Unions are largest contributors in Chicago mayoral race


On Wednesday, the Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA) Chicago District Council PAC contributed $500,000 to Lori Lightfoot’s campaign. That made unions the largest contributors to both candidates in the mayoral runoff race, which takes place April 2.
 
Toni Preckwinkle’s largest contributors are committees associated with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). The SEIU Illinois Council PAC Fund donated just over $2 million to her campaign through February 25. Her second-largest contributor has been the Service Employees Local #1 PEC, which donated $784,486.83 through March 5.
 
Lightfoot is her own second-largest contributor; she donated and loaned a total of $316,532.95 to her campaign through March 5.
 
As of March 22, Preckwinkle had reported raising $6.3 million and Lightfoot, $4.6 million.
 
Lightfoot and Preckwinkle advanced from a 14-candidate field in the February 26 general election. Preckwinkle was the second-highest fundraiser (behind Bill Daley) in the general election since December 7, when she received her first donation from SEIU Illinois Council PAC Fund ($1 million). Lightfoot had approximately $1.6 million at the end of the general election, the sixth-highest amount.
 
Chicago is the third-largest city in the U.S. by population. The 2019 race is the second mayoral runoff in the city’s history and the fourth open-seat mayoral race in 100 years.