What a Trump or Harris win would mean for Chicago
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
/2024/11/01/1730484606784.gif?w=3840)
Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
A win for former President Trump or Vice President Harris could have very different effects on our area's economy, environment and education, according to politicians, policy watchers and activists.
Why it matters: With polls predicting as tight a presidential race as we've ever seen, either outcome remains a distinct possibility.
On climate: Illinois Environmental Council executive director Jennifer Walling says a Harris win would build on the state's "clean energy jobs act and clean energy economy" through a continuation of policies in President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act.
- She believes Trump would repeat his first-term practice of dismantling rules "governing clean air, water, wildlife and toxic chemicals" while installing more judges who "jeopardize critical environmental protections" as Illinois communities seek federal help on environmental justice issues.
Yes, but: Ted Dabrowski at conservative research group Wirepoints believes Harris' support for "a rapid conversion to green energy will likely exacerbate Illinois' own problems of big energy price hikes and potential brownouts."
- "Trump will likely ensure a less chaotic transition to renewables via the use of nuclear," Dabrowski predicts.
On infrastructure: Under Harris, Mayor Brandon Johnson thinks we can expect the continuation of "billions of dollars to clear the lead service lines and to create more jobs in our green economy."
Yes, but: Dabrowski contends "Harris is more prone to provide budget bailouts … to less-traveled public transit groups like the CTA, while Trump is likely to take a harder stance against more inflationary bailouts."
On the economy: Dabrowski predicts Trump will spur "national growth as he did in his first term, while also clearing away burdensome regulations."
- A Harris win, he says, promises a bigger "government that threatens to restoke inflation and crowd out the private sector."
Yes, but: Gov. JB Pritzker points to economists' warnings that Trump's tariff plan would add trillions to the national debt and trigger price hikes.
- Instead, Pritzker is helping promote Harris' opportunity economy plan to lower prices and increase jobs across Illinois and the country.
On immigration: If Trump wins, "he will do mass deportation, which will increase jobs available to local people," says P. Rae Easley, chair of Chicago Red, a group of pro-Trump Black activists.
Yes, but: Border encounters have dropped to their lowest point in four years, and, Pritzker notes, Harris strongly supports the bipartisan plan to boost border security that Trump helped kill.
Education: Johnson applauds Harris' commitment to hire 14,000 behavioral health care workers in U.S. schools and warns of Trump's statements on withholding federal funding to schools that teach about the history of slavery.
Yes, but: Easley praises Trump's support for HBCU funding.