2023 Municipal Elections

 Did you miss this blog? I've been posting more at another blog I started called Ninth Ward Chicago, I expect to post there for the forseeable future.

Though to be honest I do wonder about JP Paulus' thoughts on Congressman-elect Jonathan Jackson who was elected in the midterm election just last month. He discussed the race to succeed Congressman Bobby Rush of the 1st Congressional District from earlier this summer.

Well now that the gubernatorial and midterm elections are now over, we turn our attention to the municipal races in Chicago. We will be voting for the city council, city clerk, city treasurer, for people to serve on their police district boards, and of course for mayor.

One of the people running for mayor against the vulnerable incumbent Lori Lightfoot is one Ald. Roderick T. Sawyer. In 2011 we covered the race where Sawyer - the son of a former Alderman and Mayor in Eugene Sawyer - was able to defeat incumbent Ward 6 Ald. Freddrenna Lyle in a runoff. Now over a decade later, Sawyer hopes to be another son of a mayor to take the office on city hall's fifth floor.

A channel on YouTube called Next News Network which is a right ring channel takes a look at the mayor's race and quotes Ald. Sawyer who referred to Mayor Lightfoot as thin-skinned. [VIDEO]

Now with Sawyer seeking the mayor's office that means he must give up his seat on the Chicago city council and that means there are man candidates who want to succeed Ald. Sawyer. Worlee Glover at Concerned Citizens of Chicago shared a list of candidates for Ward 6 Alderman in 2023. Of course the deadline to submit petitions for the 2023 elections had passed on Monday and we're headed into the period of petition challenges.

We had one candidate for mayor to drop out in Ward 15 Ald. Ray Lopez who opted to run again for his seat on the city council.

Just to open the discussion here, who would be your preference for mayor next year? Would you give Mayor Lightfoot a second term in the mayor's office?

Also I have to ask about Eddie, he was a frequent commentor during the weirdness of 2020 through 2021. Where are you big guy? Let us know you're OK out there.

BTW, happy holidays to all.

Chicago Mag: Will Lori Lightfoot Be One and Done?

 You might have seen this in Chicago Magazine recently.

Just a year before the election, Lightfoot looks in danger of becoming the first elected mayor in 40 years not to win a second term.https://t.co/WUIeVQLbcH

— Chicago magazine (@ChicagoMag) January 26, 2022

Here's a brief excerpt.

After Lori Lightfoot won the 2019 mayoral runoff with 73 percent of the vote, an alderman commented, “Her support is a mile wide and an inch deep.” In other words, she was a candidate for a moment in which voters were fed up with corruption, but she didn’t have a base that would stick by her in a crisis.

That has turned out to be the most prescient assessment of Lightfoot’s political appeal. The world has changed a lot since her election. The COVID-19 pandemic is about to enter its third year, and the city is as violent as it’s been in a quarter century. Chicagoans are exhausted — with life, and with Lightfoot. According to an Ogden & Fry poll conducted for Fox 32 in November, 62 percent don’t believe she deserves reelection. Just a year before the election, Lightfoot looks in danger of becoming the first elected mayor in 40 years not to win a second term.

Lightfoot has been praised for leading the city through the pandemic and for investing in neglected neighborhoods, but crime is causing the city to turn against her. The year before she was elected, there were 547 homicides in Chicago; last year, the total topped 780, the most since the mid-1990s. In the summer of 2020, the Magnificent Mile was trashed and looted twice during protests against police brutality. Carjackings were up 43 percent in 2020, compared with the year before. “One of the major issues she ran on was she’s going to take control of the crime issue,” says Matthew Podgorski, who conducted the Ogden & Fry poll. But now 75 percent of voters disapprove of how she’s handling it.

Well we have another year before we vote for mayor, clerk, treasurer and the 50 members of the city council. Perhaps we'll know by fall if the Mayor decided to bow out after a term or run for re-election. 

Congressman Bobby Rush to retire

 This is huge news to start the new year 2022. It started breaking Monday afternoon and now that we have an open seat in the 1st Congressional District who else besides Jahmal Cole will go for this seat.

