Meet The Co-Chairs

 Congresswoman Cheri Bustos is currently serving her third term representing the hardworking families of Illinois’ 17th Congressional District which includes Western, Central and Northern Illinois.As the only Midwesterner elected to Democratic House Leadership, she is working to ensure that the House Democrats’ agenda connects with rural and working-class Americans.

Since taking office, Bustos has focused on job creation, strengthening our economy and building a stronger middle class. As a Member of the House Agriculture Committee, she worked across the aisle to pass the first long-term Farm Bill in years. And through her service on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Bustos also worked to pass the first long-term highway bill in a decade so we can get Illinoisans back to work rebuilding our roads, bridges, rail lines, airports and waterways.

In 2015, Bustos accepted a leadership post as a Senior Whip, where she uses her position to fight for policies that will advance American manufacturing, ensure women’s economic security and grow our middle-class.

After a career in investigative journalism, Bustos worked in health care before, during and after the passage of the Affordable Care Act for one of the nation’s largest non-denominational, non-profit health care systems. There, she helped families access affordable coverage and worked to improve the quality of health care available in the community.  Bustos was elected to serve on the City Council in East Moline for two terms and made her top priority economic development and building a stronger middle-class.

Congressman David Cicilline is currently serving his fourth term representing Rhode Island’s First Congressional District. In addition to serving as Co-Chair of the DPCC, he is Co-Chair of the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus and Vice Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

Cicilline has worked hard to ensure that Rhode Islanders who work hard and play by the rules are able to buy a home, send their kids to college, and save for retirement. As a member of the House Judiciary Committee, Cicilline has been a strong advocate for comprehensive immigration reform and common sense gun safety legislation. He currently serves as the Ranking Member on the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law (RRCAL) where he oversees an expansive portfolio of ensuring access to affordable health care, keeping the courts open to consumers and workers, and promoting innovation and economic opportunity through open and competitive markets.

In Congress, Cicilline has become one of the leading advocates for the Make it in America agenda to help rebuild and strengthen America’s manufacturing sector. Cicilline has introduced legislation to help create jobs, promote American-made goods, and stimulate economic growth, including his Make it in America Manufacturing Communities Act and the 21st Century Buy American Act. In 2015, following the Supreme Court’s historic decision on marriage equality, Cicilline introduced the Equality Act to extend comprehensive anti-discrimination protections to the LGBT community.

Cicilline served two terms as Mayor of Providence and four terms in the Rhode Island House of Representatives.

Congressman Hakeem Jeffries is currently serving his third term representing the diverse Eighth Congressional District of New York, an area that encompasses large parts of Brooklyn and a section of Queens.  In addition to serving as Co-Chair of the DPCC, he co-chairs the bipartisan Intellectual Property Caucus and is a founder of the Criminal Justice & Public Safety Caucus. He is also the former Whip of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Jeffries has emerged as a tireless advocate for social and economic justice.  He has worked hard to reform our criminal justice system, improve the economy and make college more affordable.

Jeffries has been actively involved in the passage of many key pieces of legislation, including the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013, a bill that provides billions of dollars in Superstorm Sandy recovery, and the Prison Ship Martyrs’ Monument Preservation Act, a bill that studies the feasibility of designating the Prison Ship Martyrs’ mausoleum in Brooklyn as a national monument. Jeffries also introduced the Excessive Use of Force Prevention Act of 2015, legislation that will make the deployment of a chokehold unlawful under federal civil rights law. 

Prior to his election to the Congress, Jeffries served for six years in the New York State Assembly. In that capacity, he authored laws that protected the civil liberties of law-abiding New Yorkers during police encounters, encouraged the transformation of vacant luxury condominiums into affordable homes for working families and improved the quality of justice in the civil court system.