Elections News Politics

How Brandon Johnson and Paul Vallas grew into rivals for mayor of Chicago

Despite following very different paths, both now have their sights trained on Chicago’s City Hall.

By Tina Sfondeles, Mariah Woelfel | WBEZ, Tessa Weinberg | WBEZ and Mitchell Armentrout

A young Paul Vallas (left) in 1962; Brandon Johnson (right) in grade school.

Complete coverage of the local and national primary and general election, including results, analysis and voter resources to keep Chicago voters informed.

As the April 4 runoff draws closer, the Sun-Times and WBEZ have teamed up to take an in-depth look into the lives and careers of the two men vying to be Chicago’s next mayor.

One of them started out as a boy in Roseland before moving with his family to the southwest suburbs. The other was raised in far west suburban Elgin before moving to Chicago’s West Side after he married.

Despite following very different paths, both now have their sights trained on Chicago’s City Hall. Below, check out detailed profiles on the respective backgrounds of Johnson and Vallas from Sun-Times and WBEZ reporters.

PROFILE: Brandon Johnson

Mayoral candidate Brandon Johnson (left) before a debate earlier this month; Brandon Johnson (right) in grade school.

PROFILE: Paul Vallas

A young Paul Vallas (left) in 1962; mayoral candidate Paul Vallas (right) earlier this month.

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