Sparks fly in first Chicago mayoral runoff debate as candidates trade barbs
Chicago mayoral candidate Brandon Johnson (D) lobbed attacks at fellow contender Paul Vallas (D) in the first televised debate of the Chicago mayoral runoff on Wednesday night, setting the stage for a contentious race ahead of the April election.
Both Johnson, a Cook County commissioner, and Vallas, a former Chicago Public Schools (CPS) CEO, prevailed in last week’s Chicago mayoral election out of a total of nine candidates running, which included Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D). Given the unlikeliness that any one candidate would notch at least half of the vote, Johnson and Vallas needed to be the top two vote-getters to proceed to the April 4 runoff.
Wednesday night’s one-on-one forum, which was hosted by NBC 5 and Telemundo Chicago, was the first time both candidates faced each other in a televised debate. While Vallas was careful not to begin the debate attacking his challenger, Johnson took at least two shots at the former CPS CEO less than 10 minutes into the debate.
In one of his first attacks, Johnson targeted Vallas over some of his donors, including Citadel founder and key Republican donor Ken Griffin.
“We have to make sure that we are strengthening the red flag laws so that individuals who are holding guns and receiving guns – that they don’t have guns,” Johnson said, before targeting Vallas over an endorsement he received from Griffin.
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/3891015-sparks-fly-in-first-chicago-mayoral-runoff-debate-as-candidates-trade-barbs/
