Daniel Hynes
Encyclopedia
Daniel W. Hynes is an American
politician, formerly the Illinois Comptroller.
. He attended St. Ignatius College Prep
in Chicago
, where he graduated in 1986. Hynes later attended the University of Notre Dame
, where he graduated magna cum laude in 1990 with a Bachelor of Sciences degree in economics and computer applications. He received his Juris Doctor
degree with honors from Loyola University Chicago
's School of Law in 1993. Daniel Hynes served as a health care attorney at the Chicago law firm of Hogan, Marren and McCahill, Ltd.
He is the son of Thomas Hynes, a former Cook County
assessor, president of the Illinois Senate
and Democratic Ward committeeman of the 19th ward in Chicago, Illinois.
Hynes married Christina Kerger, M.D. in June 1999 and currently resides in the city of Chicago
and Springfield, Illinois
.
, since William Stratton
was elected Treasurer
of Illinois
in 1942. Since first entering office in 1999, he was the first Comptroller to establish a "Rainy Day Fund" for Illinois
as a way to secure funding for the state whenever there is a slowdown in revenue. Hynes also spearheaded bipartisan reform of laws governing the state's private cemeteries and funeral homes (which his office regulates) in 2001, the most extensive overhaul of these industries in 25 years.
Dan Hynes has sponsored new legislation that prohibited tax scofflaws from receiving state contracts. He also introduced legislation in 2003, that would do the same to corporations that have falsified their financial reports. Among his other measures as Comptroller, was to reform the Local Government Division of his office, increasing the percentage of compliance from Illinois
's local government units in financial reporting from 65 to 95 percent. Hynes also expanded the office's commercial direct deposit program, encouraging state vendors to receive payments electronically, which saves taxpayer money and improves efficiency. Daniel Hynes was elected to a second term as Comptroller
on November 5, 2002, with a margin of more than one million votes. He was elected to a third term in 2006 by a similarly large margin.
for his party's nomination for the United States Senate
, finishing second to State Senator Barack Obama
, who went on to win the general election in November.
In September 2006, in an open letter published in the Chicago Sun-Times
, Hynes endorsed drafting Obama into the 2008 presidential race
. Hynes spoke on the first day of the 2008 Democratic National Convention
in Denver
, Colorado
, lauding Obama.
for the Democratic nomination for Governor of Illinois
, formally announcing his campaign on September 2, 2009. His campaign received the endorsement of former United States Senator Adlai E. Stevenson III. His newspaper endorsements included the Daily Herald, Kane County Chronicle
, Northwest Herald
, South Suburban News, Peoria Journal Star
, The News-Gazette (Champaign-Urbana), The State Journal-Register (Springfield), and the Southtown Star.
After a close vote, on February 4, 2010, Dan Hynes conceded to Governor Quinn and pledged his support to Quinn in the general election.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician, formerly the Illinois Comptroller.
Background
Hynes was born in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. He attended St. Ignatius College Prep
St. Ignatius College Prep
Saint Ignatius College Prep is a private, coeducational Jesuit high school located in Chicago, Illinois. The school was founded in Chicago in 1870 by Fr. Arnold Damen, S.J., a Belgian missionary to the United States. The school is coeducational, Catholic, college preparatory and sponsored by the...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, where he graduated in 1986. Hynes later attended the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
, where he graduated magna cum laude in 1990 with a Bachelor of Sciences degree in economics and computer applications. He received his Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
degree with honors from Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago is a private Jesuit research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1870 under the title St...
's School of Law in 1993. Daniel Hynes served as a health care attorney at the Chicago law firm of Hogan, Marren and McCahill, Ltd.
He is the son of Thomas Hynes, a former Cook County
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...
assessor, president of the Illinois Senate
Illinois Senate
The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the state of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. The Illinois Senate is made up of 59 senators elected from...
and Democratic Ward committeeman of the 19th ward in Chicago, Illinois.
Hynes married Christina Kerger, M.D. in June 1999 and currently resides in the city of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
and Springfield, Illinois
Springfield, Illinois
Springfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
.
As Illinois Comptroller
Hynes was first elected Illinois Comptroller on November 3, 1998 at the age of 30. At the time, he was the youngest elected statewide constitutional officer in IllinoisIllinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, since William Stratton
William Stratton
William Grant Stratton , known as "Billy the Kid", was the 32nd Governor of the U.S. state of Illinois from 1953 to 1961, succeeding Adlai Stevenson II in that office. He was born on in Ingleside in Lake County, Illinois, the son of William J...
was elected Treasurer
Treasurer
A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The adjective for a treasurer is normally "tresorial". The adjective "treasurial" normally means pertaining to a treasury, rather than the treasurer.-Government:...
of Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
in 1942. Since first entering office in 1999, he was the first Comptroller to establish a "Rainy Day Fund" for Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
as a way to secure funding for the state whenever there is a slowdown in revenue. Hynes also spearheaded bipartisan reform of laws governing the state's private cemeteries and funeral homes (which his office regulates) in 2001, the most extensive overhaul of these industries in 25 years.
Dan Hynes has sponsored new legislation that prohibited tax scofflaws from receiving state contracts. He also introduced legislation in 2003, that would do the same to corporations that have falsified their financial reports. Among his other measures as Comptroller, was to reform the Local Government Division of his office, increasing the percentage of compliance from Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
's local government units in financial reporting from 65 to 95 percent. Hynes also expanded the office's commercial direct deposit program, encouraging state vendors to receive payments electronically, which saves taxpayer money and improves efficiency. Daniel Hynes was elected to a second term as Comptroller
Comptroller
A comptroller is a management level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization.In British government, the Comptroller General or Comptroller and Auditor General is in most countries the external auditor of the budget execution of the...
on November 5, 2002, with a margin of more than one million votes. He was elected to a third term in 2006 by a similarly large margin.
