Latest news with #then-Democrat
Chicago Tribune
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Column: Mayor Sam Cunningham's second act begins in Waukegan
Back when golden oldies were new on your transistor radio, Mayor Robert Sabonjian ruled Waukegan. From 1957 to 1977, he oversaw the city, which grew in leaps and bounds under his tenure. Waukegan's new mayor, Sam Cunningham, has a few similarities to Sabonjian's stint as the city's chief executive. Both grew up on the South Side, where Cunningham represented the City Council's 1st Ward for 18 years. Both were defeated for re-election and made political comebacks. Long-time Waukeganites may recall that Sabonjian started his political career as a Democrat, but jumped to the Republican Party in the late 1960s. It was during his mayoralty that the city expanded some 20 miles to the west and northwest, annexing the property that became Lakehurst and is now the Fountain Square entertainment zone. Seeking re-election in 1977, Sabonjian was defeated handily by then-Democrat state Sen. Bill Morris, who served until 1985. Morris was beaten that year by Sabonjian, who came out of retirement to run again. Proving his point he could again manage a successful campaign, he served four years before retiring again. Another Armenian-American, Republican Haig Paravonian, was elected a one-term mayor through 1993. In 2009, Sabonjian's son, Robert, was elected to a term. Since Robert Senior's first 20 years as city leader, Waukegan hasn't had such long-term continuity in the mayor's office. William Durkin served from 1993 to 2001, nowhere near Sabonjian's two decades at the helm, a city record. After Durkin's time, city voters in recent elections have seemed to be searching for new leadership at every turn. They've tossed aside four incumbents in 20 years, like Democrat Cunningham in 2021. Ann Taylor, who ran as an independent then and again last month, bested Cunningham. He reversed the outcome on April 1 after Taylor spent four years heading City Hall. Similar to Sabonjian, Cunningham, Waukegan's first returning Black mayor, faces a crate-load of uncertainty as he returns to the office he initially won in 2017. He appears to realize that, along with plans to 'finish unfinished business' begun during his first term, according to Steve Sadin's front-page account of the mayor's inauguration last week. Like his predecessors, Cunningham has his eye on developing the lakefront and redeveloping downtown. He has infrastructure issues, including lead-pipe replacement and a complete overhaul of Washington Street, from Sheridan Road west to Green Bay Road, also on his mind. Sabonjian, too, wanted to spur Waukegan's lakefront, which most agree is a diamond in the rough. He's the mayor who termed an upgraded Lake Michigan shoreline for the city the, 'Riviera of the Midwest.' Cunningham told Sadin the city will renew efforts to acquire the old EJ&E Railway tracks, which remain a barrier to lakeshore development, as does the Amstutz Expressway, which splits the lake from the core city. The right-of-way, originally serving the old ComEd coal-fired plant and the long-gone US Steel wire mill on the South Side, is rarely used, if at all, by the current owner Canadian National Railway. The mayor also extended an olive branch to the City Council with which some had run-ins with Taylor during her administration. 'This is a team effort,' he said. 'It will take all of us working together, side by side, to make Waukegan the city we all know it can be. 'I know we will have our differences, but let's commit to working together,' he added. One of the first City Council hurdles is picking a law firm to represent members who want their own legal team, separate from one representing the city as a whole. He also addressed qualms over issues facing some city residents and actions of the administration of President Donald Trump: 'Whether you have been here for generations or are a newcomer, your voice matters.' But Cunningham told Sadin, 'We can only control what we control.' That includes the Trump administration slashing federal funding for state and local government projects. The administration of President Joe Biden last year set a 10-year deadline for cities across the nation to replace lead pipes, finalizing an aggressive approach aimed at ensuring that drinking water is safe for all Americans. Billions of dollars in federal grants and funding were available to help communities across the nation get the lead out of water, along with PFAS, perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl. Those clean drinking water endeavors may be impacted by the expected actions of the Trump administration. There have already been rollbacks of major clean air and water rules. Previous city administrations have faced similar challenges, but Cunningham's previous stint steering the city puts him in good standing to continue policies and plan for new ones for Waukegan's future. Like the elder Sabonjian, his second act begins anew.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Stothert, Ewing advance in Omaha mayor's primary race
Five candidates for Omaha mayor prepare for a debate in the city's mayoral primary at the Omaha Press Club. Shown, left to right, are Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert, former State Sen. Mike McDonnell, Douglas County Treasurer John Ewing, nonprofit executive Jasmine Harris and community advocate Terry Brewer. (Aaron Sanderford/Nebraska Examiner) OMAHA — Incumbent Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert and Douglas County Treasurer John Ewing easily advanced Tuesday to next month's general election for mayor. Despite outspending Ewing by hundreds of thousands of dollars, former State Sen. Mike McDonnell finished a distant third after angering key parts of both major political parties. The Nebraska Democratic Party censured the then-Democrat last year for casting the critical vote to pass new restrictions on abortion and transgender health care. He also angered the right by withholding his vote for shifting Nebraska to winner-take-all in presidential elections after joining the Nebraska Republican Party. McDonnell, who ran for mayor as a Republican, has been highly critical of the incumbent GOP mayor, attempting as a longtime union leader to outflank her on the right. Community activist Jasmine Harris finished fourth after pledging to focus on public safety through investing more in community-based programs. Terry Brewer, the founding pastor of New Covenant Church of God in Christ in North Omaha, finished fifth in the primary election. Much of the race discussed the city's streetcar project, taxes, and housing costs. Stothert is seeking a fourth term as the city's top elected official, a record in the modern era. While the mayor's race is nonpartisan, local parties have campaigned for central candidates. 