Chicago to elect new mayor as crime emerges as key issue
Send a link to a friend
[April 04, 2023]
By Brendan O'Brien
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Crime is the central issue in Tuesday's mayoral
runoff in Chicago, where voters are choosing between two candidates with
contrasting approaches to public safety.
Former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas calls for more cops; Cook
County Commissioner Brandon Johnson calls for more mental health support
and opportunities for young people.
The two are squaring off to run the third-largest U.S. city after
incumbent Lori Lightfoot finished third out of nine candidates in the
previous round when no one managed to cross the 50% line.
The nonpartisan race in the heavily left-leaning city has tested
Democratic messaging on policing in the U.S., three years after
widespread protests following the police murder of George Floyd and
months after Republicans sought to bludgeon Democrats over the issue in
the 2022 midterm elections.
Vallas says he will hire more than 1,500 police officers. Johnson says
he will invest in youth summer employment programs for at-risk youth and
spend more on mental health treatment.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Apr/04/images/ads/current/christianchurch_lda_EASTER_2023.png)
"Other cities will watch - particularly mayors and incumbent mayors who
want to stay in office - to really see how voters react," said Nick
Kachiroubas, a public administration professor at DePaul University in
Chicago. "The question becomes which approach wins and what is the
reaction to that new policing strategy."
The candidate who comes out ahead will inherit a city in which the
number of murders since 2018 has increased by 20%. In 2021, there were
804 murders, the most in a quarter-century.
Car thefts have doubled and other types of theft have risen by a quarter
over the last five years.
Lightfoot, the first Black woman and first openly gay person to serve as
the city's mayor, was bidding for a second four-year term. But her
handling of crime and a series of crises, including the COVID-19
pandemic, racial justice protests, and a protracted teachers' strike,
sapped her support.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Apr/04/images/ads/current/charrons_bch_2022.png)
[to top of second column]
|
![](../images/040423PIX/news_k88.jpg)
The skyline is seen in Chicago,
Illinois, U.S., October 19, 2017. REUTERS/John Gress/File Photo
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2019/Sep/05/images/ads/current/stclara_lda_SPONSOR_090519.png)
In addition to hiring hundreds more officers, Vallas, a former
Chicago budget director who grew up on the city's South Side, wants
to reinstitute a community policing model and create a victim and
witness protection and services program, all with the intention to
get tough on crime.
"We need more cops outright," said Tim Lambert, a 50-year-old real
estate professional on why he is a Vallas supporter. "When I lived
in neighborhoods with beat cops, I knew the cops and that was a good
thing. They have more of a vested interest in the neighborhood than
being deployed in a widespread way."
Johnson, a former Chicago teacher and union organizer, says he will
promote 200 new detectives from the existing pool of police
officers. He also wants to strengthen police accountability.
Bertha Purnell knows Chicago's violence all too well. After her son
was killed in a shooting in 2017 on the city's West Side, she
started an organization to support mothers of those killed in
violent crimes.
"Johnson has asked people who are affected by violence, what is it
they want to see, instead of telling us what we need. That is
something very important," said the 63-year-old former nurse, who is
voting for Johnson, noting that he lives in the same neighborhood
where her son was killed.
On day one, the winner will have a variety of other issues to
address, including a struggling public school system, the city's
fiscal woes and the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic that closed
many businesses and offices.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Apr/04/images/ads/current/safetytip_sda_beasonag_2023.png)
A poll last week by Emerson College Polling, WGN-TV and The Hill
showed Vallas leading Johnson by 5 points, with 13% undecided. Other
recent polls have shown a narrower margin.
(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Chicago; Editing by Donna Bryson
and Matthew Lewis)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content. |