Angee Gonzalez Rodriguez has filed petitions to challenge Ald. Jessie Fuentes for the 26th Ward seat for a second time, setting up what would be her third run at the office covering most of Humboldt Park and parts of Logan Square and Belmont Cragin. But before voters even weigh in, two Humboldt Park neighbors have already moved to challenge the validity of her petition signatures.
Fuentes, who is seeking reelection in the February 23, 2027 election, holds the seat, according to a candidate profile from chicagopolitics.org. She is the first woman and LGBTQ+ member to lead the 26th Ward, and she grew up in Humboldt Park. Gonzalez Rodriguez, for her part, has lived in Humboldt Park since 1974 and previously served as the ward's Democratic committeeperson, according to earlier reporting from Block Club Chicago.
This isn't Gonzalez Rodriguez's first time on the ballot. She ran for 26th Ward alderperson in 2019, then again in 2023, when she faced Fuentes and Julian “Jumpin'” Perez after Maldonado dropped out of that race, per the same Block Club account. A native of Villalba, Puerto Rico, Gonzalez Rodriguez has described herself as a community advocate, nonprofit leader and medical professional.
Petition Fight Already Underway
Karl Kuhn and Juanita Barraza, both described as Humboldt Park community organizers and neighbors, are challenging the validity of Gonzalez Rodriguez's petition signatures, though the specific grounds for their objections were not detailed. The Chicago Board of Elections is leading hearings on the petition challenges and is expected to certify the February 23 ballot by mid-December.
The timing tracks with the city's official election calendar: the Chicago Board of Elections lists October 19 through 26 as the petition-filing period for the February 2027 aldermanic races, with objections due between October 27 and November 2, according to the Chicago Board of Elections. Notably, the same scrutiny being applied to Gonzalez Rodriguez's filing isn't automatic for incumbents — the candidate-profile site covering Fuentes's campaign notes that the Board checks petition signatures for duplicates or out-of-ward voters only if someone formally objects.
Fuentes's Record and Campaign War Chest
Fuentes has positioned herself as an advocate for Humboldt Park's Puerto Rican community.
Her advocacy has also put her in direct conflict with federal authorities. Fuentes protested the federal government during Operation Midway Blitz in 2025, and she was handcuffed by federal immigration agents that October while supporting an undocumented neighbor at a Humboldt Park hospital. She is now suing the federal government over that handcuffing incident.
Financially, Fuentes's campaign reported $68,622 raised in the third quarter of 2026, leaving her with $131,705 in cash on hand as of September 30, according to the chicagopolitics.org profile. No comparable fundraising figures for Gonzalez Rodriguez's current campaign were available.
Where Gonzalez Rodriguez Says She'd Focus
In her earlier run, Gonzalez Rodriguez told the Chicago Tribune that she worked as a site coordinator for Laboratory Corporation of America and held a master's degree in law along with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice with a concentration in forensic science. She identified “the crime, homelessness and lack of long term development for retail, commercial use and Jobs” as the ward's most pressing issues, and proposed using TIF dollars to attract private investors for both commercial businesses and affordable housing.
Her current campaign platform, as described on her campaign website, calls for addressing infrastructure needs including potholes, streets and sidewalks, which she has attributed to “decades of deferred maintenance.” She has also said she wants a satellite police station to improve emergency response times in parts of the ward, expanded street outreach and mentorship programs for violence prevention, and preservation of affordable housing.
With the petition challenges still pending before the Chicago Board of Elections, it remains unclear whether Gonzalez Rodriguez's name will ultimately appear alongside Fuentes's on the February ballot.
