Metro East Sun

Sen. Erica Harriss acknowledged her selection as "Outstanding Freshman of the Year" by the Illinois Chamber of Commerce, saying, "It’s an honor to be recognized by the Illinois Chamber of Commerce for my commitment in ensuring Illinois businesses have the support and tools needed to foster economic development across our state." She made the statement in an Aug. 13 Facebook post.

"It's an honor to be recognized by the Illinois Chamber of Commerce for my commitment in ensuring Illinois businesses have the support and tools needed to foster economic development across our state," said Harriss, Illinois State Senator (R), according to Facebook.

In an Aug. 13 Facebook post, the Illinois Chamber of Commerce first announced the awards. The post said: "The Illinois Chamber seeks to honor freshmen legislators from each house who provided outstanding voting and sponsorships records and a collaborative spirit in their first two years of office. One first-term member from both the House and Senate is selected for our Outstanding Freshman of the Year award. We are pleased to announce that Senator Erica Harriss and State Representative Bradley Fritts have been named Freshmen of the Year by the Illinois Chamber of Commerce."

Screenshot of Sen. Erica Harriss' Aug. 13 Facebook post | Senator Erica Harriss' Facebook page

In Harriss’ Facebook post, she shared a link to her website and a press release announcing the award, which notes that both Harriss and Rep. Bradley Fritts were selected for this award. It also included a statement from Sen. John Curran about Harris’ time in office and her background.

According to Curran, "As a small business owner, Sen. Harriss has a unique understanding of the challenges that our job creators face in Illinois. She uses this firsthand experience to help craft and pass public policies to invest in our Illinois job creators and the millions of families they support. She is a passionate, intelligent and solution-driven legislator and a great asset to our caucus and the people of Illinois. I am proud of her for receiving this prestigious award for her voting record and the successes she accomplished in her first General Assembly, and I look forward to working with her on her continued efforts to make our state a better, more prosperous place to work and live," said Illinois Senate Republican Leader John Curran (R-Downers Grove) in the Aug. 13 news release.

Erica Harriss was elected to represent the people of the 56th Senate District in 2022 and began her term in 2023. Her political career began with a six-year stint on the Madison County Board, representing the people of the 26th District; in that position, she served as Chair of the Personnel Committee. She was also a member of the Finance, Government Operations, and Grants Committees, according to her official biography. She is a business owner and an alumna of Edwards High School and Southern Illinois University, where she earned a degree in speech communications/public relations.