Sen. Cristina Castro

Senator Cristina Castro (IL) was born and raised in Elgin, is a lifelong resident of the 22nd Senate District and was the first Latina elected to the Illinois Senate to serve a suburban district. Castro’s parents – who both quit school when they were young to work and contribute to their families, and continued working factory jobs after they moved to Elgin – instilled in her a work ethic that has earned her a reputation as a tenacious advocate for working people.

Sen. Castro received an associate’s degree from Elgin Community College and became the first in her family to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Northern Illinois University. She served eight years on the Kane County Board as well as for the Illinois Housing Development Authority, Black History Family Festival and Centro de Información.

Some of Sen. Castro’s most acclaimed accomplishments as a state senator highlight her dedication to equity and worker protections. She authored an update to the Equal Pay Act to make sure lower pay can no longer follow a person from job to job and championed the Dignity in Pay Act to secure fair wages for people with disabilities. She also pushed to expand Medicaid for new mothers, culminating in Illinois becoming the first state to extend coverage from 60 days postpartum to a full year.

Sen. Castro serves as the Majority Caucus Whip for the 104th General Assembly and chairs the Senate Executive Committee. She holds leadership positions within numerous national organizations including the National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators, the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials and National Conference of State Legislatures.