CHICAGO, IL – Mayor Lori Lightfoot, a Democrat, has lost her re-election bid as the race heads to an April runoff without her after no candidate reached the required 50 percent vote threshold to be elected.
In reacting to the loss, Lightfoot – despite being widely criticized by both sides of the political aisle during her tenure for the city’s skyrocketing crime – instead blamed racism and sexism for her lack of support at the polls this week.
“I’m a Black woman in America. Of course,” she reportedly said. “I am a Black woman. Let’s not forget…certain folks, frankly, don’t support us in leadership roles.”
In Tuesday night’s election, the incumbent Lightfoot faced eight challengers and ended up placing third, which disqualified her from continuing to the runoff election scheduled to take place on April 4. With Lightfoot out of the picture, Chicago Public Schools CEO and city budget director Paul Vallas will go on face off against Cook County Board of Commissioners member Brandon Johnson.
Despite her career as Chicago Mayor coming to an end, Lightfoot insisted that she had left the city in better shape than she had found it; a sentiment that many of her detractors would not agree with.
“Regardless of tonight’s outcome, we fought the right fights and we put this city on a better path,” Lightfoot said. “Serving as Chicago’s mayor was the honor of a lifetime.”
Despite Lightfoot’s claims that she only lost the election due to racism and sexism, many of her critics instead blame Chicago’s soaring crime rate, rampant homelessness, and her toxic relationship with the city’s police department.
Lightfoot’s policies have been blamed by many for the huge increase in rampant violence and thievery in Chicago, including emboldening thugs to point guns at news crews covering gun violence, allowing criminals to run away from police officers, countless instances of smash and grab robberies of retail businesses, and a massive surge in the number of reported shootings, many fatal.
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