Daniel Solis

Solis was born in 1949 in Monterrey, Mexico. When he was six, he emigrated to the United States with his mother. His father had already come to the country in seek of work. Solis began his career as a schoolteacher. He was the founder and executive director of Latino Youth High School as well as the executive director of the Pilsen Neighbors Community Council. Later, he was co-founder and executive director of the United Neighborhood Organization (UNO) where he led a successful campaign to help 12,000 immigrants become naturalized citizens and register to vote. He also led grassroots reform for the Chicago Public Schools by helping organize a campaign to enlist parents and community members to run in the first Local School Council elections. ==Political career==

Mayor Richard M. Daley appointed Solis to the Chicago Housing Authority Board of Commissioners and the Regional Transportation Authority in 1995. In 1996, after alderman Antonio Medrano pleaded guilty to corruption charges, Solis was appointed to the seat by Mayor Daley. He won a special election in February 1997 to serve out Medrano's term with 77% of the vote. ==Scandal and FBI cooperation ==

In November 2018, Solis announced that he would not seek re-election to his seat. Shortly after his retirement announcement, it was reported that Solis was secretly recording fellow alderman Ed Burke, who had been charged with corruption. Court filings used to obtain search warrants at Solis’ home indicated that Solis had also recorded the Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, Michael Madigan. An investigation uncovered that Solis had paid himself hundreds of thousands of dollars out of his political campaign fund. Solis would also provide several days of testimony against Madigan during Madigan's trial as well. In April 2025, the acting U.S. Attorney in Chicago asked that bribery charges against Solis be dismissed, noting that his cooperation was vital in securing the convictions of both Madigan and Burke. In May 2025 prosecutors would dismiss criminal bribery charges against Solis. ==References==