An exit from the mayor's race

By Shia Kapos

With help from Olivia Olander

Good Tuesday morning, Illinois. “No ballot stuffing. No fowl play,” joked President Joe Biden during the annual turkey pardon.

Programming note: Illinois Playbook is off for Thanksgiving this Thursday and Friday. We’ll be back on our regular schedule Monday, Nov. 28.

Chicago Ald. Raymond Lopez bows out of the mayor's race to seek reelection to the City Council. | Photo provided by Lopez

In a surprise move, Ald. Raymond Lopez dropped out of the race for Chicago mayor Monday and said he’d seek reelection to the City Council.

Timing is everything: His announcement came as candidates for mayor and City Council started turning in their petition signatures. Lopez had been first to jump in the mayor’s race back in April, and he was the first to make his exit.

“With every new challenger that enters the race, the odds of Lori Lightfoot making the runoff, possibly even winning reelection, grows,” Lopez said in a statement. For that reason, he added, he’s dropping out. “This race has never been about me or any political ambition. It has always been about standing up for the city I love.”

The day was full of similar hyperbolic statements from candidates hoping to give Lightfoot the heave ho. Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman called it “theatrics.”

The mayor is waiting until the last day to file her petitions, a symbolic move given she filed the last day four years ago. But it’s also strategic: it gives her another week to collect signatures and less time for opponents to challenge her petitions.

What opponents have to say: Businessman Willie Wilson said Lightfoot not filing Monday shows “that she gonna lose. I think she’s from Ohio, right? We want her to go out of town, back to Ohio,” he said in the Tribune’s wrap-up.

Taking a more subtle approach, Ald. Sophia King, another mayoral contender, said she is the only woman to file on the first day and oh by the way, she added, “most people file on the first day if they’ve got strong signatures.”

It was a day of jabs: Former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas and state Rep. Kam Buckner criticized Congressman Jesus “Chuy” Garcia and Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson for not deciding sooner to join the mayor’s race. Garcia, for example, waited until he won his congressional seat earlier this month to announce. Vallas called that “a little disingenuous.”

Candidates have until Nov. 28 to file petitions. And the deadline to object to signatures of opponents is Dec. 5. Chicago’s election is Feb 28, but if candidates don’t get at least half the vote, the top two candidates compete in a runoff on April 4.

Here’s the full list of everyone who filed on Monday.

All eyes on O’Hare: Just ahead of the city's big travel day, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced a modernization plan at O'Hare International Airport on Monday that will replace Terminal 2 with a state-of-the-art facility.

Keeping it global: The Federal Aviation Administration gave the green-light to the project, which Lightfoot said would keep the airport “competitive on a global stage.”

Timeframe: “The work is scheduled to begin in 2026, with a target completion date of 2030,” reports ABC 7’s Sarah Schulte.

The mayor and Buttigieg made the announcement at O’Hare with a crowd of supporters on hand, including Congressman Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, who had initially been invited by Buttigieg’s team to speak. Instead, Garcia stood in the crowd and got a shout-out from Buttigieg, who noted Garcia’s work on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

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— O’Hare cargo workers protest working conditions ahead of Thanksgiving travel surge, by Crain’s Corli Jay

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No official public events.

At the Salud Center on 91st Street at 1:30 p.m. for a groundbreaking ceremony for an Invest South/West Streetscape project in South Chicago. 

No official public events.

Have a news tip, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? I’d like to hear from you: skapos@politico.com

— Illinois Supreme Court rejects clerk’s request in tight state legislative race: “The ruling comes as Tuesday marks the final day ballots sent on or before Election Day on Nov. 8 can be verified and counted — with a close race between GOP state Rep. Deanne Mazzochiand Democratic challenger Jenn Ladisch Douglass, both of Elmhurst, hanging in the balance,” by Tribune’s Rick Pearson.

— Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering, who’s become a national voice calling for stricter gun laws, announced on Monday she's running for re-election in the April 4 election. The first woman elected mayor of Highland Park, Rotering is serving her third term. Earlier this year she ran unsuccessfully for the state Supreme Court.

— In Springfield, Langfelder, Buscher file for mayor's race; at least three wards will be contested, by State Journal-Register’s Steven Spearie

— In Chicago, SEIU pushes candidates to back $25 minimum wage, by Crain’s Greg Hinz

— Welch says Dobbs decision got women to the polls: “It got 18-to-24-year-olds to the polls, and they voted in droves,” he told Capitol News’ Peter Hancock.

— Illinois doctors swamped with spike in pediatric flu, RSV cases, via CBS 2

— POT-POURRI: Can I smoke weed in my yard in Illinois? It depends, by WTVO’s Jack Baudoin

— City misses deadline to make all polling places accessible, 30 years after ADA became law: “The Board of Election Commissioners says it’s working on making more sites accessible and letting voters know which ones are not before February’s municipal election,” by Sun-Times’ Zack Miller.

— Chicago native Raymond Vance Green among five killed in Colorado Springs LGBTQ nightclub mass shooting, via NBC 5

— Bally’s executes sale-leaseback on newly acquired Freedom Center site, raising up to $500 million to develop Chicago casino, by Tribune’s Robert Channick

— Group pushes for $5M in TIF funding to install surveillance cameras in Fulton Market, Garfield Park: “The ACLU of Illinois has repeatedly raised alarms about such cameras,” writes Sun-Times’ Tom Schuba.

