Realtors and backers of charter schools spent more than $1.5 million in municipal elections, notching several high-profile victories — and one conspicuous defeat in the 40th Ward, where both groups rallied to defend Ald. Pat O’Connor.

The contests for the City Council in the 5th, 33rd and 46th wards are still too close to call as of Saturday afternoon, elections officials said.

 A rendering of the proposed Lincoln Yards development. [Sterling Bay]

Aldermen are set to advance $1.6 billion in city subsidies to fuel two massive developments that will transform Chicago’s landscape with 16,000 new apartments and condominiums.

A man who served 11 years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of raping a court clerk at the Daley Center should be paid $4.5 million, city lawyers recommended Friday.

Carl Chatman, who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, was sentenced to 30 years in prison after being convicted of a May 2002 rape and assault in a Daley Center courtroom. A clerk at the Daley Center said he raped her while threatening her with scissors.

However, in September 2013 Cook County prosecutors asked a judge to overturn Chatman’s conviction, saying they no longer believed a sexual assault took place and that the allegation was part of a scheme to defraud Cook County.

Chatman was arrested while walking near the Daley Center, was identified by the woman, and confessed to the crime.

However, a Chicago police detective filed a report with the internal affairs office shortly after Chatman’s confession alleging that a detective physically abused Chatman and forced him to sign a confession.

The woman lost thousands of dollars at a casino and was notified by the IRS that they planned to audit her tax returns in the weeks before the incident. The woman eventually settled her lawsuit for $500,000, according to court records.

The Cook County Board of Commissioners agreed to pay Chatman $3.7 million to settle his wrongful conviction claim in November 2018.

Aldermen will also weigh a recommendation from city attorneys to pay a man shot by police officers in 2009 $300,000 to settle his lawsuit alleging his Constitutional rights were violated.

Police officers shot Lewis Ball after he fled a traffic stop on Dec. 29, 2009. Ball’s car became stuck in snow, and he alleges officers used excessive force when they shot him after he surrendered. The officer involved said he believed Ball had fired at other officers when he fired on Ball’s car.

Aldermen will also consider paying $380,000 to Katherine Ruark, who filed a premises liability complaint against the city.

Ald. Raymond Lopez (15). [Ted Cox/DNAinfo]

Ald. Raymond Lopez (15), who was re-elected this week, quit the City Council’s Latino Caucus, which he once helped lead.

In a letter to Latino Caucus Chairman Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36) Friday, Lopez said he was resigning and could no longer be involved in “an organization that works against its members.” Lopez had served as the group’s treasurer.

A measure that could allow liquor to be sold within 100 feet of places of worship, schools and hospitals as well as homes for the aged, indigent and veterans advanced Thursday despite concerns the new rules could complicate efforts by aldermen to block unwanted bars and liquor stores.

As proposed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, the measure (O2018-7001) would give the city’s Liquor Commission the authority to decide whether to issue liquor licenses near sensitive uses — rather than forcing applicants to ask the General Assembly and governor to sign a new law waiving the restrictions, first imposed during the Prohibition Era.

Attendance: Chairwoman Emma Mitts (37); Roderick Sawyer (6); Greg Mitchell (7); Michelle Harris (8); David Moore (17); Matt O’Shea (19); Michael Scott (24); Chris Taliaferro (29); Scott Waguespack (32); Michele Smith (43); Tom Tunney (44); John Arena (45); James Cappleman (46); Debra Silverstein (50).

Ald. Matt O’Shea (19) cast the only dissenting vote at Thursday’s meeting of the License and Consumer Protection Committee, saying he was not comfortable giving Local Liquor Control Commissioner Shannon Trotter the final decision on licenses near churches and other sensitive uses.

“I’m not comfortable taking control from elected officials and giving it to an appointed official,” O’Shea said.

Ald. Brendan Reilly (42) said he would vote no when the measure comes before the full City Council, noting that Trotter has overruled his decisions on liquor licenses.

“We have to guard against the lowest common denominators,” said Reilly, who has been working to shut down Bottled Blonde in River North for several years after hundreds of complaints.

The current law and system is “antiquated,” Reilly said, “but it does serve as a potential veto for aldermen, as long as you have a good relationship with your state representatives.”

Trotter said she would give “great deference” to the opinion of the aldermen, but noted that the proposed ordinance lays out the specific criteria for rejecting — or approving — a measure. Trotter already has the authority to waive the ban on booze sales within 100 feet of libraries.

If a waiver is granted, city officials could impose additional restrictions on the bar or store because of its proximity to a church, school or hospital, Trotter said.

State law changed last year to allow local liquor commissioners to grant a waiver to the rules blocking liquor sales near churches and other sensitive uses.

The proposal is backed by the Illinois Retail Merchants Association and the Hospitality Business Association.

Illinois Restaurant Association President Sam Toia told aldermen the rule change would “save time and money for all involved,” while Lakeview East Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Maureen Martino said it would help fill empty storefronts.

