| ULULULULULULULU! |
Vallas, a former schools CEO backed by the police union, and Johnson, a Cook County commissioner endorsed by the Chicago Teachers Union, advanced to the April 4 runoff after none of the nine candidates was able to secure over 50% of the vote to win outright.
Lightfoot, the first Black woman and first openly gay person to lead the city, won her first term in 2019 after promising to end decades of corruption and backroom dealing at City Hall. But opponents blamed Lightfoot for an increase in crime that occured in cities across the U.S. during the pandemic and criticized her as being a divisive, overly contentious leader.
She is the first elected Chicago mayor to lose a reelection bid since 1983, when Jane Byrne, the city’s first female mayor, lost her Democratic primary.
Speaking to supporters Tuesday night, Lightfoot called being Chicago’s mayor "the honor of a lifetime."
"Regardless of tonight’s outcome, we fought the right fights and we put this city on a better path," Lightfoot said. She told her fellow mayors around the country not to fear being bold.
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Paul Vallas: 2023-02-27 Chicago mayoral favorite Paul Vallas is slammed for liking tweets branding lesbian incumbent Lori Lightfoot 'Larry,' calling her a GNOME and mocking her hairline
Paul Vallas: 2023-01-19 Chicago Mayor Lightfoot places fourth in poll ahead of reelection day next month
Paul Vallas: 2009-01-01 For sheer brazenness, nobody surpasses Rod
Paul Vallas: 2023-02-27 Chicago mayoral favorite Paul Vallas is slammed for liking tweets branding lesbian incumbent Lori Lightfoot 'Larry,' calling her a GNOME and mocking her hairline
Paul Vallas: 2023-01-19 Chicago Mayor Lightfoot places fourth in poll ahead of reelection day next month
Paul Vallas: 2009-01-01 For sheer brazenness, nobody surpasses Rod