'Our campaign has been built around our record of progress, determination, and the successes we've had,' Stothert said after the first batch of election results. 'That's the positive message we will continue to deliver for the next six weeks.' McDonnell heavily criticized Stothert during the campaign, emphasizing her spending and the poor quality of city streets, among other issues. Stothert won anyway. As of the 10:25 p.m. results in Douglas County, she had 25,056 votes. Ewing had 21,623 votes. And McDonnell had 13,859 votes according to unofficial election results. McDonnell conceded the race before 10 p.m., saying he was 'proud' of his campaign because he was 'listening to the people.' Ewing has been the Douglas County treasurer for almost two decades and was a former member of the Omaha Police Department. He has campaigned to improve city infrastructure and create more jobs. 'We believed all along that we were going to be in the general election. We believe that citizens of this community appreciate good government,' Ewing told the Nebraska Examiner. Douglas County Election Commissioner Brian Kruse had anticipated a voter turnout slightly above average for the local race. McDonnell is known statewide for his stint in the Nebraska Legislature, where he voted no on Republicans' 11th-hour push for winner-take-all before the 2024 presidential election. He also helped Republicans pass the state's stricter law banning abortion after 12 weeks of gestational age. He spent much of his campaign railing against the Omaha streetcar project favored by Stothert and downtown Omaha businesses, including Mutual of Omaha. Other candidates echoed McDonnell's criticism of the $459 million project, but said it was too far along to stop without the city facing legal and financial risk. Ewing told the Flatwater Free Press that the project needs to continue, but that city residents should have been able to vote on it. The Nebraska Democratic Party got one of its two endorsed candidates through with Ewing. U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb, endorsed Stothert. The Douglas County Republican Party endorsed McDonnell. Stothert and Ewing are likely to increase their leads Friday, when Kruse's county election office will count about 7,000 outstanding early votes turned in on Election Day. Those typically follow the same pattern as the first round of counted early votes that Kruse released at 8 p.m. Tuesday, which showed Stothert leading, Ewing second and McDonnell third. Harris said that the results weren't what she had hoped for, but she would continue to prioritize the people of Omaha. 'I'll continue to do the work in front of me, and I look forward to others joining in on how we can continue to build an Omaha that works for everyone, regardless if it's an elected seat or not,' Harris told the Examiner. The general election is set for May 13. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Fox News
20-02-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
DNC gave ex-Harris booster 'no choice' but to leave, she says, as Dems cry turncoat
EXCLUSIVE: A former Democrat fundraiser and political strategist is responding to questions about her leaving the party, saying she "didn't plan" on making the exit and "had no choice but to leave the cult." "I'm the only one from the campaign telling the truth," Lindy Li, who fundraised for Democrats in the 2024 presidential election, told Fox News Digital in an interview. "DNC leadership responded to my questions with deeply personal attacks. I had no choice but to leave the cult and am finally free to return to my roots as a conservative." Piers Morgan said in a post on X he was "confused" by one of Li's posts during the campaign, where she is pictured with presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and said that she "already voted" for her in Pennsylvania. "I'm confused. On Monday, you told me you didn't vote for Kamala in the 2024 election. But you posted this on your X account on October 3. Though oddly, you have now deleted it overnight. What's going on?" Morgan wrote Wednesday. Li, responding to the question, said that as a surrogate of the Harris campaign, she "didn't want to hurt Harris by disclosing I didn't vote for her" and felt a "responsibility" to "see the campaign through," despite personal objections. "As a public-facing surrogate of the campaign and a member of the team, I had a responsibility to see the campaign through, despite my personal objections — supporting Harris through Election Day was the right thing to do," Li told Fox News Digital. "I didn't leave the DNC. They pushed me out for simply asking for accountability for how the billions of dollars were spent." Li was a well-known fundraiser for the Democrats' 2024 presidential campaign before announcing her exit from the party in December after she said she was ostracized for criticizing then-Democrat presidential nominee Harris. The former Democrat said her decision to leave the party "wasn't easy" but was the "result of a decade-long progression." "It took a while for me to get here over the course of the past year. I just realized that the values of the Democratic Party are so incongruous to mine," Li told Fox. "It just contradicts everything I believe, everything from open borders to woke and DEI insanity. It's just not my party anymore." "No one is contradicting me on the facts, they are coming after me as a person," Li said, telling Fox that she is already working on fundraising for the GOP for the 2026 midterms. Fox News Digital reached out to the DNC for comment.
