Cook County Sheriff

Cook County Sheriff
Incumbent
Tom Dart
since December 2006
Term length
  • 4 years
Inaugural holderJohn H. Kinzie
Formation1831

The Cook County Sheriff is the sheriff of Cook County, Illinois, heading the Cook County Sheriff's Office.

Office description

Terms are currently four-years in length.

Officeholders

Sherriff Term in office Party Notes Cite
 John H. Kinzie 1831–1832 Appointed by governor John Reynolds
Stephen R. Forbes 1832–1834 Cook County's first elected sheriff
Silas W. Sherman 1834–1838 Democratic
Isaac R. Gavin 1838–1840 Independent Democrat
Ashbel Steele 1840–1842
Samuel J. Lowe 1842–1846
Isaac Cook 1846–1850
William L. Church 1850–1852
Cyrus Bradley 1852–1854
James Andrew 1854–1855
James Beach 1855–1856 (acting)
John L. Wilson 1856–1858
John Gray 1859–1860
Anton C. Hesing 1860–1862 Republican
David Hammond 1862–1864
John A. Nelson 1864–1866
John Lourie Beveridge 1866–1868 Republican
Gustav Fischer 1868–1870 Absconded in 1869
Benjamin L. Cleaves 1870 Simultaneously ex officio Cook County Coroner
Timothy Bradley 1870–1872
Charles Kern 1872–1878 Democratic
John Hoffman 1878–1880 Republican
Orrin L. Mann 1880–1882 Republican Elected in 1880
Seth Hanchett 1882–1886 Republican
Canute R. Matson 1886–1890 Republican
James H. Gilbert 1890–1894
James Pease 1894–1898 Republican
Ernest Magerstadt 1899–1902 Republican
Thomas E. Barrett 1902–1906 Democratic
Christopher Strassheim 1906–1910 Republican
Michael Zimmer 1910–1914 Democratic
John E. Traeger 1914–1918 Democratic
Charles W. Peters 1918–1922 Republican
Peter M. Hoffman December 1922–December 26, 1926 Republican
Charles E. Graydon December 29, 1926–December 1928
John E. Traeger December 3, 1928–December 1930 Democratic Had previously served as sheriff
William D. Meyering 1930–1934 Democratic
John Toman 1934–1938
Thomas J. O'Brien 1938–1942 Democratic
A. L. Brodie 1942–1943
Michael F. Mulcahy
Elmer Michael Walsh 1946-1950 Republican Elected in 1946
John E. Babb 1950–1954 Republican
Joseph D. Lohman 1954–1958 Democrat
Frank G. Sain 1958-1962 Democrat
Richard B. Ogilvie 1962–1966 Republican
Joseph I. Woods 1966–1970 Republican
Richard Elrod 1970–1986 Democratic
James E. O'Grady 1986–1990 Republican Elected in 1986; lost reelection in 1990
Michael F. Sheahan 1990–2006 Democratic Elected in 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002
Tom Dart 2006–present Democratic Elected in 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022