U.S. Senate campaign
In 2004 Hynes was an unsuccessful candidate in the Democratic primary electionPrimary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
for his party's nomination for the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, finishing second to State Senator Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, who went on to win the general election in November.
In September 2006, in an open letter published in the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
, Hynes endorsed drafting Obama into the 2008 presidential race
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
. Hynes spoke on the first day of the 2008 Democratic National Convention
2008 Democratic National Convention
The United States 2008 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial presidential nominating convention of the Democratic Party where it adopted its national platform and officially nominated its candidates for President and Vice President of the United States. The convention was held in Denver,...
in Denver
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, lauding Obama.
2010 campaign for Illinois governor
Hynes challenged Governor Pat QuinnPat Quinn (politician)
Patrick Joseph "Pat" Quinn III is the 41st and current Governor of Illinois. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Previously elected three times to statewide office, Quinn was the sitting lieutenant governor and became governor on January 29, 2009, when the previous governor, Rod Blagojevich,...
for the Democratic nomination for Governor of Illinois
Governor of Illinois
The Governor of Illinois is the chief executive of the State of Illinois and the various agencies and departments over which the officer has jurisdiction, as prescribed in the state constitution. It is a directly elected position, votes being cast by popular suffrage of residents of the state....
, formally announcing his campaign on September 2, 2009. His campaign received the endorsement of former United States Senator Adlai E. Stevenson III. His newspaper endorsements included the Daily Herald, Kane County Chronicle
Kane County Chronicle
Kane County Chronicle is a daily newspaper serving Kane County, Illinois.-Market:The Kane County Chronicle serves central Kane County, located in the Fox Valley region of Illinois, about 40 miles west of Chicago.-History:...
, Northwest Herald
Northwest Herald
The Northwest Herald is a daily newspaper published in Crystal Lake, Illinois. The paper has a circulation of nearly 33,000 with a coverage area of McHenry County and northern Kane County in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago....
, South Suburban News, Peoria Journal Star
Peoria Journal Star
The Journal Star is the major daily newspaper for Peoria, Illinois and surrounding area. First owned locally, then employee-owned, it became a Copley-owned entity in 1996. In 2007, the paper was sold to Fairport, New York-based GateHouse Media.-History:...
, The News-Gazette (Champaign-Urbana), The State Journal-Register (Springfield), and the Southtown Star.
After a close vote, on February 4, 2010, Dan Hynes conceded to Governor Quinn and pledged his support to Quinn in the general election.
Electoral history
- 1998 Democratic Primary Election for Comptroller
- Daniel Hynes (D), unopposed
- 1998 General Election for Comptroller
- Daniel Hynes (D), 58.6%
- Chris LauzenChris LauzenChristopher J. Lauzen is a Republican member of the Illinois State Senate. Lauzen was first elected in 1992, has been re-elected to the State Senate in 1996, 2000, 2002, 2006, and 2010, and ran for Illinois Comptroller in 1998 and Congress in 2008...
(R), 39.6% - Houstoun McIntosh Sadler II (Reform), 1.7%
- 2002 Democratic Primary Election for Comptroller
- Daniel Hynes (D) (inc.), unopposed
- 2002 General Election for Comptroller
- Daniel Hynes (D) (inc.), 63.2%
- Thomas Jefferson Ramsdell (R), 30.6%
- Julie Fox (Libertarian), 4.2%
- 2004 Democratic Primary Election for U.S. Senate.
- Barack ObamaBarack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, 52.8% - Daniel Hynes, 23.7%
- Blair HullBlair HullM. Blair Hull is an American businessman, investor, Democratic politician, and philanthropist.Hull founded Hull Trading Company in 1985 and served as the firm’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer before selling it to Goldman Sachs in 1999 for $531 million...
, 10.8% - Maria Pappas, 6.0%
- Gery Chico, 4.3%
- Nancy Skinner, 1.3%
- Joyce Washington, 1.1%
- Barack Obama
- 2006 Democratic Primary Election for Comptroller
- Daniel Hynes (D) (inc.), unopposed
- 2006 General Election for Comptroller
- Daniel Hynes (D) (inc.), 64.2%
- Carole PankauCarole PankauCarole Pankau is a Republican Illinois State Senator, representing the 23rd district since 2005. She currently serves as Minority Whip. The Minority Whip is the second highest-ranking individual in the minority party , outranked only by the Minority Leader...
(R), 31.5% - Alicia Snyder (Green), 4.3%
- 2010 Democratic Primary Election for Governor
- Pat QuinnPat Quinn (politician)Patrick Joseph "Pat" Quinn III is the 41st and current Governor of Illinois. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Previously elected three times to statewide office, Quinn was the sitting lieutenant governor and became governor on January 29, 2009, when the previous governor, Rod Blagojevich,...
(D) (inc.), 50.4% - Daniel Hynes (D), 49.6%
- Pat Quinn
External links
- Dan Hynes for Governor official campaign website
- Illinois Comptroller Daniel W. Hynes official state government website
- Profile from Project Vote SmartProject Vote SmartProject Vote Smart is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States...
- Follow the Money - Daniel W. Hynes
- Dan Hynes interview with Elizabeth BrackettElizabeth BrackettElizabeth Brackett is a Chicago-based correspondent and host for WTTW-TV's Chicago Tonight program, a correspondent for PBS' The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and an author...
on WTTWWTTWWTTW channel 11 is one of three Public Broadcasting Service member public television stations serving the Chicago, Illinois market; the others are WYCC and WYIN. WTTW began broadcasting on September 6, 1955 and it is owned and operated by Window to the World Communications, Inc., a not-for-profit...
, December 15, 2009