The 2015 Chicago aldermanic elections happened on February 24, 2015, to elect the 50 Aldermen that represent Chicago in the City Council. The elections were non-partisan and if no candidate received an absolute majority, a runoff would be held between the top two finishers on April 7, 2015.
Ward boundaries had been redrawn since the previous 2011 election, to reflect the results of the 2010 United States census. The new ward map had been approved by the Chicago City Council in January 2012.
43 incumbent aldermen sought re-election. Aldermen Edward M. Burke (14th Ward), Marty Quinn (13th Ward), Brendan Reilly (42nd Ward) and Harry Osterman (48th Ward) all ran unopposed in this election. Aldermen Toni Foulkes (15th Ward) and Nicholas Sposato (36th Ward) ran in different wards than those they had been incumbents of: the 16th and 38th, respectively. Incumbent aldermen Robert Fioretti (2nd Ward), James Balcer (11th Ward), Latasha Thomas (17th Ward) and Timothy Cullerton (38th Ward) did not run for re-election.
In the first round, two candidates who ran for re-election lost their seats, including Joann Thompson (who died in office, but remained on the ballot). There were runoffs in 18 wards. Six additional incumbent aldermen were defeated in runoffs.
Incumbent alderman Proco Joe Moreno was reelected. He had been appointed alderman in 2010 by Mayor Richard M. Daley, and had subsequently been reelected in 2011.
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent second-term alderman Bob Fioretti did not seek reelection, instead, opting to run (unsuccessfully) for mayor. Brian Hopkins was elected to succeed him, defeating Alyx Pattison in a runoff.
Incumbent second-term alderman Scott Waguespack was reelected, defeating Elise Doody-Jones, his sole challenger.
Incumbent eighth-term alderman Patrick J. O'Connor was reelected, defeating Dianne Daleiden, his sole challenger.
Incumbent second-term alderman Brendan Reilly was reelected, running unopposed.
Incumbent first-term alderman Michelle Smith was reelected, defeating Caroline Vickrey in a runoff by a narrow 79 vote margin (equal to 0.54% of the votes cast in the runoff).
One write-in candidate filed:
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
The following candidate filed nominating petitions but withdrew before ballot certification:
Incumbent third-term alderman Tom Tunney was reelected.
One write-in candidate filed:
Incumbent first-term alderman James Cappleman was reelected, defeating Amy Crawford in a runoff.
Incumbent first-term alderman Ameya Pawar was reelected, defeating Rory Fiedler, his sole challenger.
Incumbent first-term alderman Harry Osterman was reelected, running unopposed.
Incumbent sixth-term alderman Joe Moore was reelected, defeating Don Gordon, his sole challenger.
Four candidates were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures or other reasons:
Incumbent first-term alderman Debra Silverstein was reelected.
Two write-in candidates filed:
Two candidates were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent alderman Roberto Maldonado was reelected. He had been first appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 2009, and had been subsequently reelected in 2011.
Incumbent third-term alderman Ariel Reboyras was reelected, running unopposed on the ballot, facing only a write-in opponent.
One write-in candidate filed:
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
The following candidate filed nominating petitions but withdrew before ballot certification:
Incumbent sixth-term alderman Ray Suarez unsuccessfully sought reelection. He was defeated in a runoff by Milly Santiago.
Incumbent alderman Deb Mell was reelected to a first full term. Mell had been appointed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel in 2013.
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent third-term alderman Rey Colón unsuccessfully sought reelection. He was defeated by Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, his sole challenger.
Incumbent Nicholas Sposato ran in the adjacent 38th Ward due to redistricting. Gilbert Villegas was elected to succeed him as 36th Ward alderman, defeating Omar Aquino in a runoff.
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
First round<br />
Runoff<br />
Incumbent Timothy Cullerton did not run for reelection. Cullerton had been first appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 2011, and had been elected outright to a full term in the 2011 aldermanic elections shortly thereafter. Redistricted 36th Ward incumbent Nicholas Sposato was elected to succeed Cullerton as 38th Ward alderman.
Two candidates were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures or other reasons:
Incumbent alderman Margaret Laurino was reelected. Laurino had first been appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 1994, and had been reelected five times before.
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent first-term alderman Mary O'Connor ran unsuccessfully for reelection, being defeated by Anthony Napolitano in a runoff.
First round<br />
Runoff<br />
Incumbent first-term alderman John Arena was reelected, defeating John Garrido in a runoff.
Incumbent alderman Ricardo Muñoz was reelected. Muñoz had first been appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 1993, and had been reelected five times before.
One write-in candidate filed:
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent alderman Michael Chandler did not run for reelection. Michael Scott Jr. was elected to succeed him, defeating Vetress Boyce in a runoff.