Election results

References

  1. 1 2 "Organized Crime & Political Corruption". www.ipsn.org. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Encyclopedia letter K". earlychicago.com. Early Chicago - Chicago History. Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  3. ↑ East, Ernest E. (1944). "The Inhabitants of Chicago, 1825-1831". Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society. 37 (2): 131–163. JSTOR 40188099. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  4. 1 2 Healy, Daniel David (1909). History of Cook County, Illinois--: Being a General Survey of Cook County History, Including a Condensed History of Chicago and Special Account of Districts Outside the City Limits; from the Earliest Settlement to the Present Time. Goodspeed Historical Association. pp. 324, 330, 331. ISBN 9780608368931. Retrieved October 25, 2020. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Fergus' Historical Series, Issues 1-10. Fergus Printing Company. 1876. p. 598.
  6. ↑ "John Lourie Beveridge". National Governors Association. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  7. ↑ "Illinois Governors: John Beveridge". www.illinoisancestors.org. Illinois Ancestors. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Ahern, M. L. (1886). Political History of Chicago: (covering the Period from 1837 to 1887) Local Politics from the City's Birth; Chicago's Mayors, Aldermen and Other Officials; County and Federal Officers; the Fire and Police Departments; the Haymarket Horror; Miscellaneous. Donohue & Henneberry, printers and binders. pp. 21, 86, 154, 158. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  9. ↑ "Image 7 of Chicago daily tribune (Chicago, Ill.), December 1, 1878". Chicago Tribune. December 1, 1878. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  10. ↑ "GENERAL O. L. MANN". Newspapers.com. The Inter Ocean (Chicago). November 1, 1880. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  11. ↑ "The...". Newspapers.com. The Inter Ocean (Chicago). October 20, 1882. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  12. ↑ "SETH HANCHETT'S RECEPTION". Newspapers.com. The Inter Ocean (Chicago). December 1, 1882. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  13. ↑ Illinois Political Directory and Sketch Book, 1898: With Portraits of Party Leaders, Volume 1. Chicago: Bodine & Co. 1898.
  14. ↑ "The Political Graveyard: Knights of Columbus, politicians, Illinois". politicalgraveyard.com. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  15. ↑ "The Political Graveyard: Cook County, Ill". politicalgraveyard.com. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 The Chicago Daily News Almanac and Year Book for ... Chicago Daily News Company. 1921. p. 598.
  17. 1 2 "Organized Crime & Political Corruption". www.ipsn.org. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Will this log cabin built by Capone-era sheriff be saved?". Crain's Chicago Business. July 10, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  19. 1 2 "GRAYDON WILL TAKE OFFICE AS SHERIFF TODAY". Newspapers.com. Chicago Tribune. December 29, 1926. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 "Cook County". Illinois Sheriffs' Association. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  21. ↑ "LIUET. COLLINS NAMED CHIEF OF HIGHWAY POLICE". Newspapers.com. Chicago Tribune. December 1, 1928.
  22. ↑ "Illinois blue book, 1945-1946". State of Illinois. p. 645. Retrieved March 14, 2025.
  23. 1 2 "Organized Crime & Political Corruption". www.ipsn.org. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  24. ↑ "Press, Democrats of Cook County Select Sain". The Daily Chronicle. January 9, 1958. p. 1.
  25. 1 2 3 "Chicago Daily News Almanac". Chicago Daily News Company. 1911. pp. 511–512. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
  26. 1 2 The Chicago Daily News Almanac and Year Book for ... Chicago Daily News Company. 1921. p. 784. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  27. ↑ "Official Final Results General Election Cook County, Illinois Tuesday, November 4, 1986" (PDF). voterinfo.net. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 3, 2008.
  28. ↑ "OFFICIAL FINAL RESULTS GENERAL ELECTION COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 1990" (PDF). voterinfo.net. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 3, 2008.
  29. ↑ "OFFICIAL FINAL RESULTS GENERAL ELECTION COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1998" (PDF). results.cookcountyclerkil.gov.
  30. ↑ "TABULATED STATEMENT OF THE RETURNS AND PROCLAMATION OF THE RESULTS OF THE CANVASS OF THE ELECTION RETURNS FOR THE GENERAL ELECTION HELD IN EACH OF THE PRECINCTS IN ALL THE WARDS IN THE CITY OF CHICAGO ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2002 A.D." (PDF). Chicago Board of Election Commissioners. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  31. ↑ "SUBURBAN COOK COUNTY RESULTS". voterinfonet.com. Cook County Clerk. Archived from the original on February 9, 2005.
  32. ↑ "Cook County and the City of Chicago Combined Summary Report November 2006 General Election Tuesday, November 7th, 2006" (PDF). Cook County Clerk's Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 22, 2021. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  33. ↑ "Cook County General Election November 2, 2010 Combined Summary Report" (PDF). Cook County Clerk's Office. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  34. ↑ "General Election Cook County and The City of Chicago Tuesday, November 4, 2014 Combined Summary" (PDF). Cook County Clerk's Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 28, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  35. ↑ "Cook County and The City of Chicago General Election November 6, 2018 Combined Summary" (PDF). Cook County Clerk's Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 8, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
  36. ↑ "Tabulated Statement of the Returns and Proclamation of the Results of the Canvass of the Election Returns for the November 8, 2022 Gubernatorial General Election Held in Each of the Precincts in Cook County, Illinois Including the City of Chicago" (PDF). www.cookcountyclerkil.gov. Cook County Clerk. 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2022.