Auroran recognized for volunteering announces bid for state House

An Aurora woman who once was named the city's Volunteer of the Year says she will run for the 84th state House District as a Republican.

Patty Smith announced Thursday she plans to seek the seat now held by Democrat Stephanie Kifowit in the 2018 election.

Smith is a paralegal and longtime parent volunteer in Indian Prairie Unit District 204, who won the Volunteer of the Year award from the city of Aurora in 2008.

She said in a news release she is running for state representative to help middle-class suburban residents and put the needs of families over those of special interest groups.

"As a hardworking single mother of three, I know firsthand the struggles that middle-class families face here in Aurora," Smith said in the release. "And as the mother of a young adult with Down syndrome who relies on social services, I understand the need for a state government that works."

Smith is seeking the seat held by Kifowit, who is serving her second term as state representative after first winning election in 2012.