Sonya Harper

Sonya Harper

Democratic Party

Candidate, Illinois House of Representatives District 6

Illinois House of Representatives District 6

Tenure

2015 - Present

Term ends

2027

Years in position

11

Compensation

Base salary

$93,712/year

Per diem

$178/day

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 5, 2024

Next election

March 17, 2026

Contact

Official website

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Sonya Harper (Democratic Party) is a member of the Illinois House of Representatives, representing District 6. She assumed office in 2015. Her current term ends on January 13, 2027.

Harper (Democratic Party) is running for re-election to the Illinois House of Representatives to represent District 6. She declared candidacy for the Democratic primary scheduled on March 17, 2026.^[source]

Committee assignments

2025-2026

Harper was assigned to the following committees:

• Agriculture & Conservation Committee, Chair
• Appropriations-Public Safety Committee
• Energy & Environment Committee
• Immigration & Human Rights Committee
• Revenue & Finance Committee

2023-2024

Harper was assigned to the following committees:

• Agriculture & Conservation Committee, Chair
• Appropriations-Public Safety Committee
• Economic Opportunity & Equity Committee
• Elementary & Secondary Education: School Curriculum & Policies Committee (decommissioned)
• Energy & Environment Committee
• Health Care Availability & Accessibility Committee
• Revenue & Finance Committee

2021-2022

Harper was assigned to the following committees:

• Appropriations-Public Safety Committee
• Economic Opportunity & Equity Committee
• Elementary & Secondary Education: School Curriculum & Policies Committee (decommissioned)
• Energy & Environment Committee
• Health Care Availability & Accessibility Committee
• Agriculture & Conservation Committee, Chair
• Revenue & Finance Committee

2019-2020

Harper was assigned to the following committees:

• Appropriations-Public Safety Committee
• Agriculture & Conservation Committee, Chair
• Elementary & Secondary Education School Curriculum Policies Committee
• House Human Services Committee
• Economic Opportunity & Equity Committee, Chair
• Energy & Environment Committee

2017 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:

Elections

2026

See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2026

General election

The primary will occur on March 17, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 6

Incumbent Sonya Harper (D) is running in the Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on March 17, 2026.

		Candidate
		Sonya Harper

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Endorsements

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2024

See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2024

General election

General election for Illinois House of Representatives District 6

Incumbent Sonya Harper defeated Sean Dwyer in the general election for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sonya Harper (D)	82.3	21,884
	Submit photo	Sean Dwyer (R)	17.7	4,697

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 26,581
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 6

Incumbent Sonya Harper defeated Joseph G. Williams in the Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sonya Harper	73.1	5,897
		Joseph G. Williams	26.9	2,173

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 8,070
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 6

Sean Dwyer advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Sean Dwyer	100.0	464

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 464
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Harper in this election.

2022

See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2022

General election

General election for Illinois House of Representatives District 6

Incumbent Sonya Harper defeated Leonard Griffin in the general election for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sonya Harper (D)	86.6	16,019
		Leonard Griffin (R)	13.4	2,484

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 18,503
= 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 6

Incumbent Sonya Harper defeated Carolynn Crump in the Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sonya Harper	71.7	5,055
		Carolynn Crump	28.3	1,997

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 7,052
= 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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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Steven Williams (D)

2020

See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2020

General election

General election for Illinois House of Representatives District 6

Incumbent Sonya Harper won election in the general election for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sonya Harper (D)	100.0	32,219

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 32,219
= 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 6

Incumbent Sonya Harper advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on March 17, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sonya Harper	100.0	12,954

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 12,954
= 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.

2018

See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2018

General election

General election for Illinois House of Representatives District 6

Incumbent Sonya Harper won election in the general election for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sonya Harper (D)	100.0	26,000

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 26,000
= 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 6

Incumbent Sonya Harper advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois House of Representatives District 6 on March 20, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sonya Harper	100.0	11,564

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 11,564
= 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.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Kenyatta Nicole Vaughn (D)

2016

See also: Illinois House of Representatives elections, 2016

Elections for the Illinois House of Representatives were held in 2016. The primary election was held on March 15, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was November 30, 2015.

