The 2023 Chicago mayoral race is officially coming to a close April 4, which means Chicagoans will be flocking to the polls to finally decide whether ex-Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas or Cook County Board of Commissioners member Brandon Johnson will be leading the Windy City for the next four years.
While both candidates are registered Democrats, they differ in quite a few respects, including how to improve public safety and public schools.
Endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police, Vallas has called for an increase in police funding, hires and presence, and has criticized Johnson for “defunding the police” – something Johnson has clarified he is not planning to do in a recent Block Club Chicago interview. He plans to implement community policing, invite back officers who have quit in the past three years at no detriment to their former rank, transfer funds from the CTA to hire more officers, and build a CPD forensic crime lab.
Johnson, who has publicly called for decreasing the Chicago Police Department’s budget, plans to implement a new CPD Anti-Gun Trafficker Department, launch a new CTA Violence Intervention Program, promote 200 new homicide detectives, and establish a new Mayor’s Office of Community Safety.
The topic of crime and gun violence is at the heart of many Wright College students. “Gun violence is a big problem in Chicago,” said Ronald Hemesath, a first-year student at Wright. “We see it rising every single day.”
Another difference between the two candidates surrounds their history and policies regarding the LGBTQ+ community and other marginalized groups within the city.
Vallas has come under fire from the city's LGBTQ+ community for allegedly liking homophobic tweets which purposely called Lori Lightfoot – the second lesbian mayor of a major U.S. city – "Larry," as well as participating in a fundraiser for Awake Illinois, a conservative non-profit organization with supposed anti-LGBTQ+ beliefs. He has denied personally liking the tweets and called their rhetoric "abhorrent."
Johnson has championed himself as a fighter for LGBTQ+ rights, pledging on his campaign website to, "Transform Chicago into a national model for gender equity and reproductive rights, champion LGBTQ rights as human rights, and be a visible and vocal ally to creating safety and equal opportunity for the LGBTQ community."
The safety, security, and inclusion of Chicago's marginalized groups is another focus for many at Wright. “A lot of people don't know how to reserve their opinions towards specific people and groups,” said Jasmine Salazar, a second-year student at Wright. “I think one I heard about was they're trying to make a law or something regarding the LGBTQ+ community, and I feel like in Chicago there's two sides … there's a lot of liberals, of course, but it's just people who don't know how to keep their opinions to themselves.”
Although Chicagoans sent Vallas and Johnson to the runoff, some are not happy with either candidate, including some students at Wright.
"I don't really pay too much attention to politics," said Jacob Fajardo, a first-year student at Wright. "Nowadays it's either you vote for the bad, or the worse."
If you are not registered to vote you can register in-person before or on April 4 with two forms of ID (one needs an address), at your nearest Illinois Secretary of State’s Office, or online at https://chicagoelections.gov/en/register-to-vote-change-of-address.html
To learn more about Paul Vallas and his campaign, visit his website at https://www.paulvallas2023.com/
To learn more about Brandon Johnson and his campaign, visit his website at https://www.brandonforchicago.com/
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