Anna M. Valencia

Anna M. Valencia (born January 16, 1985) is an American politician who serves as the City Clerk of Chicago. She was appointed to the position vacated by Susana Mendoza, and took office in 2017.[1] She was elected to a full term as City Clerk in 2019.[2]

Anna Valencia
City Clerk of Chicago
Assumed office
January 25, 2017
Preceded bySusana Mendoza
Personal details
Born (1985-01-16) January 16, 1985
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)
Reyahd Kazmi
​
(m. 2013)​
Children1
EducationUniversity of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (BA)

Early life and education

Valencia was raised in Granite City, Illinois, the daughter of Joe and Debbie Valencia.[3] She is of Mexican descent.[3] She attended the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Studies.[3]

Early political career

Valencia was a staff member for Mike Quigley's congressional election campaign in 2009 and for Michigan Representative Gary Peters's congressional election campaign in 20010. Valencia was a member of a Legislative Counsel and Government Affairs team for Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel in 2011 and later served as its director from April 2016 until January 2017.[4] She was the campaign manager for Senator Dick Durbin in 2014. In 2015, she was a Senior Advisor for Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s re-election campaign.[5]

City Clerk

She was appointed as City Clerk in December 2016, and was sworn into office on January 25, 2017.[6][1]

She ran to continue her tenure as City Clerk in the 2019 election. After two challengers were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures, she was unopposed and won election to a full term.[2]

Municipal ID program

In the fall of 2016, $1 million was set aside in the City Clerk's budget for Chicago's Municipal ID program which will allow all residents the ability to apply for a government-issued ID.[7] Since taking office, Valencia has announced that the Municipal ID card will be a three-in-one card so that it can also be used as transit and library cards.[8] In December 2017, Clerk Valencia announced the pilot program and that the card would be called the "CityKey" with the first 100,000 IDs being free.[9]

Personal life

Valencia is married and lives in Chicago.[10] On April 15, 2020, she gave birth to a daughter, Reyana Joy Valencia Kazmi.[11]

References
  1. "With two standing ovations, Valencia sworn in as city clerk". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2019-03-02.
  2. "City Clerk Anna Valencia wins re-election after rivals tossed off ballot". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2019-03-02.
  3. Eadens, Savannah (October 2, 2017). "Notable Native: Anna Valencia". Columbia Chronicle.
  4. "Anna Valencia, new City Clerk of Chicago".
  5. Dardick, John Byrne, Hal. "Mayor Emanuel picks 31-year-old City Council liaison for city clerk".
  6. Spielman, Fran (2016-12-14). "A star is born: Emanuel chooses Valencia as city clerk". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2020-11-19.
  7. "City Sets Aside $1 Million for Municipal ID Program". WTTW News. Retrieved 2020-11-19.
  8. "You Can Use Chicago's New Municipal ID for the CTA, Library". NBC Chicago. Retrieved 2020-11-19.
  9. Spielman, Fran (2017-12-14). "Chicago's municipal ID card will be called 'CityKey' and cost $10". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2020-11-19.
  10. "Mayor Names Anna Valencia As New City Clerk". DNAinfo Chicago. Archived from the original on 2018-05-17. Retrieved 2018-03-13.
  11. Anna Valencia [@AnnaValenciaIL] (April 16, 2020). "Reyahd and I are excited to announce the arrival of Reyana Joy Valencia Kazmi, Tuesday April 15th, 6:25am at a fighting weight of 8lbs and 20 inches long. Thank you for all of the well wishes and prayers for our family. We are healthy and staying home. God Bless!" (Tweet). Retrieved May 19, 2020 – via Twitter.
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