CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Chicagoans took part in a historic election this year, with residents electing Chicago Board of Education members for the first time.
WBBM Newsradio surveyed each school board candidate and recorded their unedited answers here.
Now, the results are in. Below is a list of each candidate from the 10 districts and the chosen winner.
As of Friday, the Associated Press called nine of the 10 races, with three anti-Chicago Teachers Union (CTU), pro-charter and school choice candidates winning. Three independents claimed seats, while three CTU-endorsed were victorious. A fourth CTU-backed candidate, Jennifer Custer, is on the verge of winning the 1st District race.
Below, you'll find our interactive Chicago Board of Education District map as well as the latest results.
District 1 (92% of votes counted)
Jennifer Custer: 41,968 votes- 51.3%
Michelle N. Pierre: 39,792 votes- 48.7%
District 2 (95% of votes counted)
Ebony L. DeBerry- WINNER- 33,729 - 42.3%
Bruce Leon: 16,905 votes- 21.2%
Kate Doyle: 15,829 votes- 19.9%
Margaret "Maggie" Cullerton Hooper: 13,266 votes- 16.6%
District 3 (90% of votes counted)
Carlos A. Rivas, Jr.: WINNER- 37,078 votes- 56.2%
Jason C. Dones: 28,905 votes- 43.8%
District 4 (95% of votes counted)
Ellen Rosenfeld: WINNER- 42,499 votes- 42.2%
Karen Zaccor: 29,305 votes- 29.1%
Kimberly Brown: 9,758 votes- 9.7%
Thomas Day: 7,908 votes- 7.9%
Carmen Gioiosa: 7,102 votes- 7.1%
Andrew A. Davis: 4,084 votes- 4.1%
District 5
Aaron "Jitu" Brown: WINNER (uncontested race)
District 6 (91% of votes counted)
Jessica Biggs: WINNER- 35,423 votes- 44.7%
Anusha Thotakura: 24,977 votes- 31.5%
Andre Smith: 18,882 votes- 23.8%
District 7 (95% votes counted)
Yesenia Lopez: WINNER 26,861 votes- 56.5%
Eva A. Villalobos: 16,101 votes- 33.9%
Raquel Don: 4,598 votes- 9.7%
District 8 (95% votes counted)
Angel Gutierrez: WINNER- 38,750 votes- 63.8%
Felix Ponce: 21,944 votes- 36.2%
District 9 (88% votes counted)
Therese Boyle: WINNER 30,180 votes- 36.3%
Lanetta M. Thomas: 23,913 votes- 28.8%
La'Mont Raymond Williams: 14,917 votes- 18%
Miquel Lewis: 14,050 votes- 16.9%
District 10 (97% votes counted)
Che "Rhymefest" Smith: WINNER 23,640 votes- 32.4%
Karin Norington-Reaves: 21,405 votes- 29.3%
Robert Jones: 16,523 votes- 22.6%
Adam Parrott-Sheffer: 11,514 votes- 15.8%
In Chicago's first-ever school board elections, most of the available seats were filled by candidates who are not members of the CTU, and that could be a signal to Mayor Brandon Johnson.
The Chicago Teachers Union and its affiliated political action committees put plenty of money and energy into electing a slate of ten candidates. But, most of them didn't win.
Mayor Johnson, a former teacher, was also an organizer for the CTU and political analyst Matt Podgorski agrees with those who say the elections were a referendum on the Mayor.
“If it is a referendum on Mayor Johnson, they’re throwing him out,” Podgorski said.
Austin Berg, a spokesman for the Illinois Policy Institute and a frequent critic of the CTU, agrees. The losses send a message.
“That is just extraordinary given the amount of money and manpower that this union has, and it shows how toxic their brand and the mayor’s brand has become,” Berg told WBBM.
Constance Mixon, a political science professor at Elmhurst University, noted that it was a contentious campaign.
“School board elections have morphed into a battle between the Chicago Teachers Union on one side, and on the other side you have the pro-charter and school choice groups,” Mixon said.
For more of WBBM's election coverage, visit our Election Central homepage.
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