Chicago mayoral hopefuls Toni Preckwinkle and Lori Lightfoot are a little more than two weeks away from a historic election, but there was little evidence of the political showdown at Saturday’s downtown St. Patrick’s Day parade.
There were few political signs or buttons. Ropes and police officers around the dignitaries kept either candidate from working the crowd. And if there were any shouts from the masses for Lightfoot or Preckwinkle, they were drowned out by the frenzy that greeted famous Irish mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor.
The 15-minute march down Columbus Drive also marked Rahm Emanuel’s eighth and final as mayor, but he wasn’t feeling wistful.
“I’m going to kick his ass,” Emanuel joked as he pointed to McGregor next to him, moments before the parade stepped off. McGregor, who sported a pair of green suede shoes, reacted with just a smirk.
The mayor did not appear to greet either of the candidates running to succeed him. He’s had a rocky relationship with both.
As Emanuel, McGregor and Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar walked the route front and center, Preckwinkle was off to the right, just past Gov. J.B. Pritzker. Lightfoot, sporting a green plaid Blackhawks fedora, walked with her wife, Amy Eshleman, and 11-year-old daughter, Vivian, to the far left on the other side of U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin.
When the dignitaries reached the reviewing stand near Buckingham Fountain, the emcee mentioned Emanuel, Pritzker, Durbin and Preckwinkle by name to little reaction. There was no mention of Lightfoot or the mayor’s race.
While there may not have been much fanfare, Lightfoot and Preckwinkle both relished the moment.
“It feels like a great honor, it really does,” Lightfoot said of passers-by recognizing her and wishing her well. “Coming from where I come from and the journey I’ve been on, particularly over this last year, it’s gratifying that a lot of the hard work by so many people is showing up, because so many people are enthusiastic for change.”
Lightfoot’s victory in the first-round election last month punctuated the 56-year-old former federal prosecutor’s rise from political obscurity into a one-on-one race in the April 2 runoff. Lightfoot, who held two police oversight appointments under Emanuel and worked in police oversight and agency positions under former Mayor Richard M. Daley, had never walked in the parade before.
She did, however, remember attending her first when she was still an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan.
“I came to Chicago for the first time when I was a freshman in college for St. Patrick’s Day,” Lightfoot said, before cracking a joke. “I won’t tell you what happened, crimes and misdemeanors committed.”
As alderman for nearly 20 years and Cook County Board president for nine, Preckwinkle knew the drill. She was more grateful for sunny skies and temperatures in the upper 30s than anything else.
“I’ve been doing this quite a long time. The big difference is the weather,” Preckwinkle said with a laugh. “I’ve been out here when it’s been pouring down rain and when it’s freezing. It’s a beautiful day.”
The 71-year-old chair of the Cook County Democratic Party said she feels good with a little more than two weeks to go in the campaign.
“I’m really optimistic,” she said. “As I go around the city, I get a warm reception and I’m very grateful for the resonance of my message of the importance of investing in our neighborhoods — in our neighborhood schools, community revitalization and addressing public safety challenges.”
Other politicians weren’t as eager to talk about the race.
“I think it’s a very interesting race, thank you,” Durbin said quickly to laughs when asked about the matchup. “I’m not going to be endorsing in that race.”
Pritzker also made it clear he’s staying out of the fray, but pointed out the historic nature of the nation’s third largest city being poised to elect its first African-American female mayor.
“Well, it’s very competitive, and we’re going to make history in Chicago. I’m very proud of that fact,” Pritzker said. “The voters are going to make up their own minds, and I’m proud of the fact that people are running a tough campaign. This is a good city, tough people, and we’re going to get a good mayor out of it.”
As the current mayor joked about going a round or two with McGregor, Emanuel was asked if he had any advice for the two candidates vying for his fifth-floor office at City Hall.
“My advice? Keep offering ideas,” the mayor said. “As Bill Clinton said, ideas are the most undervalued, underappreciated but most important things you can offer.”
Asked if the candidates had offered enough ideas to his liking, Emanuel offered a long pause before offering a restrained answer.
“No comment.”
Twitter @BillRuthhart
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