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Brandon Johnson wins race for Chicago mayor, securing big victory for progressives [1]

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Date: 2023-04-04  

Vallas also picked up the backing of prominent Democrats like Sen. Dick Durbin and former Rep. Bobby Rush, but Johnson benefited from endorsements from the Chicago Teachers Union and other labor groups. He successfully thwarted his opponent by utilizing old footage of Vallas touting his conservative views. "If I run for public office, then I would be running as a Republican," he said in one comment, adding, "Fundamentally, I oppose abortion."

The commissioner additionally sought to make Vallas’ support from the Fraternal Order of Police, which is led by Trump supporter John Catanzara, a liability in this dark blue city. Catanzara himself made news just before the election when he warned that a Johnson win would lead to “an exodus like we’ve never seen before” from the police force, adding that there would be “blood in the streets.” Vallas condemned the comments, though he didn’t renounce Catanzara's backing.

Johnson ended up pulling off a win on Tuesday in a race where he once looked like an afterthought. “I was polling at 2.3% in October,” he said ahead of Election Day—and indeed, a survey for one of his defeated rivals taken that month put Johnson at just 3%. “No one thought I had a chance. Yet, here I be.”

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[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/4/4/2162075/-Brandon-Johnson-wins-race-for-Chicago-mayor-securing-big-win-for-progressives

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