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The Center Square: Pritzker continues to cast doubt on reports of Illinois' population decline
Gov. J.B. Pritzker continues to downplay and cast doubt on Illinois’ population losses, despite U.S. Census data evidence to the contrary.
The U.S. Census released updated county population numbers late last month. In Illinois, from July 2020 through July 2021, the state lost residents in 92 of its 102 counties.
Chicago Tribune: Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson will face early examination from newly emboldened City Council
A new Chicago mayor always goes through an early courtship/face-off phase with aldermen, but Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson is walking into a particularly turbulent City Council.
Following four years of often-rancorous legislating under Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s frequently combative leadership and the added pressures of the pandemic, the recent elections may find the 50-member assembly even more polarized thanks to a handful of progressive victories in wards where representatives had been more moderate.
Chicago Sun-Times: Brandon Johnson is Chicago’s next mayor. So what’s next for CPS?
Former public school teacher Brandon Johnson will soon become the city’s 57th mayor after his election Tuesday, and some of his first official decisions will likely have to do with education — the issue closest to his heart and his work over the past decade.
Daily Herald: Meet the new mayors: These six election night victors ready to take the reins
Incumbent mayors across the suburbs mostly held their ground on Tuesday. Still, a half dozen new faces were elected to lead in several cities and villages, including Naperville, Rolling Meadows and Buffalo Grove.
Here’s a look at those first-time mayors and village presidents:
WGN: Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson details plan heading into inauguration
Next month, 47-year-old Brandon Johnson, a teacher turned activist, turned Cook County Commissioner, will be sworn in as the 57th Mayor of the City of Chicago.
He is inheriting a city that seven-in-ten voters say is on the wrong track, especially when it comes to public safety.
Capitol News: As Chicago State University faculty begins strike, other universities could follow
Faculty at Chicago State University, a small public university on Chicago’s South Side, went on strike Monday after months of stalled negotiations with university administrators.
Faculty at Eastern Illinois University and Governors State University have also filed paperwork declaring their intent to strike, with strikes possible as early as Thursday and Friday, respectively.
Chicago Tribune: Jurors in ‘ComEd Four’ trial see evidence from FBI raid on City Club and Jay Doherty’s condo
Jurors in the “ComEd Four” bribery trial saw a parade of FBI agents testify Wednesday about raids on the City Club and the home of its longtime president, Jay Doherty, scooping up emails, invoices, text messages and voicemails tied to the far-reaching bribes-for-favors case.
The voicemails gave jurors their first opportunity to hear the voice of Ed Moody, the former Cook County official and longtime precinct captain in former House Speaker Michael Madigan’s 13th Ward fiefdom.
WGN: Who Might be Chicago’s ‘next’ Top Cop?
While Brandon Johnson was not the candidate favored by many in law enforcement, Chicago’s next mayor has already begun the process of selecting the city’s next top cop. However, Johnson will have a more diminished role in the selection process than his predecessors.
“We want to make sure we’re putting power back into the hands of the people and residents have a voice in this,” said Anthony Driver, the head of the newly created Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability (CCPSA).