Chicago mayoral candidate profile: Lori Lightfoot

Mayor Lori Lightfoot shocked Chicago’s political establishment in 2019 when she defeated Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle in a landslide. Lightfoot had announced a longshot run against Rahm Emanuel in May 2018, after the mayor had appointed her to two different policing boards and before Emanuel announced he wouldn’t seek reelection. Lightfoot, a former federal prosecutor and big law attorney, took office promising to reform city government but has faced criticism for not following through on transparency promises. Much of her tenure has been spent leading the city through COVID-19 and dealing with high crime, which spiked dramatically in 2020. After two years of rising street violence, the city recorded a 14% decrease in homicides but was still worse than 2019, when Lightfoot took office. Lightfoot, for her part, argues that her plan to address violent crime is working but needs time.

Age: 60

Born: Massillon, Ohio

Personal: Married to Amy Eshleman with a teenage daughter

Education: Bachelor’s degree, University of Michigan; Juris Doctor, University of Chicago

Neighborhood: Logan Square

Current job: Mayor of Chicago

Government experience: Assistant U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Illinois (1996-2002); chief administrator, Chicago Police Department Office of Professional Standards (2002-04); chief of staff and general counsel, Chicago Office of Emergency Management and Communications (2004-05); first deputy procurement officer, Chicago Department of Procurement Services (2005); co-chair, Chicago Police Accountability Task Force (2016); president, Chicago Police Board (2015-18).

Political experience: Mayor of Chicago

Campaign slogan: “Riding with Lori”

Campaign website: lightfootforchicago.com

Who is on the ballot: 2023 Chicago mayoral election guide

Read more:

• Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot will seek a second term

• Lightfoot playing defense as she gears up for tough reelection campaign

• ‘You brought chaos’: Mayor Lightfoot defends record against challengers ‘Chuy’ García and Brandon Johnson

• Mayor’s labor record

• In first debate, challengers attack Lori Lightfoot’s record while she aims to ‘finish the job we have started’

• Lightfoot swept into office as an avowed reformer. Three years later, critics see ‘missed opportunities’ and a mixed record

• ‘Let police be police’ has become a campaign refrain for some of Lightfoot’s opponents. ‘Not on my watch,’ she says.

• White voters helped propel Lightfoot to the mayor’s office in 2019. Will they stick with her?

• Many Chicago progressives want to defeat Lightfoot. Can they do it without hurting their movement?

• Chicago became the largest U.S. city to elect an openly gay mayor

• How Lightfoot shook ‘wealthy corporate lawyer’ label on the 2019 campaign trail

• Behind Lightfoot’s image as police reformer, her past reveals complicated picture