CHICAGO – Greek-American Mariyana Spyropoulos, former Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) Board President, won the primary election for Cook County Circuit Court Clerk on March 19, defeating the incumbent Iris Martinez, CBS News reported.

“Spyropoulos, who was elected to the MWRD Board in 2010 and served as its president from 2015 until 2019, mounted a campaign for Circuit Court Clerk focused on fighting corruption and misconduct, digitizing systems and cutting, costs, and bringing courts into communities,” CBS News reported, adding that “in her victory speech, Spyropoulos said the office in the past has not taken seriously enough even by those who have held it – and it is time for that to change.”

“The Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court does not attract intense news coverage – despite what you see here tonight. It doesn’t attract Super PAC support, or thousands of online donors. For years, aspirants to this office viewed it as a steppingstone to higher office, or as a ripe opportunity to build a patronage army,” Spyropoulos said to the crowded room with news media present, CBS News reported. “It’s not easy to convince volunteers and donors that this office matters to them. I’m here to tell you that it does matter. It matters to defendants, victims, attorneys, public defenders, prosecutors – all of whom have a vested interest in seeing our system run effectively.”

“On her campaign website, Spyropoulos charged that the Circuit Court Clerk’s office has ‘failed to modernize and operate in a transparent manner,’” CS News reported, noting that “the Circuit Court Clerk is responsible for maintaining all Cook County court records, and collecting court fees and fines.”

“The clerk works with more than 400 judges on cases that originate in Chicago and suburban Cook County,” CBS News reported, adding that “Martinez was elected to the post in 2020, replacing longtime Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown,” and “Martinez had previously served as an Illinois state senator since 2003.”

“Among the accomplishments on which she had run for reelection were technology innovations and the restoration of public trust – in particularly by promoting transparency and helping address federal monitoring concerns from Brown’s time in office,” CBS News reported.

The daughter of immigrants, Mariyana Spyropoulos grew up on Chicago’s South Side. She attended Chicago Public School and took an early interest in civics.

Elected to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Board of Commissioners in 2010, Spyropoulos served as Board President from 2015-19. As president, she embraced green infrastructure and oversaw the disinfection of Chicago’s waterways – a project that directly benefited the region and created jobs.

Spyropoulos also maintained the MWRD’s AAA bond rating and pushed for transparency by introducing independent oversight of the District and live-streaming board meetings. Her hard work was recognized in 2017 when she received the Illinois Water Environment Association Public Official Award and again in 2021 when she received the Public Service Award from the Water Environment Federation.

A former Assistant State’s Attorney, Spyropoulos earned her law degree at UIC Law and her MBA from Loyola University Chicago.

Spyropoulos’ experience as an attorney makes her the best candidate to lead the office of Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County at a pivotal time. For years, the Clerk’s office has failed to modernize and operate in a transparent manner. Spyropoulos is running to improve the use of technology in the office, bring the courts to the communities to increase access to justice, and make the office more transparent and ethical.

Spyropoulos is a member of the Chicago Sierra Club, Hellenic Bar Association, Women’s Bar Association and Sankofa House Board.