The mayoral runoff election came to an end on Tuesday. In a historic victory, Lori Lightfoot defeated Toni Preckwinkle, Cook County Board president after receiving more than 73 percent of the vote.
Lightfoot, a former federal prosecutor, will become the “second city’s first black female and openly gay major,” Common Dreams reported. Her “groundbreaking win” promises “a new progressive vision for the city.”
“Today, you did more than make history,” Lightfoot told hundreds of supporters at the Hilton Chicago on Tuesday night. “You created a movement for change.”
Lightfoot, who ran a progressive campaign, stressed her commitment to end the “corrupt, broken Democratic machine” in a divided city. According to the Chicago Tribune, her progressive agenda included “advocating for more affordable housing, reforming the police department and driving more city resources to economically starved neighborhoods.”
“Together we can and will finally put the interests of our people, all of our people, ahead of the interests of a powerful few,” Lightfoot said. “Together we can and we will remake Chicago – thriving, prosperous, better, stronger, fairer for everyone.”
Other key progressive priorities include addressing the public education system in which the Chicago Teachers Union said they will hold her to her “commitment to building a more fair, just, and equitable city.”
A Black woman will lead a city with a tragic history of racial strife and segregation. Quite an achievement. But our militancy will not be dictated by who sits on the fifth floor of City Hall. Our joint statement with @SEIU73 https://t.co/XPo7HY6Co8
— ChicagoTeachersUnion (@CTULocal1) April 3, 2019
While Lightfoot’s victory has been labeled as both “historic” and “hopeful,” residents are ready to hold the new mayor accountable for her promises to deliver “a new progressive vision for the city.”
COMMENTS