It'll be official in the morning, but it's confirmed. U.S. @RepBobbyRush, D-Chicago, the only person ever to have beaten @BarackObama in an election, is retiring at this end of this term after nearly 30 years in D.C. Cld be lots of potential successors. https://t.co/J4Yvh4daDH

— Greg Hinz (@GregHinz) January 3, 2022

Also bear in mind primaries will be held in June 2022! 

Is Mayor Lightfoot running for a second term?

 This piece by Crain's Greg Hinz seems to hint that she may not. Although the media just about a month ago was speculating that Gov. Pritzker may not run again only for him to announce that he's running for a second term and since the primary for Governor is in June next year he might drag this process out.

Well I do expect that if Mayor Lightfoot has a deadline for a decision it'll be the same type of deadline that Mayor Rahm Emanuel used or even Mayor Richard M. Daley. Perhaps we'll know more by the fall of next year 2022 just before we cast our ballots for Governor in the general election in November. 

Meanwhile what is Hinz saying:

One thing I learned a long, long time ago is that you never believe any politician—any politician—when they respond to a question about their future political plans. They all lie. Even the best of them. So a wise person takes any pronouncements about future plans with a ton or two of salt.

That having been said, Mayor Lori Lightfoot raised eyebrows all over town today when she seemed to strongly hint in an interview with the New York Times that she may well not seek election to a second term in in 2023.

Re-upping for four more years “is not a gimme,” the mayor told the Times’ Kara Swisher, going considerably farther than she has in interviews with Chicago media.

“The toxicity of the debate, the physical and emotional toll that it’s taking on all of us, those are serious issues,” Lightfoot said. “And we have to have a — my wife and I and my daughter and my close friends and my team, we have to have a serious conversation about why and what that would look like and what we believe that we would be able to accomplish.”

I think this is true considering the challenges - including the pandemic for sure.

Besides, calling it quits at a time of pandemic and soaring violent crimes is becoming a habit among other city chief executives, Lightfoot added. “This is a tough time for mayors all across the country,” she said, mentioning both Atlanta’s Keisha Lance Bottoms and Seattle’s Jenny Durkan.

We are in tough times right now and I can believe even a very strong chief executive probably would want to just step away.

Here's another thought:

One heavy hitter I spoke with who’s been of help to Lightfoot said the transcript of the interview suggests to him she’s “getting ready to walk away from the job.” That source pointed to the mayor’s fund-raising, which after a pretty good first quarter dried up in the second quarter, with Lightfoot for Chicago pulling in just $10,067 in the three months ended June 30, leaving the mayor with a sizable but not overwhelming $1.790 million in the bank.

Well it was noted in this piece that the Mayor said she came into office to push people out of their "comfort zones". Do you believe she was successful in that?

Do you think she should run for a second term? Do you think she's had a successful tenure so far? 

If yout want to check out the interview with the NY Times click here. Unfortunately you have to sign up for an "free" subscription with the NY Times to listen to the interview or to read the transcript.

Capitol Fax: Robin Kelly wins DPI chair

 Well tonight the cribbing from CapFax continues Congresswoman Robin Kelly is the new Chair of the state Democratic Party. She effectively succeeds former state house Speaker Michael J. Madigan. Kelly defeats 8th Ward Alderman Michelle Harris this evening.

Robin Kelly wins DPI chair https://t.co/umnh4hHwkV

— Rich Miller (@capitolfax) March 4, 2021

There were a number of items coming out of the jockeying over the weekend which comes from whether or not as an federal elected official if the Congresswoman was eligible to become the chair of the party. There were also questions over whether or not the Congresswoman as Chair could raise or spend soft money. She even acknowledged that she won't be able to do much with soft campaign money.

However, she got the chairmanship of the state party and as you see in the above Capitol Fax post the state Republicans had something to say about Gov. Pritzker. Pritzker backed Ald. Harris and it didn't quite work out and is viewed as yet another defeat for Pritzker.

Jahmal Cole for Congress

When the 34th state representative seat was vacated a few years ago Jahmal Cole was one of many who stepped up to represent this part of the state (of course that distinction went to current state rep Nick Smith). Now he's throwing his hat in the ring to unseat longtime Congressman Bobby Rush. 