Ald. John Arena (45) said efforts to fill a vacant storefront on Milwaukee Avenue in Jefferson Park have foundered because it is 99 feet away from a church — and the requirement to pass a state law waiving the restriction is too onerous.

“This has really put a chill on efforts to open businesses in the 45th Ward,” Arena said.

Ald. Tom Tunney (44), who owns Ann Sather Restaurant, said it was “very intimidating” to go through the process to get a liquor license.

“It will be impossible for an entrepreneur if you tell them they need to go to Springfield, pass a law and get the governor to sign it,” Tunney said. “The governor has bigger issues to worry about.”

In other action, aldermen approved a proposal (O2018-2577) to allow mobile boutique operators, who currently operate under the Emerging Business Permit, to continue to operate until Jan. 31.

Emanuel proposed allowing the five permit holders to continue to operate until Dec. 31, but the committee approved Tunney’s suggestion to extend the permit until after the end of the holiday shopping season.

In May, aldermen balked at an effort by the mayor to encourage mobile businesses by creating a permanent permit for the firms on wheels, saying the measure could create a host of problems for Chicago businesses.

The committee approved the other items outlined in our preview, except for two proposals to allow the sale of alcohol in the 47th Ward and another measure in the 50th Ward.

Aldermen, labor unions and business groups tussled for approximately three hours Thursday afternoon over  fate and fine points of the Fair Work Week ordinance, which has been debated behind closed doors for years.

Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot named the leadership of her transition team, while, a bill designed to give assessors more information about the value of commercial properties championed by Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi cleared the Illinois Senate Thursday — one day after drawing opposition from the Civic Federation.

Three tight races for the City Council in the 5th, 33rd and 46th wards will likely not be decided until next week — after officials count thousands of mail, provisional and jail detainee ballots.

The election will be certified April 16.

Chicago Board of Election Commissioners spokesperson Jim Allen told reporters that Tuesday’s turnout — just about 31 percent at the end of the night — was typical for a landslide election. Approximately 495,000 Chicagoans voted in Tuesday’s runoff election.

“Hopefully this won’t be the record low turnout for Chicago municipal elections, but it’s already not only in the same neighborhood but the same cul-de-sac,” Allen said.  

Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot won approximately 74 percent of the vote, according to unofficial returns.

The turnout in Tuesday’s election mirrored results in 2007, when former Mayor Richard M. Daley won 78.5 percent of the 456,000 ballots cast, Allen said.

“I think because of the polls in advance of Election Day, there was this presumption that the election was pretty much already decided,” Allen said. “Voters are smart, they hear and read about polls, you typically draw primarily the voters who are going to go turn out for every election no matter what, I think that’s what we had yesterday... This was a landslide.”

Approximately 3,000 fewer voters in each age group voted on Tuesday than they did on Feb. 26, Allen said.

In the 5th Ward, Ald. Leslie Hairston leads Will Calloway by 152 votes; in the 33rd Ward, Rossana Rodriguez Sanchez leads Ald. Deb Mell by 64 votes; in the  46th Ward, Ald. James Cappleman is 23 votes ahead of Marianne Lalonde.

The board will also examine 10 precincts where there were discrepancies discovered between the number of ballots cast and the number of voters recorded in poll books. In addition, ballots cast at 38 nursing homes on voted Monday have not yet been counted, officials said.

Fewer than 500 pretrial detainee ballots need to be counted, as well as 200 mail ballots that arrived Monday, 3,700 that arrived Tuesday, and approximately 1,700 provisional ballots. More mail ballots are expected to arrive in the coming days, and will be counted Friday and Saturday, officials said.

“Whether it’s a landslide or whether it’s a razor-thin margin, we’re going to continue to count every ballot as is required by law all the way through the 16th of April,” Allen said.

Cappleman was confident on Wednesday.

“It feels pretty good, so we’ll see,” Cappleman told reporters at City Hall Wednesday. “I think what we’re seeing is a lot of people are very desperate for change in the city of Chicago with overwhelming support that Mayor-elect Lightfoot had. I think that’s healthy and I welcome that, and I think we’re making history right now and we should all be proud of that.”

Cappleman is one of few current committee chairs left standing after Tuesday.

Housing Chairman Ald. Joe Moore (49) lost in February, as did Economic Development Chairman Ald. Joe Moreno (1).  Workforce and Finance Chairman Ald. Pat O’Connor (40) lost his re-election bid on Tuesday.

Cappleman, who replaced disgraced and retiring Ald. Danny Solis (25) as chairman of the Zoning Committee, said he would be happy to lead the powerful body “as long as there’s some radical reform.”

The city’s affordable housing rules need to change, Cappleman said.

“I told Mayor-elect Lightfoot about a month ago that I believe the city of Chicago needs to focus on affordable housing for those individuals who earn less than 30 percent of the area median income… it’s hard to make that case when I have other colleagues who are refusing to provide housing to that group of people who are most in need,” Cappleman said.

