Mayor Lightfoot defends record as she hits the reelection campaign trail: ‘Haters are going to hate’

An upbeat Mayor Lori Lightfoot defended her record on crime and economic development during her first full day as a candidate for reelection, telling reporters she doesn’t have an “uphill battle” as she seeks a second term.

“Haters are gonna hate. Haters are going to hate,” Lightfoot said during a campaign stop at Brown Sugar, a renowned bakery on the South Side. “We’re going to be there for the residents as we have been there for the residents the last three years.”

The mayor also hit back at campaign rivals who have called for the termination of police Superintendent David Brown, saying he’s the right man for the job and violent crime has decreased from quarter-century highs in 2021. Four of her five rivals for mayor have called for Brown’s ouster, to which Lightfoot scoffed, “Spoken like people who don’t know anything about public safety.”

Lightfoot announced Tuesday that she will ask voters to send her back to City Hall for a second term as head of the nation’s third-largest city. The mayor’s challengers have all raised questions about high crime and criticized her leadership as being unnecessarily divisive. So far, her opponents include South Side Ald. Roderick Sawyer, son of a former mayor; former Chicago Public School CEO Paul Vallas; Illinois state Rep. Kam Buckner; Southwest Side Ald. Raymond Lopez; and businessman Willie Wilson.

During more than three years in office, Lightfoot has faced spikes in crime, has not run as transparent an administration as promised and engaged in constant fights with unions representing teachers and police — all while struggling to forge good relationships with politicians or leaders in the city’s business community.

Her polling has struggled in recent months, particularly with white and Latino voters, but the hard-charging mayor can’t be dismissed. At Brown Sugar, Lightfoot took aim at those who have diminished her campaign’s chances.

“The fact of the matter is, I’m a Black woman in America,” Lightfoot said. “People are betting against us every single day.”

[ Who’s in, who’s out and who’s undecided in the Chicago mayor’s race ]

Lightfoot also can argue she deserves more time to finish the job after having faced the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic and some of the city’s most significant civil unrest since the 1960s.

She has quietly built a strong relationship with several key labor leaders, who hail her progressive record on union issues such as the fair workweek ordinance and a $15 minimum wage, set to go into effect next month. Incumbency in any form also has power. As mayor, Lightfoot has earmarked roughly $3 billion in federal funds for city projects and she’s launched a series of programs aimed at reversing one of the biggest criticisms of Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s tenure — disinvestment in Chicago’s neighborhoods, especially on its South and West sides.

All but one of Lightfoot’s publicly disclosed campaign stops on Wednesday happened on the South and West sides, reflecting the mayor’s political base shifting to the city’s Black and brown neighborhoods.

In the first round of the mayoral election in February 2019, Lightfoot emerged from a historic 14-candidate field with roughly 18% of the vote, riding broad support from lakefront voters on the North Side who are often liberal. This time, the mayor is expected to be strongest with African American voters — but that could be complicated by the field including strong Black alternatives.

Wednesday, Lightfoot started her day at Starlight restaurant on the South Side, where she joined Ald. Derrick Curtis and Ald. Michelle Harris for a breakfast stop. There, Lightfoot cast her reelection bid as a continuation of her 2019 campaign, when she was a lesser known outsider raging against the political machine.

“When I got into office, the people who were used to having their way, who were used to dominating our city, they wanted their city back and they’ve been fighting against us every single day,” Lightfoot said. “We did not let them take the city back then and we’re not gonna let them take it back now. We need to continue to lean into equity and inclusion, which means we see the whole city.”

The breakfast stop was staffed by several 18th Ward employees, who wore t-shirts with the city logo as they worked the political event. City ethics rules forbid employees doing political work on the public dime. Afterward, Curtis told the Tribune he shut down his ward office to run the event.

“We’re going to reopen the office after this,” Curtis said. “I knew I needed them so they’re off the clock.” Curtis also sent an invitation to the campaign event through his city account. The city board of ethics told the Tribune it would look into the matter.

Meanwhile, Lightfoot unveiled a campaign slogan and logo featuring her in a muscle car with the city skyline in the backseat and the words “I’m ridin’ with Lori.”

During a campaign stop in the heavily Mexican-American Little Village, Lightfoot decried the city’s street gangs and promised to continue Chicago’s legacy as a sanctuary city that doesn’t discriminate against immigrants.

“We will always be a welcoming city in every sense of the word,” Lightfoot said.