WGN: Reports on early voting at Deneen Elementary School

 

[VIDEO] Yesterday WGN news was at the Ward 6 early voting site at Deneen Elementary School located at 7257 S. State St. BTW, did Julian Crews pronounce Deneen correctly? Can someone who has attended that school say for certain?

Anyway Crews noted in his report that while things were moving smoothly for the most part throughout the city, there were technical issues at Deneen and as a result there were lines as you saw in this report. People were getting out here and one person Crews spoke to was correct to say we had to fight for our right to vote.

And as another man stated in this report, it doesn't matter who you vote for just vote. He's right. Early voting continues through Nov. 3rd.

If you want to vote early I blogged about it on Tuesday.

Did you know there was a Republican running against Kim Foxx?

 

[VIDEO] It's been quite a while since I've shared anything from Public Affairs host Jeff Berkowitz who recently interviewed Foxx's Republican opponent Pat O'Brien. The video you see above.

What a difference four years makes? There was great enthusiasm for Kim Foxx four years ago against then state's attorney Anita Alvarez. I'm sure there was a perception that Alvarez wasn't adequately addressing the needs of the Black community over her eight years in office.

Lately State's Attorney Kim Foxx has gotten a lot of attention and it started with the Jussie Smollett fraud. Did you know a judge who called for a special prosecutor in that case didn't get endorsed by the Cook County Democrats.

And nationally - well actually with the right wing to be honest - she's been getting some attention for he handling of the unrest in Chicago especially after the death of George Floyd and last month after the looting in the wake of a young Black man getting shot.

To also share 2nd City Cop wants to see former Democrat and Cook County Judge Pat O'Brien defeat the sitting state's attorney they dub Crimesha.

I also want to note the last Republican who held the state's attorney office was Jack O'Malley who was defeated by Dick Devine for the office in 1996. He later became an appellate judge.

Primary election is still on

This isn't exactly breaking news, however, since Sunday and through yesterday afternoon it appears to be Gov. J.B. Pritzker's intention to allow today's primary election to continue going forward.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker and state officials said Monday that despite restaurants, bars and other businesses being ordered closed, the Illinois Primary will be held as planned.

“We have to have our elections continue, in my opinion. This is the right thing to do,” Pritzker said at a Springfield news conference. “Our democracy needs to go on. If we cancel these elections, when would you have an election?”

So today's polls will be open as normal.

Be safe out there and as far as taking care of yourself to avoid an infection it seems there are a good number of common sense approaches to this which includes washing yours hands, covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze, social distancing, etc. So I hope when you go to the polls tomorrow you will do what is necessary to protect yourself.

As the governor states our democracy must go on....

BTW, I want to also add this statement posted to CapFax from the Illinois state board of elections. They further state that the primary election today will go forward.

Who else isn't running for re-election? #twill

It seems we've had two significant political stories this week. One of which is certainly more immediate and important the other not so much.

Dorothy Brown is the circuit court clerk who attempted to run for mayor earlier this year and even participated in some candidate forums. Unfortunately she was knocked off the ballot due to petition challenges. Also it doesn't help when authorities have been looking at the activities of her office.

Regardless she won't be running for re-election next year. In the post at CapFax we not only see a story about her stepping down after 2020, we see a comment by a former challenger Jacob Meister. I wonder if he's running again...

Dorothy Brown won’t seek reelection https://t.co/8j9ckAaPpq

— Rich Miller (@capitolfax) August 14, 2019

I also wanted to share this exit interview from CBS 2 of Dorothy Brown [VIDEO]

Probably not as important and it hasn't so far been mention by Rich Miller who runs CapFax involves Jesse White. White has been our Secretary of State for over 20 years. The last two elections it was "teased" that he might retire only to run one more time.

Even though the next election for that office is in 2022, it's already being "teased" that he won't run again. Since it's relatively early to discuss election plans for 2022 and knowing that he may change his mind and run again - although he's in his 80s - I get the feeling that this report isn't being taken very seriously.