— Doubts over World Cup in Qatar fade as fans gather to watch the U.S. team take on Wales, by Sun-Times Michael Loria

— Englewood’s Whole Foods is closed. The Jewel-Mariano’s merger could slow plans for replacing it, experts say, by Block Club’s Atavia Reed

— Cook County court clerk is latest to exit federal oversight of hiring practices, though administrator has lingering concerns: “Judge Edmond Chang found the office in substantial compliance with the Shakman requirements to keep politics out of county hiring and promotions," by Tribune’s A.D. Quig.

— Pediatrician who survived Highland Park shooting wants to reframe gun violence as a public health crisis: She has recruited more than “50 physicians and experts across 24 states to meet with senators and other policymakers in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 6 and 7. The goal is to push for Senate Bill 736 , which would impose a ban on assault weapons. The meeting will also overlap with the 10-year anniversary of the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut,” by Tribune’s Jordan Anderson.

— Study says Ryan Field upgrade would bring $1.2B to area by 2031, by Pioneer Press’ Corey Schmidt

— UIC dentistry professor used racist imagery and treated students of color unequally, lawmakers say in letter to school: “Lawmakers alleged Monday that racist comments and unequal treatment of students has been ongoing for years at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry, including racist imagery and statements by one instructor in particular,” by Tribune’s Robert McCoppin.

— Northwestern law school will no longer participate in U.S. News rankings: “The move comes after perennially top-ranked law schools Yale and Harvard announced last week they'd not participate in the rankings,” writes Crain’s Brandon Dupré.

— Man who torched CTA van in 2020 summer rioting gets 3-plus years, by Sun-Times’ David Struett

— Chicago Outfit figure gets four months in federal prison in Social Security fraud scheme, by Tribune’s Jason Meisner

— Heather Mack seeks release from custody pending summer murder trial, by Sun-Times’ David Struett

— Largest freight rail unions split on contract vote, raising strike concerns, by POLITICO’s Alex Daugherty, Tanya Snyder and Eleanor Mueller

— How can Chicago make the Major Taylor Trail better? South Siders asked to weigh in, by Block Club’s Kayleigh Padar

GO INSIDE THE MILKEN INSTITUTE FUTURE OF HEALTH SUMMIT: POLITICO is featuring a special edition of our “Future Pulse” newsletter at the 2022 Milken Institute Future of Health Summit from Dec. 6 to 8. The newsletter takes readers inside one of the most influential gatherings of health industry leaders and innovators solving the biggest global health issues to ensure a healthier, more resilient future for all. SUBSCRIBE TODAY TO RECEIVE EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE .

We asked for your favorite local holiday traditions:

Bridget Hatch: “Every December my husband brews eggnog from scratch that cures for days. We share it with friends and family. It’s legendary!”

Marilynn Miller: “Visiting Marshall Field's Toy department, especially the electric trains. Then down to the decorations, which I've collected for 70 years. Spectacular!”

Lesli Melendy: “The Turkey Testical Festival in Huntley (It’s Wednesdy.). It started as a small community event and has grown to thousands of people visiting to taste the breaded delicacy. It still feels like a small town event as almost the entire community stops in.”

Kathy Posner: “The Jewish Christmas tradition of eating Chinese food and going to a movie on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.”

What is your family’s immigration story? Email skapos@politico.com

— The White House girds for combat, by POLITICO’s Christopher Cadelago

— Anti-abortion groups blame GOP silence for election defeat, by POLITICO’s Alice Miranda Ollstein and Megan Messerly

—  Centrists prepare to ‘flex our muscles,’ by POLITICO’s Olivia Beavers, Jordain Carney and Sarah Ferris

— Alan Krashesky, retiring from ABC 7 after 40 years, is anchoring his final broadcasts with the station today. “It’s been a great ride,” Krashesky said last month.

— Jenna Valle-Riestera is now a spokesperson at Treasury Department. She had been press secretary for the Senate Judiciary Committee under Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.).

— Ray Williams is the new director of political campaigns and strategic partnerships of SEIU Local 73. He's the former deputy political director of 73. Ray serves alongside Mo Green who is the political director.

— Tim Degnan, influential Daley aide, dies at 82: “Degnan was among a cadre of aides who arrived at City Hall with (Richard M.) Daley in 1989, including chief of staff Forrest Claypool, Chief Financial Officer Ed Bedore and policy chief Frank Kruesi. As director of intergovernmental affairs, Degnan was in charge of coordinating mayoral initiatives among aldermen, administrative agencies and other public bodies,” by Crain’s Steven R. Strahler

MONDAY’s ANSWER: Congrats to Dale Sachtleben and Janice Anderson for correctly answering that Stephen A Douglas left New England at the age of 20 to settle in Jacksonville, Ill., where he quickly rose to a position of leadership in the Illinois Democratic Party. In 1843, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he gained prominence as a dedicated worker and gifted speaker. Stocky and standing 5-foot-4, he was dubbed the “Little Giant” by his contemporaries.

TODAY’s QUESTION: What Illinois restaurant served Generals Ulysses S. Grant and William Sherman and still exists today? Email skapos@politico.com  

Cook County Circuit Court Judge John Fitzgerald Lyke, Illinois Cannabis Business Association’s Pamela Althoff, Human Rights Campaign’s John Gruber, Metropolitan Family Services’ Bridget Hatch, marketing exec Jason Baumann, Young Invincibles’ Jorge Arteaga and author Lili Wright.

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