Democrat · Illinois's 7th District · 2026
La Shawn Ford
Ford was raised by his grandmother and helped the household by mowing lawns, shoveling snow and stocking grocery shelves.
Biography
La Shawn Ford was raised by his grandmother after being born to a teenage mother in Chicago's Cabrini-Green housing development.1 A fire displaced his family when he was seven, and his childhood jobs included shoveling snow, mowing lawns and stocking grocery shelves.1 He is the father of a daughter and lives in Austin.1
Ford attended Catholic schools, played basketball at Loyola University Chicago and earned a degree in education with a political science minor.1 He taught and coached in Chicago Public Schools before opening a real estate business serving West Side families and property owners.1 His legislative biography also lists professional experience as a real estate broker and insurance agent.2
He entered the Illinois House in January 2007, representing the 8th District.2 He has chaired a House Democratic task force on state business opportunities for minority owned enterprises and small businesses.2 He cofounded the West Side Heroin Task Force, bringing substance use issues into his public service work.2 A prostate cancer survivor, Ford sponsored legislation that became Illinois law in 2022, removing patient cost sharing for covered prostate cancer screenings.3
His congressional platform calls for protecting Medicare, expanding Social Security benefits and strengthening the Affordable Care Act.4 He proposes more funding for neighborhood clinics, help for small businesses providing employee coverage, affordable childcare and affordable housing.4 He also supports union jobs, apprenticeships and local hiring in federally supported community investments.4 Ford is the Democratic candidate for the 7th District.4
Record and controversies
Tax misdemeanor and dismissed felony charges
In 2014, prosecutors dropped all 17 felony bank fraud and false statement counts against Ford, and he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor involving his 2007 federal income tax return.5 He received six months' probation, a $1,000 fine and 100 hours of community service in November 2014.6 The judge called the tax matter fundamentally a mistake while emphasizing the obligation to pay taxes.6 In March 2026, his campaign demanded that a cryptocurrency funded PAC stop ads it said falsely portrayed the dismissed felony charges as convictions.7