Alexi Giannoulias is looking for ideas for the position of Secretary of State

Just days after winning the race for Illinois Secretary of State, Democrat Alexi Giannoulias is focusing on governing.

The secretary-elect on Thursday unveiled a transition team made up of Democrats, business and unions leaders from different parts of the state and launched a website, revupillinois.com where Illinoisans can share theirs ideas for improving the office’s services, including the ability to obtain driver’s licenses and license plates.

“We’re doing what we said we were going to do, and we’re already putting in that groundwork,” Giannoulias told the Tribune.

Giannoulias’ victory marks his political comeback a dozen years after he lost his bid for the U.S. Senate. He was Illinois Treasurer from 2007 to 2011. He has been working for the past decade as a wealth manager and was appointed to the board of the Illinois Community College and a member of the board of the Chicago Public Library.

His campaign platform focused on modernizing the office to reduce the “time tax” Illinoisans face in state offices. His proposed reforms include electronic vehicle titles, digital real IDs and a “skip the queue” program for driver’s license services, the effort, he said, “may take some time.”

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“We have a lot of work, a lot of promises, a lot of things that I would like to do, but we want to do everything right,” Giannoulias said.

Giannoulias’ transition team is headed by retiring U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustas of Moline, representing Northwest Illinois’ 17th District since 2013; Stephanie Neely, a former Chicago city treasurer who now works as a managing director at JP Morgan Asset Management; Martin Cabrera of Chicago, who chaired the City College Board and founded Cabrera Capital Markets; and Ed Smith of Carbondale, a longtime downstate union leader who endorsed Giannoulias for secretary of state and is CEO of Ullico Insurance Company.

Giannoulias said harnessing Illinoisans’ ideas about how to change the office will be an important part of his administration.

“Some of the best ideas we’ve had, in terms of policy proposals for the campaign, have come from ordinary people,” he said, adding that public feedback helped him develop a plan to provide government IDs to formerly incarcerated people. persons.

Giannoulias plans to share updates on his administration’s plans and policies on the transition website.

jsheridan@chicagotribune.com