 2014, 2020, and 2022, by the Illinois State Bar Association (in some instances in conjunction with the Winnebago County Bar Association). In all instances, my rating was "recommended." I have not received an overall qualified rating from lawyers of less than 92%.

Why are you running for this particular court seat?

I began my legal career as an appellate court law clerk. It was great preparation to be an effective lawyer, and an ethical one. I left that position with a great admiration for the judicial branch, but I did not assume that I would earn the credentials to become a judge myself one day. I worked hard as a lawyer to be successful, but I also worked with our bar association and local courts to make our judicial system better. When the opportunity arose to join the bench, I finally judged myself ready and jumped at the opportunity. The same thing occurred when I was assigned to serve in the appellate court. In each position, I have an accumulation of experience and ability that I think are well-matched to the challenge presented. I come to the job with a great degree of humility, understanding how supremely fortunate I am to have been given the opportunity to employ my skills in such a critical position. I know that people depend on our job being done faithfully, fairly, and well, and I hope the voters give me the opportunity to continue to serve.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for a judge to have previous experience in government or politics?

I have known excellent judges with such experience, and others without it. But a judge with government or political experience must be committed to putting it aside in order to fully commit to the neutral role of a judge.

What is your primary concern about today's legal system in your state?

I am greatly concerned that legal representation is beyond the financial means of an increasing proportion of litigants. Our courts are built on the adversary system, which in turn relies on each side to make its case and allow the judge to choose between those arguments. When one side of a case is represented and the other is not, the system doesn't work as well and judges are required to guard the rights of the unrepresented without becoming advocates themselves.

What do you consider the greatest opportunity for the legal system in your state?

It's often true in life that the greatest challenges also come with the greatest opportunity. I count artificial intelligence (AI) in this category. We must ensure that AI is not utilized to diminish the human decision making of our judicial system. Still, AI provides possibilities for self-represented litigants to level the playing field in our courtrooms.

Would you be interested in serving on a higher court in the future? If so, which court appeals to you?

It is my expectation that the appellate court will be my final judicial position.

Do you believe that Bar Association ratings are an accurate reflection of a judge’s ability?

In general, yes. The more people who weigh in on a question, the more reliable it generally is.

What are your views on financial transparency and government accountability?

With respect to the judicial system, I believe that we must be transparent but honor in many instances the confidentiality the law affords to certain types of confidential cases. I am very pleased that our Supreme Court is making every effort to increase transparency of our branch.

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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Eugene G. Doherty campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	Illinois 4th District Appellate Court	Won general	$63,063	$10,536
Grand total			$63,063	$10,536
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

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Footnotes

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