Cook County Circuit Judge Levander Smith Jr. faces a retention vote on the Nov. 3, 2026, general election ballot.
In a retention race, voters decide whether to keep a sitting judge on the bench. The question on the ballot reads "Retain Levander Smith?" This is a nonpartisan race. Smith is certified for the ballot, according to BallotReady election data.
The Illinois Supreme Court appointed Smith to the Cook County Circuit Court bench in 2019, effective March 1, 2019, according to a profile by LAGBAC, Chicago's LGBTQ+ bar association. He serves in the Child Protection Division at the Cook County Juvenile Court, according to his court profile.
Candidate information
- Education: Bachelor's degree from Washington University (1985); J.D. from University of Kansas
- Bar admission: Illinois, 1993
- Professional memberships: Cook County Bar Association, LAGBAC, Chicago Bar Association, National Bar Association (including its Judicial and LGBTQ+ committees), Illinois Judicial Council, Association of Illinois Judges and Illinois Judicial Association
Experience and public service
Smith spent most of his 26 years as a practicing attorney in public service, working in child protection law for state and county agencies, according to LAGBAC. He also practiced in juvenile justice, domestic relations and workers' compensation.
His career began at the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. He served as regional counsel and field regional counsel at the department's Cook County office from 1993 to 1999, according to a legal blog tracking the vacancy data. He later served as regional counsel at the department's St. Clair County office from 1999 to 2000.
Smith worked as an intermediate attorney at the St. Louis Family Court from 2000 to 2003, then as an assistant state's attorney at the Cook County State's Attorney's Office from 2003 to 2004. He spent time as an associate attorney at Cordell & Cordell P.C. in 2005 and as an assistant attorney general in Missouri's Labor Division from 2006 to 2011.
He returned to the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services as supervisory regional counsel in St. Clair County from 2011 to 2015, according to the legal blog. He then served as a litigation attorney at the department through 2015 and as assistant deputy general counsel through 2018, according to LAGBAC.
The Park Ridge Wire did not receive candidate questionnaire response for this race. This profile is based on publicly available information reviewed by our editorial team.