A nearly 2-year-old effort designed to give shift workers more control over their schedules will finally get a hearing Thursday — but it is unclear whether supporters will be able to push the measure through during April’s lame-duck City Council meeting.

Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot traveled all over the city on Wednesday, starting the 47-day sprint to Inauguration Day — May 20. In 2011, when Mayor Rahm Emanuel took over from former Mayor Richard M. Daley, Emanuel had 83 days to prepare to take over the fifth floor of City Hall, since he defeated five candidates without a runoff.

A measure designed to keep liquor from being sold within 100 feet of places of worship, schools and hospitals as well as homes for the aged, indigent and veterans is up for a vote at the meeting of the Committee on License and Consumer Protections set for 11 a.m. Thursday.

As Mayor Rahm Emanuel prepares to leave office, he will ask aldermen to burnish his environmental legacy by promising to transition the city to clean, renewable energy.

Chicago voters overwhelmingly elected Lori Lightfoot mayor Tuesday after a roller coaster campaign in which the former attorney and federal prosecutor vowed to dismantle the Chicago Machine and “reinvent” the city.

With Lightfoot’s victory, Chicago became the biggest U.S. city to elect a black woman to the top job. Lightfoot will also become Chicago’s first gay mayor, and Chicago will become the largest American city with a LGBTQ+ mayor.

Lightfoot won approximately 74 percent of the vote — and all 50 wards — against Toni Preckwinkle, according to early returns Tuesday night.

Precinct level results, via the Chicago Board of Elections
Board of Elections results
Chi.Vote results

Ald. Ricardo Muñoz (22) spent close to $37,000 from the political action committee fund of City Council’s Progressive Reform Caucus on “questionable” expenditures, according to filings with the state board and caucus Chairman Ald. Scott Waguespack (32).

That included $13,160 he took from the committee’s fund for himself.

Muñoz, who was dropped from the caucus in January after being charged with misdemeanor domestic battery, has repaid $24,900, Waguespack said in a statement, and is expected to reimburse the committee in full.

Members of the caucus discovered the discrepancy in January and notified the state board of elections on Monday. Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx was also altered by aldermen “of this inappropriate use of our funds.”

"It was all a misunderstanding," Muñoz told The Daily Line, adding that he had apologized. Aside from a brief visit to City Hall to testify in favor a tax break for Hilco Development, Muñoz has been largely absent while undergoing rehabilitation.

"I will be paying it back,” he said before hanging up.

Ed Mullen, the Progressive Caucus’ PAC’s attorney, said Muñoz was the only person with access to the account, according to a letter to state officials.

After Muñoz was voted out of the caucus in January after his wife told police he struck her while intoxicated, no one else could access the committee’s bank accounts, and after “repeatedly” contacting Muñoz, they received access on March 19, 2018.

After a review, “it became apparent that unauthorized expenditures were made,” Mullen wrote. The committee has amended its reports to state officials and is “sending a letter to Alderman Muñoz demanding full reimbursement to CPRC PAC for personal expenditures.”

“He has been removed as an officer of the Progressive Caucus PAC, and we are working with our bank to remove him from having access to our account,” Waguespack said. “Ald. Leslie Hairston (5) is now treasurer of our political action committee. In the new term beginning in May 2019, Caucus members will elect new officers, in compliance with our bylaws. We will also work together as a group to implement stronger new financial controls to ensure full compliance and transparency for all funds related to the Progressive Caucus.”

Besides the $13,160 he paid himself, and $2,800 he improperly transferred to his “Citizens for Muñoz” committee, amended state reports indicate the following “unauthorized expenditures” made by Muñoz:

• $14,800 for Alta Vista Graphics in May 2018


• Roughly $1,800 at Nuevo Leon Restaurant in June 2018


• $1,070 to Cesar Campa in October 2018


• Close to $550 to Southwest Airlines in November 2018


• Approximately $400 at La Scarola Restaurant in September 2017


• Approximately $290 at the Crowne Plaza Los Angeles Airport in November 2018


• More than $250 at Eddie V's, a seafood and jazz restaurant in Pittsburgh, and close to $150 at Saputo’s in Springfield

CFO Compliance, the Rhode Island-based firm that was supposed to audit the committee’s accounts, has also been fired, Waguespack said, “as it remains unclear why they did not notice or proactively alert us to this problem.”

Waguespack, whose name has been floated as a potential chairman of the Finance Committee should Lori Lightfoot win on Tuesday, said he “should have monitored this situation more vigorously, and I regret having placed too much trust in my longtime colleague Ald. Muñoz and CFO Compliance to handle these matters.”

“I have always prided myself on a high level of integrity, diligence and attention to detail when it comes to our City finances, and I take responsibility for not having applied the same level of meticulousness with the Progressive Caucus PAC,” Waguespack said.