Lightfoot Concedes in Chicago Mayoral Election

After telling people not to come out and vote if they weren’t going to cast their ballots for her, Lori Lightfoot conceded Tuesday night (February 28) in the 2023 Chicago mayoral election. In 2019, the Democrat was the first black woman and openly gay politician to be elected to the office in the Windy City. She can now add another first to the list: the first one-term incumbent not to advance to the April runoff in 40 years.

Why Did Lightfoot Lose Her Re-Election?

Lightfoot lost to fellow Democrats Paul Vallas and Brandon Johnson, placing third in a pool of nine candidates. Leading up to the election, the mayor was blasted for rising crime rates and for overly focusing on race during her tenure. “Under Lightfoot, Chicago recorded 695 murders at the end of 2022 and 804 in 2021 – a level not seen in the Windy City in a quarter of a century,” the New York Post reported. The Chicago Police Department’s end-of-year report pointed out that in 2022, the city saw more than 20,000 cases of theft, almost double the amount from the year before. The department also stated that the first three weeks of this year showed crime rates have ballooned by 61% compared to last year.

Paul Vallas

Vallas, 69, a former Chicago Public Schools CEO and budget director, was in first place with 33.9% of the vote at the time of this writing. His campaign focused on fighting crime and promising to add hundreds more police officers. He also received support from the city’s police unions and was endorsed by Chicago’s Fraternal Order of Police. Lightfoot, however, has criticized the candidate as being too conservative, accusing him of using “the ultimate dog whistle” by saying his campaign was about “taking back our city,” the Post explained.

Vallas ran for mayor in 2019 and came in ninth out of 14 candidates. He served as an advisor to the Fraternal Order of Police while the organization went through negotiations with Lightfoot’s administration. The mayor criticized this relationship and branded him a Republican in disguise, even accusing him of being fast on the heels of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Brandon Johnson

Johnson is a Cook County Board of Commissioners member who received endorsement from the Chicago Teachers Union. As of Tuesday night, he had 20.3% of the votes, coming in second in the mayoral race. When it comes to crime, the candidate claims adding more police officers will not make communities safer. Instead, he says expanding the number of detectives by promoting 200 officers will be part of his plan to “enact major policy shifts on day one of my administration for a more efficient approach to stopping violent crime.”

The son of a pastor, Johnson was blasted by Lightfoot, who called him a “false prophet” and said, “If he’s not willing to commit to not defunding the police, he’s going to have less officers on the street, and our communities are going to be less safe.”

The Race Card

Lightfoot came in third place with just 16.9%. Her campaign was criticized for what appeared to be an obsession with race. She told the New Yorker that her opponents just don’t want to see a black woman in leadership, adding, “I am a black woman – let’s not forget. Certain folks, frankly, don’t support us in leadership roles.” She added:

“The same forces that didn’t want Harold Washington to succeed, they’re still here. The last time we had an African American mayor in power was 40 years ago. It’s important for us not to repeat history.”

Don’t Vote if You’re Not Voting for Me

For those who were on the fence about re-electing Lightfoot, her swipes at voting rights might have been cause for concern. She said:

“Voting for somebody not named Lightfoot is a vote for Chuy Garcia or Paul Vallas. If you want them controlling your fate and your destiny, then say home. Then don’t vote.”

Later, she tried to backpedal by telling reporters that she didn’t mean they shouldn’t avoid the election, but the damaging words were already spoken.

The list of grievances against Lightfoot’s administration is quite long. Besides the crime rate and her apparent obsession with racial politics, the mayor has been criticized over how she handled the pandemic, including a face-off with the Teachers Union that caused a strike in 2019. Some critics cited her managing a deal to bring NASCAR to the Windy City for a road race. Alderpersons complained they had not been consulted and that the race would shut down parts of the city for weeks, and could make traffic nightmares during the Fourth of July Holiday. And then there was the fiasco with the Hilco Plant in 2020 and the smokestack collapse. The inspector general’s report revealed Lightfoot’s administration had known about the risk but had done nothing to prevent it.

The outgoing mayor did at least have a congenial response to her loss, saying, “Obviously, we didn’t win the election today, but I stand here with my head held high and a heart full of gratitude. I will be rooting and praying for the next mayor of Chicago.”

As the results stood Tuesday, Vallas and Johnson will head to a runoff on April 4. However, the city allows mail-in ballots to be received after election day so long as they are postmarked by February 28 and received by March 14.