Mary E. Flowers is a Democrat who represented Illinois' 31st District in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1985 until her retirement. Born on July 31, 1951, in Inverness, Mississippi, she moved to Chicago as a child and became the longest-serving African American legislator in Illinois history, serving 19 terms and holding the position of House Deputy Majority Leader.

Education and Political Experience

• Attended local Chicago schools, Kennedy-King College, and the University of Illinois at Chicago.
• Began her political career volunteering for Harold Washington's campaigns, including his successful 1983 mayoral run; elected to the Illinois House in 1984 and sworn in 1985.
• Notable achievements include sponsoring the Illinois Managed Care Act, legislation for health care and children's rights, anti-apartheid public pension measures, police sensitivity training, and renaming the Calumet Expressway as the Bishop Ford Highway—the first after an African American.
• Served as Chairperson of the Committee on Health Care Availability and Access; full-time legislator, married with one daughter and one granddaughter.