One write-in candidate filed:
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures or other reasons:
The following candidates filed nominating petitions but withdrew before ballot certification:
Incumbent alderman Daniel Solis was reelected. Solis had first been appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 1996, and had been reelected four times before.
The following candidate filed nominating petitions but withdrew before ballot certification:
Incumbent fifth-term alderman Walter Burnett Jr. was reelected, defeating Gabe Beukinga, his sole challenger.
Incumbent alderman Daniel Solis was reelected. Solis had first been appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 1996, and had been reelected four times before.
Incumbent first-term alderman Jason Ervin was reelected, running unopposed on the ballot, facing only a write-in opponent.
One write-in candidate filed:
Six candidates were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures or other reasons:
The following candidate filed nominating petitions but withdrew before ballot certification:
Incumbent alderman Deborah L. Graham unsuccessfully sought reelection. Graham had first been appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 2010, and had been reelected in 2011. She was defeated by Chris Taliaferro in a runoff.
The following candidates filed nominating petitions but withdrew before ballot certification:
First round<br />
Runoff<br />
Incumbent alderman Emma Mitts was reelected. Mitts had first been appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 2000, and had subsequently been reelected in 2003, 2007, and 2011. She defeated Tara Stamps in a runoff.
One candidate was removed from the ballot:
Incumbent alderman James Balcer did not run for reelection. Balcer had first been appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 1997, and had been reelected four times. Patrick Daley Thompson was elected to succeed him, defeating John Kozlar in a runoff.
Incumbent third-term alderman George Cardenas was reelected, running unopposed on the ballot, with only a write-in opponent.
One write-in candidate filed:
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent first-term alderman Marty Quinn was reelected, running unopposed.
Incumbent alderman Edward M. Burke was reelected, running unopposed. The longest-serving member of the Chicago City Council, Burke had consecutively served eleven full terms, plus a partial term.
Incumbent two-term alderman Toni Foulkes ran in the adjacent 16th ward due to redistricting. Raymond Lopez was elected to succeed her as 15th Ward alderman, defeating Rafael Yanez in a runoff.
First round<br />
Runoff<br />
Incumbent alderman JoAnn Thompson sought reelection. She was challenged by redistricted incumbent two-term 15th Ward alderman Toni Foulkes and several other candidates. Thompson ultimately died two weeks before the general election. Foulkes advanced to a runoff, in which she narrowly defeated Stephanie Coleman.
Two candidates were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent Latasha Thomas did not run for reelection. Thomas had first been appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 2000, and was elected outright in a 2001 special election, later being thrice reelected. David H. Moore was elected to succeed her.
Incumbent alderman Lona Lane unsuccessfully sought reelection. Lane had first been appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley, and had been reelected in 2007 and 2011. She was defeated by Derrick Curtis in a runoff.
Two candidates were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
First round<br />
Runoff<br />
Incumbent fifth-term alderman Michael R. Zalewski was reelected.
Two candidates were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent second-term alderman Pat Dowell was reelected, defeating Patricia Horton, her sole challenger.
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent first-term alderman William D. Burns was reelected.
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent fourth-term alderman Leslie Hairston was reelected.
One write-in candidate filed:
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent first-term alderman Roderick Sawyer was reelected.
Two write-in candidates filed:
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
The following candidate filed nominating petitions but withdrew before ballot certification:
Incumbent alderman Natashia Holmes unsuccessfully sought reelection. Holmes had been appointed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel in 2013. She was defeated by Gregory Mitchell in a runoff.
Two write-in candidates filed:
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
First round<br />
Runoff<br />
Incumbent alderman Michelle A. Harris was reelected. Harris had been first appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 2006, and had been reelected in 2007 and 2011.
Second-term incumbent alderman Willie Cochran was reelected, defeating Kevin Bailey in a runoff.
One write-in candidate filed:
Two candidates were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent fourth-term alderman Anthony Beale was reelected.
One write-in candidate filed:
Two candidates were removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
Incumbent fourth-term alderman John Pope unsuccessfully sought reelection. He was defeated by Susan Sadlowski Garza in a runoff by a narrow 20-vote margin (equal to 0.18% of the votes cast in a runoff).
One write-in candidate filed:
As of April 21, Alderman Pope had filed suit for a recount. On May 12, however, Pope conceded defeat to Garza.
Incumbent first-term alderman Matt O'Shea was reelected, defeating Anne Schaible, his sole challenger on the ballot.
One write-in candidate filed:
Incumbent third-term alderman Howard Brookins was reelected, defeating Marvin McNeil in a runoff.
One candidate was removed from the ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures:
First round<br />
Runoff<br /> First round<br />
Incumbent alderman Carrie Austin was reelected. Austin had first been appointed alderman by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 1994, and had subsequently been reelected to five consecutive subsequent terms before this.