Max Solomon, a Republican attorney, is running for Illinois Treasurer in the Nov. 3 general election. Solomon said in a questionnaire submitted to Oak Park Wire that he is seeking office "to reduce the heavy tax burden by bringing fiscal responsibility, transparency, and accountability to elective office."
Solomon was born in Lagos, Nigeria, and came to the United States legally in 1992 at age 21. He said he arrived with $40 and went on to become a U.S. citizen, an attorney and an adjunct professor of political science and law.
Candidate information
- Party: Republican
- Office sought: Illinois Treasurer
- Election date: Nov. 3, 2026
- Occupation: Attorney
- Education: Associate's degree, South Suburban College; Bachelor's in Political Science, DePaul University; Master's in Theology, Valparaiso University; JD, Valparaiso University School of Law
- Endorsement: Madison County GOP
Experience and public service
Solomon's campaign website describes him as an attorney at law in Illinois' 38th District.
He previously served as committeeman for the Bremen Township Republican Party and as a trustee of the Grande Prairie Public Library. He has also worked as an adjunct professor at South Suburban College.
On the issues
The following positions are drawn from Solomon's questionnaire responses and campaign materials.
State finances and investment: Solomon said he would focus on fraud investigations and cut wasteful spending. "Illinois does not have a revenue problem. It has a spending problem," he wrote in his questionnaire response. He supports a balanced budget, tax cuts, a flat-rate income and business tax, and a property tax freeze. His campaign platform calls for modernizing the state's investment strategy and directing state deposits to community banks and credit unions across all 102 Illinois counties.
Transparency: Solomon's platform proposes a real-time public dashboard so taxpayers can track every dollar invested by the treasurer's office.
Education: Solomon supports school choice and says he would strengthen the Bright Start and Bright Directions college savings programs to make higher education more attainable for Illinois families.
Government: Solomon describes himself as pro-small-government.
Contrast with opponent: Solomon said the critical difference between himself and his opponent is ideology. He described himself as "a Christian Conservative Republican who believes in lower taxes, cutting fraudulent and wasteful spending, smaller government …"
