Why Some of Black Chicago's Leaders Are Endorsing the White, Tough-on-Crime Guy for Mayor

[RandySF]

Black voters are a significant bloc that each candidate will need to win over on the road to the runoff. Incumbent Mayor Lori Lightfoot performed better than the seven other Black mayoral candidates in majority Black wards, but it wasn’t enough to secure her spot in the runoff. She came in third place, making her the first popularly elected mayor to lose reelection since first-term incumbent Jane Byrne lost to Harold Washington 40 years ago. Johnson and businessman Willie Wilson came in second and third place in majority Black wards.

Endorsements have begun flowing in for the runoff, but it is still unclear which candidate Black political and business leaders will overwhelmingly support. Who Black political leaders and others endorse in the runoff matters.

As of press time, some Black political leaders already have endorsed the candidates. Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who ran for mayor in 2019, and U.S. Rep. Danny Davis have endorsed Johnson. Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Bishop Larry Trotter of Sweet Holy Spirit endorsed Johnson, too. Trotter initially endorsed Wilson in the general election. Raoul is the first state-wide elected official to endorse Johnson. West Side faith leaders Rev. Ira Acree of Greater St. John Bible Church, Dr. Marshall Hatch of New Mount Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church, and David Cherry of the West Side–based Leaders Network have also pledged their support for Johnson. And perhaps most prominently, the Rev. Jesse Jackson endorsed Johnson late last week.

Former secretary of state Jesse White, Ald. Walter Burnett (27th Ward), and retiring Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6th Ward), who came in last in the 2023 mayoral race, have endorsed Vallas. On Tuesday, former U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush endorsed Vallas, too. Wilson, a businessman, and community activist Ja’Mal Green have also endorsed Vallas. Wilson placed fifth overall in the Feb. 28 mayoral election, and Green finished in sixth place.




https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2023/03/chicago-mayor-endorsements-vallas-johnson-black-politicians.html

[mucifer]

1. It makes me very sad to realize

My city will probably have another Rahm/Daley type mayor.

I was disappointed with Mayor Lightfoot.

But looks like Vallas is going to win and that REALLY sucks !

[brooklynite]

2. "African American" and "working class" doesn't translate to "progressive"

Crime (real or perceived) is the driving issue in Chicago, as it was in NYC in 2021.