Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi Faces Competitive Democratic Primary

As of March 17, 2026, 09:30 AM, Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi is seeking a third term as he confronts a well‑backed primary challenger, Pat Hynes, in a contest that will determine oversight of property valuations, exemptions and appeals across Cook County.

Hynes, the first‑term Lyons Township assessor and a 23‑year veteran field inspector in the county assessor’s office — including three years working under Kaegi and eight under former assessor Joe Berrios — has won the endorsement of the Cook County Democratic Party. Kaegi, who ousted Berrios in 2018 as a reform candidate and instituted a new code of ethics for the office, was not slated by the party that year either.

The race plays out amid a fraught property tax landscape. During the COVID pandemic Kaegi adjusted homeowner assessments downward based on expected market declines; values instead rose and the county’s tax burden shifted away from the downtown economic center. A November report from the Cook County treasurer’s office and multi‑year tax‑bill analyses show assessments and appeals have resulted in faster tax increases in predominantly Black neighborhoods on the South and West sides. Hynes has called the pandemic reassessment an "unforced error" and criticized Kaegi’s proposed circuit‑breaker relief as costly. Campaign records show Hynes received about $106,500 from lawyers and firms tied to property tax appeals, including donations tied to firms involved in high‑profile reductions; the primary winner will face Libertarian Nico Tsatsoulis in November.