In City Council races, most incumbent Chicago aldermen are holding on to their seats or advancing to runoffs

In a Chicago aldermanic election marked by a dozen aldermen calling it quits, incumbent City Council members who did run Tuesday had an overwhelmingly good night.

Only one incumbent was losing Tuesday, according to unofficial results. And that was 12th Ward Ald. Anabel Abarca, who had just been appointed to the seat by Mayor Lori Lightfoot in December.

Meanwhile, 31 other incumbents had over 50% of the votes cast in their races, according to unofficial results. They appeared poised to win their races outright, avoiding April runoff elections.

In six other ward races involving sitting aldermen, nobody had more than 50% of the votes cast, according to unofficial results. But the incumbents in those races were among the top two vote-getters and seemed set to make the runoffs. Three of the six incumbents who seemed headed for runoffs were Lightfoot appointees.

If those results hold, Chicago voters largely endorsed the status quo in the council despite the many veteran members of the body who opted not to seek to retain their seats.

A dozen aldermen with around 200 years of cumulative experience are stepping down at the end of this term. And Lightfoot has already replaced four others over the past 11 months who either took other gigs or, in one case, got convicted of a federal crime and had to resign.

At the same time, many incumbents who were thought to be in competitive races ended up winning outright or surviving to advance to an April 4 runoff.

Citywide, about 175 candidates were running for four-year terms on the City Council and the $142,000 salaries that come with the responsibility of being perhaps the elected officials Chicagoans complain to the most.

This was also the first council election to be held using new ward boundaries determined through the once-a-decade remapping that’s done after each U.S. census.

There were more than than 97,000 mail-in ballots outstanding as of Tuesday, with election officials expecting 60,000 to 80,000 of those to be returned on time to be counted.

Here’s a look at some of the more prominent contests.

1st Ward

In the Northwest Side’s 1st Ward, progressive first-term incumbent Ald. Daniel La Spata was close to garnering more than half the vote, which would let him avoid a runoff for the seat that represents parts of Wicker Park, the Ukrainian Village, West Town and Logan Square.

La Spata faced a stiff challenge from a slate of well-financed and well-known rivals, including attorney Sam Royko, the son of the late Chicago newspaper columnist Mike Royko, who was pulling second.

Former Ald. Proco “Joe” Moreno was attempting a political comeback following a series of scandals but trailed behind La Spata, Royko and community organizer Stephen “Andy” Schneider.

“My opponents took a lot of ugliness, the worst there is in politics in their campaigns,” La Spata said, citing incidents where a beer was thrown at him during a campaign cycling event and a window of his campaign office was smashed. He said he wants to believe that his opponents are capable of decency in the runoff election. “I’m gonna need to see them prove that,” he said.

La Spata addressed his supporters when he was 106 votes short of the 50% vote minimum to avoid a runoff.

“Whether we find those 106 more votes in the next 24 hours, or the next six weeks, we’re going to find those votes together, and then I’m going to continue serving and being your alderman in the 1st Ward,” La Spata said.

4th Ward

Fourth Ward Ald. Sophia King gave up the seat to run for mayor, leaving five hopefuls vying to succeed her in the ward that runs along the lakefront from the South Loop to Kenwood.

King chairs the council’s Progressive Caucus, and the ward has a history of electing independent-minded aldermen.

In unofficial results, state Rep. Lamont Robinson was leading with 46% of the vote. For the second spot in a likely runoff, Ebony Lucas and Prentice C. Butler, were separated by 60 votes in unofficial totals. Butler is King’s chief of staff and got her endorsement.

5th Ward

Veteran Ald. Leslie Hairston’s announcement of her City Council retirement opened the floodgates for candidates who want to represent the 5th Ward, which covers most of Hyde Park, South Shore and part of the Greater Grand Crossing community.

With 11 political neophytes on the 5th Ward ballot, voters in the traditionally liberal, independent ward had plenty of options. The race is likely headed for an April 4 runoff.

Tuesday night, Desmon C. Yancy, a senior director of organizing and advocacy at Inner-city Muslim Action Network, was leading the vote at 26%, while attorney Martina “Tina” Hone, who worked as the city’s former chief engagement officer, had about 17%.

