More of the same or new opportunities for all of us? That’s the choice in TWO elections April 4

Selling voters the same, tired ideas and expecting a different result: Chicago Mayors have been doing this for decades, and now Paul Vallas is lining up behind them. Stale ideas are also what the Wisconsin GOP is trying to sell voters across the border with a State Supreme Court race that will reverberate nationally in 2024. Let’s tell them we’re not buying it–not there and not here. We have two weeks left to do what it takes to win.

You surely know the stakes are high in Chicago, where early voting begins this week. Our options: Paul Vallas, a self-proclaimed “law and order” candidate, and Brandon Johnson, running on a truly progressive, people-first platform. In Wisconsin, the runoff is for a pivotal State Supreme Court seat that can shift the court to a progressive majority. That change could prove decisive in the 2024 Presidential election. 

Once again, it’s not enough just to vote. 

We have the power to win the change we want—and to stop the change we fear. 

The rhetoric is hotter than a Chicago beach in August (yeah, we can dream, can’t we?!). But what’s the truth about the two candidates running for office? Paul Vallas claims a solid management track record but the truth reveals a trail of failure. Read our research on his real record. Or, just look at your tax bill and you’ll see the dedicated half-billion dollars/year we’re paying to make up for Vallas’ mismanagement of Chicago Public Schools’ pension obligations. Brandon Johnson promises a people-first administration that flips the script on our history of catering to downtown developers and playing favorites with communities that thrive while others suffer through shrinking education, mental health care and other services. It’s time to build stronger communities across the city to make us all safer. This is our moment. And this is why Indivisible Chicago Alliance has endorsed Brandon Johnson. 

Here’s how to help win the change we want: 

  • Citywide phone banks—Monday through Thursday 5-8 pm, Sunday 1-4 pm 

  • Canvassing–locations across the city                                                                     

  • Save the date April 1: the campaign is planning a citywide rally that will be a critical show of force in the last weekend before Election Day. Plan to be there, with friends and family. Location and timing TBD.

  • Vote tripling: Who do you know that is aligned with our shared values but might not feel it’s important to vote? Maximize your impact by taking responsibility for getting at least three other Johnson supporters to the polls. 

  • Not registered to vote? No problem! Registration is open at the polls on election day so we can go, register, and vote all at once. Anyone not already registered will just need to bring two forms of ID. 

Pass it on: Vallas has left a trail of failed management…

Paul Vallas has proven to be neither a strong education leader nor a budget wizard. Ask former Philadelphia Mayor MIchael Nutter, who says, “Paul’s never seen a dollar that he wasn’t willing to spend three times.” Here’s how the Philadelphia Inquirer explains it. 

“By the end of the Vallas era, both Vallas and the city were disenchanted. A “surprise” $73 million deficit had cropped up. Vallas had enormous ambitions, and spent accordingly, souring his backers on his ability to lead effectively. In the end, Vallas skipped out on a School Reform Commission farewell.” 

…and he’s lying about Johnson’s public safety plan. 

“I’m not going to defund the police, and you know it.” Is the firm response Johnson gave to Vallas at a recent debate, yet Vallas’ ads continue to run the lie he thinks will send voters to his corner. In doing so, Vallas obscures the core of Johnson’s public safety plan: maintaining an effective police force while expanding resources to education, job training, mental health care and other programs that address the root causes of crime. 

CHICAGO Aldermanic runoff races

There are also runoffs in 14 ward races — the 4th, 5th, 6th, 10th, 11th, 21st, 24th, 29th, 30th, 36th, 43rd, 45th, 46th, and 48th wards. See the full list of aldermanic results here. https://www.chicagotribune.com/politics/elections/results/live-election-results-20230228-4cnrpgw5zjdtrmnnmkeoridnra-story.html 

There’s so much riding on this state Supreme Court Election

Will Wisconsin start enforcing an abortion ban passed in 1849? Will voter suppression and rigged election rules favor Republicans in ways that could tip the 2024 Presidential election? These questions and many more are on the ballot in this runoff election, because they’ll be among the issues decided by the new court.

We must ensure that Judge Janet Protasiewicz is elected to Wisconsin's Supreme Court on April 4 to give progressives a 4-3 majority on the court. That will help safeguard women's reproductive freedoms and help Governor Tony Evers protect the state (and the nation!) from the extremism of Wisconsin's egregiously gerrymandered legislature. The alternative is Dan Kelly, an election denier and a rabid opponent of abortion rights, supported by Trump and the Republican money machine. 

Here’s how you can help elect Judge Janet: 

Thank you for helping make the most of the 15 days we have remaining to win the change we want for Chicago, Wisconsin, and the country.