Although who knows, I'd like to know who'd be willing to take on that role after White's long tenure over among other parts of state gov't issuing our driver's licenses...

Capitol Fax: Stop arguing and get to work

On Rich Miller's blog on Friday he does a round-up of police stories in Chicago. He starts off with a feud brewing between the top two vote getters in this year's mayoral runoff which resulted in Lightfoot getting the nod for the 5th floor.

All the same there was a letter from county board president Toni Preckwinkle circulating complaining about how Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson tracks gun crimes and  to"stop misleading the public about why gun violence remains a challenging problem in Chicago". Which leads to repeating the mayoral runoff earlier this year.

Finally the big news from earlier this week four police officers were fired from their jobs for the cover-up with regards to the murder of LaQuan McDonald.

Stop arguing and get to work https://t.co/kG4prr4ZDN

— Rich Miller (@capitolfax) July 19, 2019

Quite a few interesting series of stores with regards to the Chicago Police recently. I do hope that Mayor Lightfoot and president Preckwinkle can stop campaigning and work on these police issues. And to quote Miller: "This fight is so tedious. People are dying in the street and “leaders” are relitigating the election."

As the post title states stop arguing and get to work! 

Capitol Fax: Lightfoot, Rush appear to move on from the past #ChiMayor19

Lightfoot will take her place on city hall's 5th floor on May 20, 2019 and we're already seeing some indication of her relationship with some of Chicago's US Congressmen (or Congresswomen). Today we talk about her future relationship with 1st Congressional District congressman Bobby Rush who made some very racial incendiary remarks about Lightfoot before she won last month's runoff election for mayor.

Read about it at CapFax

Lightfoot, Rush appear to move on from the past https://t.co/Dx7uMlYTGd

— Rich Miller (@capitolfax) May 9, 2019

Lori Lightfoot Mayor-elect #ChiMayor19

[VIDEO] Congrats to the Lightfoot campaign on their victory last night in the runoff for Chicago Mayor over County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. What will the next four years under a Mayor Lightfoot look like. I'm sure in the coming days we will know more about her plans for the city.

From Chicago Tribune returns from last night's runoff election which includes the city treasurer's race and of course the 15 wards with runoff elections.

Let's start with the namesake of this blog The Sixth Ward Alderman Sawyer beats a challenge from Deborah Foster-Bonner.

 And in the 21st ward Ald. Brookins beats a challenge from his 2015 runoff opponent Marvin McNeil

In other nearby wards:

Ald. Hairston appears to thinly defeat a challenge from opponent in the 5th Ward

 In the 15th Ward Ald. Raymond Lopez defeats a challenge by Raquel Yanez

In the 16th Ward, Ald Toni Foulkes - who had been elected to that post in 2015 after being an alderman in the neighboring 15th Ward - was defeated by Stephanie Coleman who is the daughter of former 16th Ward Ald. Shirley Coleman.

And in the 20th Ward which was held by Ald. Willie B. Cochran who resigned his seat due to a federal plea deal there will be a new Alderman there Jeanette Taylor defeating Nicole Johnson

Today is the day... #ChiMayor19

[VIDEO] In addition to the mayoral race, we also have the city treasurers race and select wards that are in runoff elections today. I especially want to highlight the runoff in the 6th Ward which we have somewhat covered since February and in the 21st Ward.

Polls have been open since 6 AM and you can vote until 7 PM. Hopefully you take time out to cast your ballot today!

Capitol Fax: Preckwinkle and Rush will double down today #ChiMayor19

This is how Preckwinkle and Lightfoot (one of those two candidates will be the first Black female mayor of Chicago) will differentiate themselves. Preckwinkle it could be said has the backing of quite a few established Black politicos in Chicago such as Bobby Rush or Danny Davis. For example and it seems there will be more endorsements of the current county board president.

Anyway read more about it at CapFax.