6th Ward

With veteran 6th Ward Ald. Roderick Sawyer running for mayor, the race to replace him had 11 candidates ranging from schoolteachers and church pastors to current and former law enforcement officers and small business owners.

They were all vying to represent a ward centered around the Chatham neighborhood, long a center of Black political and cultural strength on the South Side that has recently struggled with high crime.

Leading Tuesday night were William Hall, pastor at St. James Community Church, and Richard Wooten, a former police officer and security business owner who was a member of the city’s Police Accountability Task Force under former Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

10th Ward

Public safety and environmental concerns are top of mind for many voters in the far Southeast Side 10th Ward, which stretches from the South Chicago neighborhood to Hegewisch and the Indiana border.

Outgoing Ald. Sue Sadlowski Garza endorsed Ana Guajardo, a founding member of the United Workers’ Center group that works to protect the rights of immigrants and low-wage workers. Guajardo placed second Tuesday, heading to a runoff.

The top vote-getter, with 41% in unofficial totals, was Peter Chico, a police officer in the South Chicago district and the grandson of a South Chicago steelworker. Jessica Venegas, a CPD officer and practicing attorney, did not make the runoff.

11th Ward

It appeared that incumbent Nicole Lee will need to win a runoff to retain the seat to which she was appointed by Lightfoot almost a year ago.

Lee became Chicago’s first Chinese American alderman when she joined the City Council, and she was on the ballot Tuesday as the first ever majority-Asian ward, which includes parts of Bridgeport, Chinatown and McKinley Park.

Tuesday evening, Lee’s supporters piled into the second floor of a dim sum restaurant in her ward. The incumbent, who was selected by Lightfoot to fill in for Patrick Daley Thompson following his federal tax fraud conviction, fell 26 votes behind challenger Anthony Ciaravino with 78% of votes reporting. Yet no stress could be found at New Furama Restaurant as family and friends served themselves heaping piles of orange chicken and crab rangoons. Barring something drastic, Lee and Ciaravino are heading for the April 4 runoff.

The 11th has long been a central player in the Democratic political machine and the seat of the Daley political dynasty. Tuesday, Cook County Commissioner John Daley, the son and brother of the former mayors, strode into Lee’s party to show his continued support for the alderman.

”As seasoned as I am, (Lee) is very seasoned as well,” Daley said. “She gets it, she understands basic needs for the community and she’ll be out there explaining that to the community.”

12th Ward

Newly appointed Ald. Anabel Abarca appeared to be the only incumbent who lost her seat outright Tuesday.

Community activist Julia Ramirez topped Abarca by winning about 56% of the vote, thus avoiding a runoff.

Abarca got the job in December after outgoing Ald. George Cardenas endorsed her in the Southwest Side ward, which includes much of Brighton Park and McKinley Park. Cardenas left the council to take a seat on the Cook County Board of Tax Review.

Ramirez said she opted not to seek Lightfoot’s appointment to the seat because “the mayor is deeply unpopular here in the area” and she didn’t want the political baggage of the endorsement. Abarca, a former Cardenas chief of staff, said she felt compelled to seek the appointment because she wanted the seat.

14th Ward

In the Southwest Side 14th Ward, progressive candidate Jeylú Gutiérrez opened up a lead over Raúl Reyes as Gutiérrez seeks to become the first new council member in the ward in more than 50 years.

With all precincts reporting unofficial results, Gutiérrez had 65% of the vote to 35% for Raul Reyes.

The two candidates on the ballot are far less well-known than their political backers.

Gutiérrez, district director for Cook County Commissioner Alma Anaya, runs with the support of mayoral candidate and U.S. Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García. Outgoing Ald. Edward Burke has ties to Reyes.

One way or the other, the ward will see its first new alderman since Burke was elected in 1969. Facing federal corruption charges, he declined in November to file petitions to get his name on the ballot for reelection.