Incumbent Sonya Harper ran unopposed in the Illinois House of Representatives District 6 general election.

Illinois House of Representatives, District 6 General Election, 2016
Party		Candidate
	Democratic	Sonya Harper Incumbent (unopposed)
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections

Incumbent Sonya Harper defeated Darryl Smith, Genita Robinson and Kenyatta Vaughn in the Illinois House of Representatives District 6 Democratic primary. Eddie Johnson was removed from the ballot before the primary election.

Illinois House of Representatives, District 6 Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Sonya Harper Incumbent	32.68%	7,348
	Democratic	Darryl Smith	24.84%	5,585
	Democratic	Genita Robinson	22.32%	5,019
	Democratic	Kenyatta Vaughn	20.15%	4,530
Total Votes				22,482

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

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2024

Sonya Harper did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Sonya Harper did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Sonya Harper did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign finance summary

---

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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Sonya Harper campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024	Illinois House of Representatives District 6	Won general	$294,696	$176,824
2022	Illinois House of Representatives District 6	Won general	$335,055	$159,425
2020	Illinois House of Representatives District 6	Won general	$100,888	N/A**
2018	Illinois House of Representatives District 6	Won general	$80,894	N/A**
2016	Illinois House of Representatives, District 21	Won	$229,197	N/A**
Grand total			$1,040,730	$336,249
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
** 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.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

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.

2020

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show].

In 2020, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 8 to May 23. Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Illinois Parents of Adults with Developmental Disabilities Legislators are scored on their votes on bills that "help or hinder Illinois citizens with developmental disabilities access more included lives in their homes and communities." National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2019

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show].

In 2019, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 9 through December 31. Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Illinois Parents of Adults with Developmental Disabilities Legislators are scored on their votes on bills that "help or hinder Illinois citizens with developmental disabilities access more included lives in their homes and communities."' Technology and Manufacturing Association Legislators are scored on their votes on manufacturing issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2018

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show].

In 2018, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 8 through May 31. Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Illinois Parents of Adults with Developmental Disabilities Legislators are scored on their votes on bills that "help or hinder Illinois citizens with developmental disabilities access more included lives in their homes and communities."' Technology and Manufacturing Association Legislators are scored on their votes on manufacturing issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2017

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show].

In 2017, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 11 through May 31. There were also special sessions. The 1st special session was June 21-July 6. The 2nd special session was July 26-July 31. During the 3rd special session, the Senate met on August 13, and the House met on August 16. The 4th special session was on August 28-29. There was a veto session from October 24-November 9. Citizen Action Illinois Legislators are scored on votes on bills that the organization believes show "dedication to social and economic justice as well as protecting Illinois’ consumers." Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Illinois Parents of Adults with Developmental Disabilities Legislators are scored on their votes on bills that "help or hinder Illinois citizens with developmental disabilities access more included lives in their homes and communities."' Technology and Manufacturing Association Legislators are scored on their votes on manufacturing issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2016

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show].

In 2016, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 13 through May 31. Citizen Action Illinois Legislators are scored on votes on bills that the organization believes show "dedication to social and economic justice as well as protecting Illinois’ consumers." Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Illinois Parents of Adults with Developmental Disabilities Legislators are scored on their votes on bills that "help or hinder Illinois citizens with developmental disabilities access more included lives in their homes and communities." National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2015

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show].

In 2015, the Illinois State Legislature was in session from January 14 through December 7 (extended session). Illinois Environmental Council Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Technology and Manufacturing Association Legislators are scored on their votes on manufacturing issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

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Officeholder

Illinois House of Representatives District 6

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by -	Illinois House of Representatives District 6 2015-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-Dina 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

Margaret DeLaRosa (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

Justin Cochran (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 (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)