Preckwinkle and Rush will double down today https://t.co/xzWBDHENev

— Rich Miller (@capitolfax) March 25, 2019

Preckwinkle isn't doing any ads on TV, but Lightfoot is continuing to spend money on ads such as this one below which you can also see at CapFax. She gets saddled with her service on the police board and this ad shows she'll help people caught in the criminal justice system. [VIDEO]

Runoff #6WardChicago

From Block Club Chicago, Ald. Roderick Sawyer gives his thoughts on being forced into next month's runoff election for Ward 6 Alderman. He claims not to know much about his opponent Deborah Foster-Bonner. As we know he beat another incumbent Alderman of the 6th Ward in a runoff, however, do you all believe he can pull off a victory on April 2nd?

Also early voting in next month's runoff for some alderman, city treasurer, and mayor races began yesterday.

Runoff #6WardChicago

I shared this on the fb page for this blog. We see an article from Patch for the coming runoff in Ward 6 between Deborah Foster-Bonner and Ald. Roderick Sawyer. If you didn't get the change to find out more about Ms. Foster-Bonner before last month's election take your time and read about her before next month's run-off. And as always feel free to chime in on whether or not you think Chicago's 6th Ward is better off with a change in the Alderman's office or if the incumbent is doing the job in his current role.

Runoff #6WardChicago

You might have seen this on Concerned Citizens of Chatham, as the count had continued from last week's election it appears that there will be a runoff in the 6th Ward between incumbent Roderick T. Sawyer and Deborah Foster Bonner.

Capitol Fax: CFL takes a pass on mayor’s race #ChiMayor19

I wanted to highlight what's interesting about the coming run-off next month between Toni Preckwinkle and Lori Lightfoot from yesterday's post by Rich Miller.

CFL takes a pass on mayor’s race https://t.co/Gu48iTaZMR

— Rich Miller (@capitolfax) March 4, 2019

I think Preckwinkle’s biggest problem is that people who voted for everyone else in the first round did so at least partly because they couldn’t bring themselves to vote for the purported “front-runner” - and that would be 84 percent of those who voted. Few really know who Lori Lightfoot is, which as a commenter pointed out earlier today is most definitely a big help at this point in the campaign. It’s hers to lose right now because she’s 1) not Toni Preckwinkle; and 2) a blank slate.

 Preckwinkle has to firmly and quickly take Lightfoot down, gin up the aldermen with the warning that Lightfoot will take away their outside income and their ward prerogatives, hand out as much patronage as she can lay her hands on, get the church ladies on her side and otherwise rehabilitate her own image (although the latest poll found that, despite it all, she still has a 53-37 fav/unfav rating). All in four short weeks.

Whew.

Not to mention that yet another self-inflicted wound could prove politically fatal. She’d also better hope that nothing happens with the federal case against Ald. Ed Burke in the next few weeks.

Who might eke out the win for the mayor's office in April.

Allow me to share a tweet from Newsalert's Steve Bartin the latest poll for the runoff and it seems both candidates are already out with the ads for the runoff.

@levois

Chicago Mayoral Race Poll: Lightfoot 58% , Preckwinkle 30%https://t.co/nd2AK0hd0t

— Steve Bartin (@stevebartin) March 4, 2019

EDITORIAL: The next mayor of Chicago must bring back the middle class #ChiMayor19

Perhaps Preckwinkle & Lightfoot will have an answer to this Sun-Times editorial as they head to the their April run-off.

Here’s the challenge for the next mayor of Chicago: Bring back the middle class. We don’t mean save the middle class. That would mean Chicago has one, the @Suntimes editorial board writes. https://t.co/9ojXyBWz9D

— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) March 2, 2019

A city without a middle class is no place to be. It is a ladder with a few rungs at the top and a few at the bottom — and none in the middle. It is a place where the social mobility essential to a democracy — the ability to climb the ladder of success — becomes prohibitively difficult, if even possible.

The next mayor of Chicago may argue that the biggest challenge facing our city is getting its finances in order, or improving its schools, or curbing violent crime. But all those challenges must be met in ways that pull the whole city along — that create opportunities for the poor to move up and for the last of the middle class to stick around.

Or what’s the point?

I would like to refer you to a previous post which involved a piece from WBEZ regarding Chicago's shrinking middle class.