Supporters who were gathered for García’s Little Village watch party erupted when Gutiérrez arrived. Fifty-three years after Burke first won the office, Gutiérrez — the first immigrant, Latino and woman elected in the ward — claimed victory.

“We’re bringing equity to this ward,” she told reporters. “I’m not going to make a difference between undocumented permanent residents and citizens. They all deserve the same type of treatment.”

After soundly beating the Burke-backed Reyes, Gutiérrez said she’d run the office differently than her predecessor, who is currently facing racketeering charges.

“I’m going to be transparent,” she said.

19th Ward

Ald. Matt O’Shea, 19th, opened up a wide lead as he appeared to fend off two challengers and avoid a runoff for a fourth term representing the Far Southwest Side neighborhoods of Beverly, Mount Greenwood and Morgan Park.

He was flanked politically on the ballot by Fraternal Order of Police-backed former Chicago police Sgt. Mike Cummings on the right and computer consultant Tim Noonan on the left.

With all precincts reporting, O’Shea had 63% of the vote, to about 31% for Cummings and 5% for Noonan, according to unofficial results.

All three said public safety is the top issue in the election, but Cummings argued O’Shea didn’t do enough to support police, while Noonan said the ward is far more diverse than its reputation as a haven for police and firefighters makes it seem. O’Shea insisted his middle path was best for representing the wishes both of first responders and the many others who live in the ward.

Buoyed by a 55% ward turnout — the highest turnout of any ward — the incumbent claimed victory late Tuesday night and turned his attention forward.

His plans: “Enjoy the evening, and then get up early tomorrow and get back to work,” he told the Tribune in a call.

Throughout the campaign, O’Shea faced tough criticism from retired CPD Sgt. Mike Cummings, who alleged O’Shea hadn’t done enough to support police and address crime during his third term in City Council.

The incumbent said Tuesday a top priority for his next term would be supporting police by investing in new law enforcement technology, such as license plate readers and police observation cameras.

“Obviously, we got to work on an issue that’s plaguing every community across this community, and that’s crime,” O’Shea said.

21st Ward

With Ald. Howard Brookins Jr. stepping down after 20 years representing the 21st Ward following an unsuccessful run for Cook County judge, seven candidates were hoping to lead the ward, which stretches from Auburn Gresham to the border of Calumet Park.

The ward has been hobbled by downturns in population and its shopping districts, as well as rising gang crime and the havoc brought by the 2008 foreclosure crisis.

The person whom Brookins endorsed, Ronnie Mosley, was the top vote-getter with about 25% of the ballots. Mosley has worked in government under 8th Ward Ald. Michelle Harris and others. He appeared to be headed to a runoff with retired firefighter Cornell Dantzler.

23rd Ward

The head-to-head 23rd Ward election fight featured incumbent Ald. Silvana Tabares — once an ally of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan who has had a falling-out with him — versus community activist Eddie Guillen, who worked for Madigan’s political operation briefly but said Madigan isn’t backing his run against Tabares.

Instead, Guillen said he ran because Tabares has failed Latino voters in the ward, which includes parts of West Lawn and West Elsdon, hooking west through Garfield Ridge north of Midway Airport.

For her part, Tabares said she wants to focus on her record of getting things done and on being a strong independent voice for a ward that “has traditionally been seen as being politically dependent on neighboring wards.”

Tabares appeared to win reelection outright Tuesday with about 73% of the vote.

24th Ward

In the West Side’s 24th Ward, Lightfoot appointee Ald. Monique Scott appeared headed to a runoff. With 95% of precincts reporting, Scott had 45% of the vote, according to unofficial results.

In a field of seven challengers, firearms instructor Creative Scott was in second place with 14.9% of the vote, according to unofficial results.

Monique Scott was appointed in June to succeed her brother, Michael Scott Jr., after he stepped down from the West Side seat.

25th Ward

In the 25th Ward, which now includes Pilsen and some of Little Village, one-term progressive incumbent Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez faced a tough head-to-head challenge from Aida Flores, an assistant principal at Darwin Elementary School who also ran in 2019.

Sigcho-Lopez appeared to be winning the seat outright in unofficial totals.

