A mayoral election took place in Chicago, a city in the state of Illinois, on February 28, 2023. To choose a new mayor for the city, a vote was taken to gauge the opinions of the local populace. Unfortunately, nobody obtained the necessary number of votes to qualify as mayor. The run-off for the 2023 mayor of Chicago election will now take place on April 4, 2023.
The candidates
Chicago mayoral candidates for the 2023 election:
- Brandon Johnson
- Paul Vallas
- Kam Buckner
- Chuy García
- Ja’Mal Green
- Sophia King
- Lori Lightfoot
- Roderick Sawyer
- Willie Wilson
Out of the nine candidates mentioned above, seven were eliminated, and the top two candidates from this list will now face off in a run-off election. They are all Chicago natives who proudly represent their country. In this mayoral election, there were more than 30 nominees, but the majority of them were rejected and disqualified for a variety of reasons, and two people withdrew.
The Chicago mayoral elections 2023
The 2023 Chicago mayoral election was held on February 28, but no candidate prevailed because they fell short of the necessary number of votes. Chicago was going to get a new mayor as a result of this election. If someone had received enough votes, they would have been elected to a 4-year term serving Chicago.
In the Chicago Mayoral Election of 2023, Lori Lightfoot, the city’s previous mayor, also ran for office. It was her second attempt, but the election’s outcome made it clear that she was neither the voters’ first nor second choice this time. As a result, she was disqualified from the run-off election, which will take place on April 4, 2023. Paul Vallas and Brandon Johnson were, by a wide margin of votes, the top two candidates for the position of mayor. The head of the Chicago public schools is Paul Vallas. Currently serving as a commissioner on the Cook County Board of Commissioners is Brandon Johnson.
Top issues in the 2023 election for mayor of Chicago
Since violent crime increased in Chicago during the pandemic, as it did in many other cities, with the city recording about 800 murders in 2021, according to the Chicago Police Department, public safety has been the city’s top concern. The most recent high was that number.
Even though Chicago has fewer murders per capita than other Midwestern cities like St. Louis, robberies are still on the rise, and incidents are occurring in areas where they previously hadn’t, like downtown.
Chicago voters are also concerned about the rising cost of living, which includes property taxes, as well as access to affordable housing, employment opportunities, and education.
Chicago Mayoral Election in February 2023 polls
Paul Vallas, a former superintendent of public schools in Chicago and Philadelphia, has won the race for mayor after receiving 33.8% of the vote with 91% of precincts reporting. He had also challenged Lori in the 2019 election for mayor of Chicago. A Cook County commissioner and CTU organizer named Brandon Johnson won the other spot in the runoff election with 20.3% of the vote totals, while Lightfoot received only 17.1%.
| Candidate | Votes | % |
| Paul Vallas | 172,093 | 33.8% |
| Brandon Johnson | 103,387 | 20.3% |
| Lori Lightfoot* | 86,952 | 17.1% |
| Other candidates | 147,124 | 28.9% |
The resulting verdict
Even though Chicago just held a mayoral election, it probably won’t be decided for several weeks and without a runoff. There were nine candidates vying to become the next mayor of Chicago. Among them is Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who was chosen in 2019 and is running for re-election. A candidate must win the mayor’s race with more than 50% of the vote.
Given the size of the field, it is unlikely that will happen, so a runoff between the top two contenders is anticipated on April 4, 2023. The race for mayor of Chicago is unofficially nonpartisan and is not referred to as a primary, despite the fact that all of the candidates identify as Democrats, and the city is a stronghold for the Democratic Party.
