CHICAGO â Kwame Raoul, Democratic candidate for Attorney General, was endorsed today by U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris (D-CA).
âKwame Raoul is already a great leader in Illinois for commonsense sentencing reform, justice for the wrongly convicted, and programs that help juvenile and adult ex-offenders stay out of trouble,â Harris said. âHeâll be able to accomplish even more as attorney general, and I canât wait to see the innovations that come out of Illinois with Kwame as its top lawyer.â
âIâm honored to have Sen. Harrisâ endorsement,â Raoul said. âHer work on criminal justice reform has informed and inspired me. Iâm also grateful for the example of her courageous advocacy as she stands strong for healthcare access, a womanâs right to choose and â particularly during the current confirmation hearing â for survivors of sexual assault.â
As California attorney general and in the U.S. Senate, Harris has pushed for âsmart on crimeâ policies such as ending cash bail for those too poor to pay, funding job training programs for nonviolent and juvenile offenders, and requiring police officers to use body cameras and undergo implicit bias training.
Known in the General Assembly for his leadership on criminal justice reform, Raoul has passed tougher penalties for violent and repeat offenders while spearheading innovative approaches to getting first-time and non-violent offenders the resources they need to stay out of prison. Legislation he has sponsored during his 14 years in the Illinois Senate has addressed exoneration of the wrongly-convicted, expungement and sealing of criminal records, employment opportunities for people with records, police reform, and moving juveniles out of adult courts and prisons. Raoul has also advocated to reform our cash bail system.