ENDORSEMENT: Patrick O’Connor for 40th Ward alderman

Far North Side

Ald. Patrick O’Connor’s opponents in this race don’t have big complaints about what he’s done for the ward. Their real line of attack is that he hasn’t reached out enough for community input. “If you can’t criticize the outcome,” O’Connor said in a meeting with the Sun-Times Editorial Board, “criticize the process.” O’Connor has, in fact, gotten results for his ward. Schools have enjoyed major capital improvements. The West Ridge Nature Preserve has opened. It’s a 20-acre park next door to the Rosehill Cemetery that is expanding to include a play area. Our endorsement goes to O’Connor, even as we urge him to seek more feedback from residents. We also look forward to him running the City Council’s powerful Finance Committee in a more transparent manner than his predecessor as committee chairman, Ald. Ed Burke, ever did. Also running are teacher Dianne Daleiden; Maggie O’Keefe, who owns a digital marketing company; recent Loyola University grad Ugo Okere, who could have a bright future in politics, and Andre Vasquez, a manager for AT&T.

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SUN-TIMES 2019 CHICAGO VOTING GUIDE

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