Cook County Circuit Court Judge Jill Rose Quinn appears on the Nov. 3 ballot in a nonpartisan retention vote. Voters across Cook County, including North Shore residents in New Trier Township, will decide whether Quinn keeps her seat on the bench.

In a retention vote, no challenger appears on the ballot. Voters simply choose "yes" or "no" on whether a sitting judge remains. Circuit Court judges hear civil, criminal and family cases at the trial level.

Quinn became the first openly transgender circuit court judge in Illinois when she won election to the Cook County Circuit Court in November 2020, according to her Lavender Law Conference speaker profile. She was also the first openly transgender elected official in the state, according to the same profile.

Candidate information

  • Office sought: Illinois Circuit Court Judge, Cook County Circuit (retention)
  • Election date: Nov. 3, 2026
  • Party: Nonpartisan
  • Background: Grew up in Queens, New York. Youngest of four siblings.
  • Education: Bachelor's in political science and government, State University of New York at Binghamton (1976); juris doctor, University of Illinois at Chicago

Experience and public service

Quinn's legal career spans more than four decades.

She worked as a food program specialist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture starting in 1979, then as a community organizer in Texas and Des Moines, Iowa, according to the Cook County Democratic Party. She began practicing law in 1983 at a firm in Bloomington, Illinois.

Quinn served as village attorney for Glen Ellyn from 1983 to 1990. She then worked as an arbitrator in DuPage County from 1990 to 1993 and in Cook County from 1993 to 1997. She has operated The Law Office of Jill Rose Quinn since 1997.

Quinn has served on the bench since 2020, according to the court's website.

Her professional memberships, according to her LAGBAC profile, include:

  • Illinois Judges Association
  • Alliance of Illinois Judges
  • Illinois State Bar Association
  • Chicago Bar Association
  • Women's Bar Association of Illinois
  • Cook County Bar Association
  • Chicago Council of Lawyers
  • National LGBT Bar Association
  • International Association of LGBTQ+ Judges

On the issues

LGBTQ+ rights and the judiciary: Quinn has said her perspective as a member of the transgender community and as a sole practitioner brings a unique dimension to the Cook County bench, according to her Lavender Law Conference speaker profile. She has said she has educated other judges about parenting time when children are transgender or when parents are transgender.

Endorsements

Quinn has received the following endorsement, as claimed by the endorsing organization:

  • Cook County Democratic Party

Candidate information is drawn from producer-reviewed public sources including BallotReady, the Cook County Circuit Court, the Cook County Democratic Party, the Lavender Law Conference and the candidate's LAGBAC profile. Positions attributed to Quinn reflect her own statements.