WBEZ’s Poll

Tina Sfondeles and Tessa Weinberg report on the results of a WBEZ poll of the Chicago mayoral race:

All falling within the poll’s margin of error, Lightfoot, García and Vallas were essentially locked in a statistical dead heat when respondents were asked whom they would vote for if the Feb. 28 election were held today.

García led with 20%, followed by Vallas with 18% and Lightfoot with 17%. Businessman Willie Wilson trailed closely with 12% and Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson with 11%. Just 2% said they’d vote for activist Ja’Mal Green, and 1% chose either Ald. Sophia King, 4th Ward, or state Rep. Kam Buckner. Ald. Roderick Sawyer, 6th Ward, drew no support. Another 18% said they were still undecided.

but

If no candidate wins a majority on Feb. 28, the two candidates who win the most votes square off in an April 4 runoff.

Voters were asked about seven potential runoff matchups — and Lightfoot fared poorly in the scenarios that included her.

In a hypothetical Vallas-Lightfoot contest, the former CPS chief led the mayor 48% to 35%.

That gap widened when voters were asked to choose between Lightfoot and García, with the Southwest Side congressman earning 54% of the vote compared to just 30% for the mayor.

When García and Vallas were pitted head-to-head, 47% of respondents chose García and 36% went with Vallas.

García, by far, had the most support in the Hispanic community, with 56% of Latino voters saying they’d support him. Black voters were split, with 26% supporting Wilson, 25% supporting Lightfoot and 16% in support of Johnson. For white voters, 38% of those polled said they’d vote for Vallas, followed by 16% for Lightfoot, 14% for Johnson and 10% for García.

That explains why I titled my last poll about the Chicago mayoral race as I did. IMO the best candidate is Willie Wilson. He’s the only candidate running who has the potential of getting substantial support from white, black, and Hispanic voters. I’m not sure which is worse: Wilson sparring with Chicago pols and the bureaucracy for four years or Vallas carrying water for them. I’m confident that Garcia would be worse than either of them—IMO he’s an empty suit. And, of course, Lightfoot’s re-election is a worst case scenario.

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