{"id":171944,"date":"2023-03-07T09:21:49","date_gmt":"2023-03-07T09:21:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/?p=171944"},"modified":"2023-03-07T09:21:49","modified_gmt":"2023-03-07T09:21:49","slug":"why-chicago-matters-for-the-democratic-debate-on-crime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/politics\/why-chicago-matters-for-the-democratic-debate-on-crime\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Chicago matters for the Democratic debate on crime"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot concedes Tuesday night. Photo: Kamil Krzaczynski\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
Chicago's mayoral runoff is about to provide an early test of how Democrats are redefining their public safety platform ahead of 2024.<\/p>\n
Why it matters: <\/strong>Deep-blue cities are leading a real-time transformation of the Democratic Party in a post-pandemic world where voters demand more forceful answers on public safety solutions.<\/p>\n Zoom out: <\/strong>After Republicans clobbered down-ballot Democrats in 2020 with attacks tying them to the "defund the police" movement, the Democratic Party has had to convince voters otherwise.<\/p>\n Zoom in: <\/strong>Chicago <\/strong>Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who won nearly 75% of the vote in 2019, failed to make the runoff on Tuesday. <\/p>\n The leading candidate<\/strong> in the first round, former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas, <\/strong>is a moderate white candidate who's proposed hiring over 2,000 more cops.<\/p>\n The other candidate<\/strong> in the runoff, Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson, <\/strong>is a Black grassroots organizer and former educator who has advocated for social workers to replace police officers in certain circumstances. <\/p>\n The other side: <\/strong>Some believe that other Democratic candidates who push a progressive policing platform will feel more emboldened in their own campaigns now that Johnson has made it to the runoff.<\/p>\n The bottom line: <\/strong>\u201cWorking with police and giving adequate funding is going to be a winning position in almost every major city,\u201d Lucas said.<\/p>\n\n
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