Flores wanted to reduce crime through better community engagement, and to find better ways to fight the gentrification that has long threatened working-class Pilsen residents.

Sigcho-Lopez has been a staunch critic of Lightfoot and an outspoken member of City Council’s socialist caucus and is endorsed by the Chicago Teachers Union. The pro-business Get Stuff Done political action committee has spent has spent more than $62,000 opposing his candidacy, and has spent nearly $100,000 on media and mailers supporting Flores.

33rd Ward

The 33rd Ward featured a competitive race between incumbent Rossana Rodriguez Sanchez, Samie Martinez, a Chicago planning department project coordinator, and finance professional and affordable housing developer Laith Shaaban.

Four years ago, Rodriguez Sanchez upended the reign of the longtime Mell family in the ward, beating Deb Mell, who had taken the seat after her father, Richard Mell, retired after nearly 40 years on the council. The ward now includes much of Albany Park and has since been one of the vocal members of the city council’s caucus of Democratic Socialists.

Rodriguez Sanchez appeared to fend off her challengers to win the seat outright Tuesday.

34th Ward

The brand-new 34th Ward, which encompasses most of the western half of the Loop and stretches into Greektown and Fulton Market, was home to a two-way race.

Bill Conway — a former assistant Cook County state’s attorney, Navy veteran, and son of the billionaire co-founder of the Carlyle Group, a private equity firm — unsuccessfully ran for Cook County state’s attorney in 2020 but appeared to handily won his aldermanic race Tuesday. He faced Ascot Realty CEO James Ascot, the past president of the Chicago Association of Realtors.

Conway supporters were in good spirits shortly before 8 p.m., with their candidate leading with 67% of the vote with 90% of precincts reporting. Among them was Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, who said he had known Conway since the two attended high school together at Latin School of Chicago.

“I think he’s a breath of fresh air,” said Giannoulias.

Conway addressed a jubilant crowd shortly before 9 p.m. He told supporters he had spoken with Ascot, who he said had conceded.

Conway focused on public safety and economic development, which were key issues during the campaign to represent the new ward. He said that during the campaign, public safety had emerged as voters’ main concern.

“We need to make sure our police officers have the resources they need to fight and deter crime,” he said, “but we also have to embrace a community policing model.”

In an interview before his remarks, Conway said he would like to see more police in the ward. He said it was also important to address root causes of crime, including issues related to homelessness, job growth and mental health.

43rd Ward

Lincoln Park’s incumbent alderman, attorney Timmy Knudsen, who was appointed by Lightfoot, is expected to face a runoff with business consultant and Sheffield Neighborhood Association President Brian Comer.

The ward’s recently retired alderman, Michele Smith, was backing marketing and PR professional Wendi Taylor-Nations. Also running were Rebecca Janowitz, an attorney who has worked on the county’s Justice Advisory Council and who poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into her own campaign; Steven McClellan, who owns a sales and food vending company for festivals; and Steve Botsford, who works with the real estate firm Laurel Canyon Holdings.

As he awaited results at his campaign party Tuesday evening, Knudsen said he’s proud of the race he ran.

“We knocked on 13,000 doors as a team, which is every vote-able door a couple times,” Knudsen said. “... I’m totally confident that with whatever’s happened tonight, we put it all out there. ... I’m trying to show how we work, show how we fight.”

Looking back on his five months in office, Knudsen said he considers it a gift to be thrown into the deep end.

“I was in the role trying to get things done fast, knowing that I might have a short stint. I also knew there were a lot of eyes on me. ... It’s been a great five months. ... We’ve gotten a few things done pretty quickly,” he said, regarding a technology overhaul to improve constituent services in the ward. “It was important for me to come in and show that, as a city, we need to modernize constituent services. I think it’s going to work so well in 43 that other wards around the city will want to follow suit. I’ve already had other aldermen reach out about the one we’re using and what that could look like for them.”

45th Ward

First-term Ald. Jim Gardiner has been dogged by controversy since winning a close race to represent the Northwest Side Park in 2019. But on Tuesday he was pulling far ahead of his five challengers and nearing an outright victory, though it appeared he will face a runoff.

