From Kenwood to Washington, an inside look at Illinois’ newest senator, Juliana Stratton

Senator-elect Juliana Stratton is best known for her work as lieutenant governor, her “F*** Trump” campaign slogan and for being a proud South Sider.

But she’s also a Beyoncé fan and a self-proclaimed “house head,” which was on full display on Election Night as Stratton showed off her dance moves to Cajmere’s 1992 Chicago house classic, "Percolator."

Here are some things you may not know about Illinois’ newest senator, who alongside Sen. Tammy Duckworth will make Illinois the first state in U.S. history to have two women of color serving simultaneously in the U.S. Senate.

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Athlete

Stratton, 61, has completed five marathons and seven triathlons — and she started training at age 40. She now runs along the Lakefront Trail, bikes to yoga at Millennium Park and goes to Studio Yogi in the South Shore neighborhood. She's also a meditation fan.

‘House head’

She is a “house head” and left a campaign event in late October to head to a house dance party. Stratton says she wants to host a house dance party in Washington for other “house head” colleagues in Congress. Stratton goes to house music parties at Visions Odeum and Events in West Pullman.

Queen Bey

Stratton is a “major” Beyoncé fan and has a placard on her desk that reads “What would Beyoncé do?” She was also in the audience for an Oprah Winfrey show that featured Beyoncé, and was so lively that the show’s producers asked her to come back to be part of the audience.

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Mediator

Prior to her run for state representative in 2016, Stratton was a mediator at an alternative dispute resolution firm for 20 years. One of her cases was between a teenager who vandalized a store and the store owner. Instead of pressing charges, she helped to broker a deal to help the teen work in the store to pay back damages.

Education

Stratton graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1987 with a bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism. Stratton grew up in the Pill Hill neighborhood and went to Kenwood Academy High School. Her first elected office was parent representative and later chair of the Kenwood Academy Local School Council.

AKA

Stratton is a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, the country’s first intercollegiate Black sorority, which was founded in 1908 at Howard University. It’s part of a group of historically Black sororities and fraternities commonly known as the “Divine Nine.” AKA now has more than 1,000 chapters and over 300,000 initiated members worldwide. The organization’s headquarters is on the South Side of Chicago at 5656 Stony Island Ave. Former Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood are also members of the sorority.

South Side bites

Stratton lives in Bronzeville and frequents South Side restaurants and bakeries like Virtue in Hyde Park, Brown Sugar Bakery in Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood, Ain’t She Sweet Cafe in Bronzeville and Strugglebeard in Hyde Park. She’s not a coffee drinker but loves a London Fog.

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Family history

Stratton’s great-great grandfather was enslaved and freed by the Emancipation Proclamation. He helped to co-found the town of Stevensville, Mississippi — which was his last name.