Chicago ward committeepeople are on the 2024 primary ballot — what do they do?

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Chicago ward committeepersons are up for election in the March 19 primary – but what exactly does a ward committeeperson do?

A ward committeeperson works in an unpaid position on behalf of a political party organization, rather than the public at large. All 50 of Chicago's wards, can elect a Democratic and a Republican committeepeople.

Ward committeepersons help their party decide which candidates to endorse in elections, and help fill vacancies in elected offices such as members of the U.S. Congress and the Illinois General Assembly.

They also help the party with fundraising efforts and organize get-out-the vote efforts at election time.

Committeepeople also have the power to assign election judges for their respective parties for each precinct of their wards.

Committeepeople used to be more powerful than today

Historically, committeepeople — or committeemen, as they were formerly known, regardless of gender — were far more powerful, as they were directly in charge of political patronage jobs in their ward. As explained in a 1984 New York Times article, "Precinct workers who turned out the vote were hired, and those who did not were demoted or dismissed."

But a series of federal court orders dating back more than 40 years ago barred political patronage hiring, and thus, committeepeople no longer have such powers.

Many alderpeople also serve as committeepeople

Many sitting Democratic ward committeepeople are also the aldermen of their wards — for example, Daniel La Spata in the 1st Ward, Pat Dowell in the 3rd, Raymond Lopez in the 15th, David Moore in the 17th, and Matt O'Shea in the 19th, among many others.

In some instances, former alderpeople remain in the committeeperson roles for their wards. In some cases, these are recent former alderpeople who decided not to run for reelection last year, such as Leslie Hairston (5th) and Tom Tunney (44th). But other sitting committeepeople have not been alders anytime recently, such as Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who served as alderwoman of the 4th Ward from 1991 until 2010.

In other instances still, the committeepeople have never been alders at all — such as Cook County Commissioner John Daley in the 11th, voter registration activist and small business owner Maggie O'Keefe in the 40th, and Illinois state Rep. Kelly Cassidy in the 49th.

Former House Speaker Michael Madigan is still Democratic committeeperson for the 13th Ward as of March 2024, but Madigan — who is set to go on trial on racketeering charges later this year — is not running for reelection to the post.

GOP committeepeople are often lesser known in Chicago

In overwhelmingly Democratic Chicago, Republican committeepeople tend not to be as well-known names — and some GOP committeepeople seats are currently vacant. Chicago Republican Party Chairman Steve Boulton serves as GOP committeeperson for the 32nd Ward, while Executive Director Mike Bendas holds the post in the 11th.

The Chicago Republican Party maintains a list of ward committeepeople, as well as candidates for the March 19 primary.

There have been calls in recent years to do away with the ward committeeperson post altogether. In a 2019 column, Chicago Magazine writer Edward McClelland argued that committepeople are "an anachronistic vestige of Chicago's Machine politics," and have used "nepotism, cronyism, and all-around backroom dealing" in exercising their power to fill vacant offices.

But committeepeople are on the ballot this year, and there's no indication that they're going anywhere anytime soon.