CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) Chicago voters appear to have a clear answer to some of the city's longest-running political debates: Yes. From bringing back gunshot detection technology to taxing millionaires and seeking compensation from Washington for the Trump administration's immigration crackdown. All five questions placed on the ballot by the city and Chicago Public Schools drew strong support. Voters also weighed in on a separate Cook County millionaires' tax proposal. The strongest support was for seeking federal compensation for costs and economic losses associated with Operation Midway Blitz. Nearly 85% of voters favored the proposal, according to preliminary results from election authorities, with about 91% of the expected Chicago vote counted. More than 80% supported using revenue from a millionaires' tax to fund public schools. Roughly 74% favored charging owners of long-vacant commercial properties to support Chicago Public Schools, while 72% supported restarting gunshot detection technology. Even the proposal with the smallest majority, creating a permanent outdoor festival venue, had the support of more than two-thirds of voters. A separate Cook County advisory question proposing a 3% income-tax surcharge on millionaires, with revenue split between property tax relief and education, was also drawing strong support in early returns. But none of the votes automatically changes policy. The six questions are advisory, meaning elected officials aren't required to carry out the results. Still, the margins could give Mayor Brandon Johnson, City Council members and state lawmakers a clearer picture of where voters stand on issues they've spent years debating.
Voters support bringing back gunshot detection
Two years after Mayor Brandon Johnson ended Chicago's ShotSpotter contract, voters appear to favor giving gunshot detection technology another chance. About 72% supported restarting the use of technology that alerts first responders when gunfire is detected. Johnson ended the city's contract with SoundThinking, the company behind ShotSpotter, in September 2024. He had campaigned on eliminating the system, citing concerns about its effectiveness and the police response to alerts. Some aldermen, particularly those representing neighborhoods with high levels of gun violence, fought to keep it. They argued the technology could help first responders locate shooting victims even when nobody called 911. Ald. Marty Quinn, one of ShotSpotter's most persistent supporters, helped advance the ballot question. The vote wasn't specifically about reinstating ShotSpotter. It asked whether Chicago should resume using gunshot detection technology. Johnson's administration announced plans in October to test a different system in six South and West Side police districts. The referendum doesn't require the city to expand that pilot or restore its former contract.
Nearly 85% support seeking compensation for Midway Blitz
Of the five Chicago city and school district questions, the proposal to seek compensation from Washington drew the strongest support. Nearly 85% voted yes on whether Chicago should pursue federal reimbursement for costs and economic harm associated with Operation Midway Blitz, the Trump administration's immigration enforcement campaign in Chicago and its suburbs. The operation sparked protests, legal disputes and concerns among businesses in immigrant neighborhoods. Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago's Great Cities Institute estimated that the first year of heightened federal immigration enforcement resulted in $1.26 billion in lost retail and restaurant spending across Cook County, along with $107 million in lost local sales-tax revenue. The ballot question asked whether Chicago should seek compensation for lost tax revenue, public safety expenses and services provided to affected residents. The result gives Johnson, who backed the referendum, a strong expression of support from voters who participated. But it doesn't establish that Chicago is legally entitled to recover those losses or require the federal government to pay. It's also unclear how much of the estimated regional economic damage the city could legally seek to recover.
Millionaires' tax proposals draw strong support
Six years after Illinois voters rejected a constitutional amendment allowing graduated income-tax rates, voters in Chicago and Cook County were again being asked whether wealthy residents should pay more. In Chicago, more than 80% supported using revenue from a surcharge on millionaires to increase funding for public schools. A separate Cook County question proposed a 3% surcharge on income above $1 million, with half the revenue going toward property tax relief and the other half toward public education. That countywide measure was also leading in the early returns, although a current combined total for Chicago and suburban Cook County was not immediately available. The two questions were separate, even though both concerned raising additional revenue from high-income taxpayers. The proposals have drawn support from Johnson and the Chicago Teachers Union. Opponents, including business advocates and fiscally conservative groups, argue that higher taxes could discourage investment or prompt wealthy taxpayers to leave Illinois.
Voters favor charging owners of vacant properties
Another proposal to generate revenue for Chicago Public Schools was receiving strong support. About 74% of voters favored requiring owners of long-term vacant or undeveloped commercial and investment properties to pay an additional annual charge, with the money going toward CPS. Supporters say the proposal could provide another source of school funding while encouraging property owners to develop vacant land or buildings. Critics worry additional charges could discourage investment, particularly in neighborhoods already struggling to attract development. The ballot question didn't specify how much owners would pay, which properties would qualify or how the charge would be collected.
Chicago supports a permanent festival venue
Chicago voters also appear open to giving major outdoor festivals a permanent home. About 68% supported developing a dedicated festival and event venue, the smallest Yes majority among the five city and school district questions, but still a substantial margin. The proposal follows years of complaints about major festivals taking over public parks. Lollapalooza in Grant Park and Riot Fest in Douglass Park have prompted concerns about closures, damaged grounds and interruptions to neighborhood recreation. Ald. Nicole Lee advanced the ballot question, arguing a permanent festival site could reduce those disruptions and potentially bring investment to another part of the city. There is no proposed location, price tag or construction plan.
Aurora's mayoral recall fight tests an old rivalry
In Aurora, voters faced a different kind of referendum, one that could change how residents hold their mayor accountable between elections. Former Mayor Richard Irvin, who lost his reelection bid to John Laesch in April 2025, backed a proposal allowing voters to recall a sitting mayor. Organizers with Aurora for Change submitted nearly 9,000 petition signatures over the summer, describing the effort as a way to hold elected officials accountable before their terms expire. Under the proposal, residents could trigger a recall election by gathering signatures equal to 20% of the votes cast in the previous mayoral race. Removing the mayor would then require a majority vote. Laesch opposed the measure, warning it could undermine election results and lead to repeated, expensive campaigns. Supporters argued voters should have a way to remove elected officials without waiting for another regular mayoral election. The dispute also reached the courts. In October, a Kane County judge upheld the referendum's placement on the ballot, but opponents appealed, challenging Aurora's authority to establish a recall system. Unlike Chicago's six advisory questions, Aurora's proposal is designated binding, although its legality remains contested. Tuesday's vote does not remove Laesch. If the recall system is approved and survives legal challenges, it could give residents a way to initiate a separate election to remove a mayor before the end of a term.
