James Houlihan is an American politician who served as Cook County assessor from 1997 to 2010 and as an Illinois state representative from 1973 to 1979.
[3] Houlihan was a protégé of Thomas Hynes, the Cook County assessor and 19th Ward boss.
[3] In the 1970s he was an independent-minded Illinois state representative, elected from a district located on the northern Chicago lakefront.
[5] During his tenure as assessor, Houlihan held a rivalry with Cook County Board of Review member Joseph Berrios.
[7] In 2010, he accused Joseph Berrios and Michael Madigan of hiding information from taxpayers that could affect the November general election.