Who is Paul Vallas, Chicago mayoral runoff candidate?

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

• Age: 69
• Previous job: CEO of Chicago Public Schools
• Current neighborhood: Bridgeport

Who is Paul Vallas?

Paul Vallas served as Chicago Public Schools CEO under Mayor Richard M. Daley from 1995 to 2001.

He secured a spot in Chicago’s April 4 mayoral runoff election after earning the most votes of any candidate during the first round of voting on Feb. 28. Vallas came away with 33% of the first-round votes, while his runoff challenger, Brandon Johnson, finished second, with 21.6% of the vote.

This isn’t his first run at public office. In 2002, Vallas lost the Democratic primary for governor to Rod Blagojevich by just about two percentage points and lost again as former Gov. Pat Quinn’s running mate in 2014. In 2019, in his first run for Chicago mayor, he fell far short of the runoff, with 5.4% of the vote.

Born and raised in Chicago’s Roseland community, Vallas now owns an apartment in Bridgeport.

What is Paul Vallas’ platform?

Vallas is running on a tough-on-crime platform that earned him the support of the Fraternal Order of Police.

“Voters want a mayor who’s going to get the city back on track and who’s going to address its most pressing issues, and obviously, the issue of public safety is front and center,” Vallas told reporters outside the Thompson Center the day after the election.

Vallas’ crime-fighting agenda includes filling 1,700 police vacancies and “taking the handcuffs off” demoralized officers.

He said he plans to replace CPD superintendent David Brown, who has announced his resignation from the department effective March 16. Vallas also would use the $100 million the CTA spends each year on private security to add about 700 new officers.

Vallas also said he would: lengthen the CPS school day and school year; decentralize school bureaucracy to push decision-making down to the local level; and bankroll an increase in paid work-study programs by phasing out some electives.

Vallas faced some controversies in the weeks leading up to the Feb. 28 election, including questions over where he lives. Since 2009, Vallas has claimed a home in Palos Heights as his permanent legal residence, but has been registered to vote from an apartment in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood for the last year.

Vallas explained he and his wife, Sharon, have lived apart for decades.

He was also questioned over the fatal shooting of a 28-year-old Black man in San Antonio last March by three police officers there, one of whom was Gus Vallas, Vallas’ son. He also has been asked about his campaign’s social media accounts “liking” offensive, racist posts, which he said were the result of hackers.

Paths to victory

Vallas has an early advantage in the April 4 runoff, some experts say.

“His path is getting 50 to 55% of the Latino vote, which is very do-able for him. He won a few Latino wards,” veteran political operative Victor Reyes told the Sun-Times.

“If Paul makes those inroads into the Hispanic community, gets 20-to-25% of the Black vote and holds his [Northwest and Southwest Side] base, then he’s got a nice, clear path to a win in April,” Reyes said.

Compiled by Katie Anthony from stories by Fran Spielman