Several Chicago City Council races still too close to call
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Chicago's City Council will look much different in 2023 than it did in 2019.
Why it matters: The newly independent council will feature several new faces after an unprecedented number of alderpeople didn't seek reelection this year.
Context: In the February election, 14 races didn't get more than 50% of the vote, so the top two vote-getters battled it out in the runoff.
Of note: These are the vote totals at the end of election night. There are still thousands of mail-in ballots to be counted.
4th Ward: State Rep. Lamont Robinson secured over 60% of the Election Day vote over Prentice Butler. Robinson is backed by both Gov. JB Pritzker and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.
5th Ward: The Hyde Park/South Shore ward has chosen community organizer Desmon Yancy to take over for departing Ald. Leslie Hairston. Yancy beat Tina Hone, who worked in the Lightfoot administration.
6th Ward: In the battle of two South Side pastors, voters in Chatham/Auburn Gresham have chosen William Hall over Richard Wooten.
10th Ward: Police officer Peter Chico won with over 65% of the vote on Election Day. He beat labor organizer Ana Guajardo.
11th Ward: Incumbent Nicole Lee defeated police officer Anthony Ciaravino to represent the first Asian American-majority ward in Chicago history. Lee was appointed by Mayor Lori Lightfoot last year and was supported by former Mayor Richard M. Daley and the 11th Ward Democrats.
21st Ward: Ronnie Mosley beat Cornell Dantzler in a close race to replace outgoing Ald. Howard Brookins Jr.
24th Ward: Incumbent Monique Scott secured over 65% of the vote on election night to defeat barber and community activist Creative Scott. Ald. Scott was appointed by Lightfoot to replace her brother, who left to take a seat on the Board of Education.
29th Ward: Incumbent Chris Taliaferro just missed an outright win by 25 votes in February.
- Yes, but: As of last night, the race between Taliaferro and community organizer CB Johnson was too close to call.
30th Ward: Jessica Gutierrez also lost her bid to win in February after mail-in ballots were counted. And as of last night, she trails Ruth Cruz by just a couple hundred votes in the newly redrawn Northwest Side ward.
36th Ward: Incumbent Gilbert Villegas is heading back to City Council after beating challenger Lori Torres Whitt in the "snake" or "noodle" ward that has been redistricted to include West Town, Ukrainian Village and West Humboldt Park.
43rd Ward: Incumbent Timmy Knudsen and Brian Comer are separated by about 500 votes as of election night. Knudsen has declared victory. He was appointed by Lightfoot to replace longtime Ald. Michele Smith, who endorsed him in the runoff.
45th Ward: Incumbent Jim Gardiner bested lawyer Megan Mathias in the race to represent the Northwest Side ward. Gardiner was within a handful of votes of winning outright in February, but as the mail-in ballots trickled in, he lost ground and was forced into a runoff.
- Yes, but: Not this time. Gardiner won with 55% of the vote.
46th Ward: Progressive Angela Clay soundly defeated the established Democratic Party candidate Kim Walz. Walz brought out big endorsements, including U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth.
- Yes, but: Clay brings the 46th Ward back to its progressive roots.
48th Ward: Progressive Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth upset Joe Dunne. Outgoing Ald. Harry Osterman endorsed Dunne, but Brandon Johnson backed Manaa-Hoppenworth.