At his election night party in Portage Park, Gardiner said his campaign felt “really good” about his commanding lead. With one precinct outstanding in unofficial totals, Gardiner had nearly 49%. His closest competitor, Megan Mathias, a small business owner and Chair of Local School Council at Belding Elementary, claimed only about 16% of the vote.

Past controversies for Gardiner range from a reported federal investigation into whether he sought to withhold ward services from some residents who opposed his agenda, to leaked profane texts about political colleagues and alleged remarks likening detractors to “rats.”

The alderman declined to comment on the controversies.

46th Ward

The 46th Ward, which includes Uptown and part of Lakeview, is used to nail-biter elections. This year’s race was wide open, thanks to the retirement of three-term Ald. James Cappleman. Six candidates ran to replace him, including two candidates who challenged him from the left in 2019: chemist Marianne Lalonde and political organizer Angela Clay, who is endorsed by the Chicago Teachers Union and the Chicago chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America.

Kim Walz, who works in government affairs for Walgreens, has garnered the most support from established Democrats, including her former boss, U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley. Roushaunda Williams, a bartender at and a shop steward for Unite Here Local 1, has the support of several labor organizations, while Patrick Nagle, the chief administrative law judge with the federal Social Security Administration, has the support of several business owners in the ward. Real estate agent Michael Cortez was also running.

Clay and Walz ended up on top Tuesday and appeared headed to a runoff.

48th Ward

A crowded, 10-candidate field emerged after three-term Ald. Harry Osterman announced his retirement in the 48th Ward, which includes part of Uptown, as well as Edgewater and Andersonville.

Among the candidates were affordable housing developer Joe Dunne, university lecturer and police reform organizer Larry Svabek, artist and restaurant worker Nick Ward, real estate broker Andre Peloquin, resale business owner Brian Haag, Illinois Assistant Attorney General Isaac Freilich Jones, dance supply business owner and Indivisible Illinois organizer Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Deputy Director Roxanne Volkmann, restaurateur Andy Peters, and Nassir Faulkner, a communications manager for State Comptroller Susana Mendoza.

Dunne won Osterman’s endorsement and has been a top fundraiser. Ward, a member of the Chicago chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, was hoping young progressives push him to victory.

It appeared Dunne and Manaa-Hoppenworth were heading to a runoff.

50th Ward

Incumbent Ald. Debra Silverstein appeared to have won a fourth term on the City Council outright representing the ward that borders Evanston on the far northern end of the city, covering most of West Ridge and a little bit of North Park.

Her sole challenger, Mueze Bawany, a Chicago Public Schools high school teacher and the son of Pakistani immigrants, had campaigned as a progressive alternative, with support and large donations from the Chicago Teachers Union and other left-leaning groups. Bawany lost several endorsements when a series of his deleted past tweets resurfaced in which he used profanities against the state of Israel, for which he apologized. The ward has a significant Jewish population. Silverstein, who is a practicing Orthodox Jew, described the tweets as “hateful and obscene.”

Uncontested races

Unopposed this election are incumbent Aldermen Brian Hopkins, 2nd, Pat Dowell, 3rd, Gregory Mitchell, 7th, David Moore, 17th, Walter Burnett, 27th, Scott Waguespack, 32nd, Carlos Ramirez Rosa, 35th, Brendan Reilly, 42nd, and Matt Martin, 47th. Bennett Lawson, the former chief of staff to retiring Ald. Tom Tunney, is also unopposed in his bid to lead the 44th Ward.

City Clerk Anna Valencia, who manages City Council records as well as the city’s vehicle stickers, parking permits, dog registration and municipal IDs, also ran unopposed. She has served in the role since 2017. Treasurer Melissa Conyears Ervin — who manages the city’s cash, and investments as well as pension funds for city employees and teachers — is also guaranteed another reelection. She was first elected in 2019.

Chicago Tribune’s Will Lee, Dan Petrella, Sarah Macaraeg, Jake Sheridan, Talia Soglin, Richard Requena and Hank Sanders contributed.