The first West Side mayor in 90 years is running for reelection.
On Sept. 13, Mayor Brandon Johnson, an Austin resident, announced that he would seek reelection in February. His first term comes to an end in April.
Johnson could be up against 13 candidates who are circulating nominating petitions to be on the ballot in the February election.
Johnson announced that he’d be running for mayor again at the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center to 2,000 elected officials, faith and business leaders, and families.
“You all ready for four more years, Chicago?” Johnson started his Sept. 13 speech. “Are you all ready to make sure that Chicago stays on the path to be the safest, most affordable big city in America? Are you with me, Chicago?”
During his speech, Johnson highlighted the importance of disrupting the status quo and cited the progress Chicago has made under his leadership.
“Government has a responsibility to work for the many and not for the few, and that belief has been built over generations by working people organizing in their neighborhoods, their block clubs, workplaces, schools, and houses of worship. Real transformation has never come from the top down, but from the bottom up,” Johnson said.
Days before he announced his reelection, Johnson promised that, if he ran for a second term, he’d continue investing in Austin.
“The West and South Sides of Chicago will never be ignored,” Johnson said at a Sept. 10 ribbon cutting for affordable apartments on Chicago Avenue, “not as long as I’m mayor of the City of Chicago.”