Kina Collins facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kina Collins
Personal details
Born	(1991-03-08) March 8, 1991 (age 34) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Education	Carthage College Louisiana State University (BA)

Kina Isis Collins is an American community organizer and activist. She works to make communities better and safer. Her main goals include making sure everyone has access to healthcare, improving the justice system, and preventing gun violence. Kina Collins has run for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives for Illinois's 7th congressional district multiple times, including in 2020, 2022, and 2024.

Early Life and School

Kina Collins grew up in the Austin neighborhood on the West Side of Chicago, Illinois. She went to schools in the Chicago Public Schools system. During her time in school, she was a Summer of Service Learning Ambassador, which means she helped with community projects. Later, she attended Carthage College and Louisiana State University. At these colleges, she studied how countries work together politically and how people behave in groups.

Helping Communities and Her Career

Working for Change

From 2015 to 2017, Kina Collins worked for an organization called Generation Progress. This group helps young people research and speak up about important issues. She was a regional organizer in Louisiana. She also joined their #Fight4AFuture National Leadership Council. This group created plans to prevent gun violence and make the justice system fairer.

In 2017, Kina started her own group called the Chicago Neighborhood Alliance. Its goal was to help people in Chicago work together to stop gun violence. From 2018 to 2019, she worked for Physicians for a National Health Program. This group works to make sure everyone can get healthcare. As of 2020, she is the leader of the Gun Violence Prevention Education Center and Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence. This organization works across Illinois to prevent gun violence.

Working in Government

Kina Collins also has experience working in politics. In 2018, she worked for J. B. Pritzker's campaign when he was running to become the governor of Illinois. She later left that campaign. After that, she became the political director for Sameena Mustafa's campaign for Congress.

In 2018, Kina helped write a law called the Illinois Council on Women and Girls Act. This law created a group to give advice to the governor and lawmakers about issues important to women and girls. Kina was the first person to lead this Council. She also worked with Chicago City Clerk Anna M. Valencia on a group focused on the status of women and girls in Chicago.

During the 2019 Chicago aldermanic election, Kina helped create a group called Brand New Council. This group worked to help elect new, forward-thinking candidates of color to the Chicago City Council. They supported 16 candidates and helped people register to vote.

Awards and Recognition

In 2018, Kina Collins received the Vernita Grey Community Activist Award. This award came from the Chicago chapter of the National Organization for Women.

Running for Congress

Kina Collins has run for the U.S. House of Representatives for Illinois's 7th congressional district three times. This district includes parts of Chicago.

2020 Election

Kina Collins announced she would run for Congress on May 13, 2019. She ran against the person already holding the seat, Congressman Danny K. Davis, and two other challengers. Kina said her top three goals if elected were:

• Making sure everyone has healthcare.
• Getting more research and help to prevent gun violence.
• Making the justice system fairer.

She received support from several local leaders and groups. In the election on March 17, 2020, she came in second place.

2022 Election

Kina Collins announced she would run for Congress again in 2022 on June 1, 2021. She also announced that a group called Justice Democrats supported her campaign. Kina raised more money for her campaign than the current Congressman, Danny Davis, in the first two parts of her campaign. In the election on June 28, 2022, she again came in second place.

2024 Election

Kina Collins announced her third run for Congress in 2024 on July 10, 2023. She received support from several members of the Chicago City Council.

On March 8, 2024, the music group The Strokes performed a concert to help raise money for Kina's campaign. This was the second time they had performed for her campaign, with the first being in 2022.

In the election, Kina placed third.

Election Results

Here are the results from the elections Kina Collins has been a part of:

2020 Primary Election

2022 Primary Election

2024 Primary Election