United Working Families (UWF) is an independent political organization based in Chicago, Illinois.[1] It was formed in 2014 as a coalition between the Chicago Teachers Union, SEIU Healthcare Illinois Indiana, Grassroots Illinois Action, and Action Now.[2][3] Although it is not a formal political party, the organization recruits and trains political candidates and organizers, endorses and provides support to political candidates, and engages in community organizing.[1] Its stated goal is to "create space for independent politics" in Chicago and Illinois and to enact a "vision for a city and a state that provides for the many, not just the wealthy few."[4] The organization has been characterized as part of the progressive movement and the labor movement.[2][3][5]
 | |
| Formation | 2014 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois |
Chair | Stacy Davis Gates |
Vice-Chair | Abbie Illenberger |
Executive Director | Kennedy Bartley |
Electoral politics
editMunicipal elections
edit2015 Chicago municipal elections
editIn 2015, UWF backed the candidacy of Jesus "Chuy" Garcia against incumbent mayor Rahm Emanuel.[2][6] Garcia placed second in the first round and proceeded to the run-off election, where he lost to Emanuel.
The below table shows the candidates endorsed by UWF in the 2015 Chicago aldermanic election.[7]
| Candidate | Ward | Status | Result | Percentage of votes won |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leslie Hairston | 5 | Incumbent | Won in first round | 52.55% |
| Roderick Sawyer | 6 | Incumbent | Won in first round | 56.2% |
| Tara Baldridge | 8 | Challenger | Lost in first round | 15.67% |
| Susan Sadlowski-Garza | 10 | Challenger | Won in run-off | 50.09% (run-off); 24.09% (first round) |
| Toni Foulkes | 16 | Incumbent[nb 1] | Won in run-off | 50.94% (run-off); 47.65% (first round) |
| David Moore | 17 | Open seat | Won in first round | 52.93% |
| Ricardo Muñoz | 22 | Incumbent | Won in first round | 57.65% |
| Juanita Izirray | 26 | Challenger | Lost in first round | 33.89% |
| Zerlina Smith | 29 | Challenger | Lost in first round | 4.66% |
| Scott Waugespack | 32 | Incumbent | Won in first round | 78.95% |
| Tim Meegan | 33 | Challenger | Lost in first round | 34.01% |
| Carlos Ramirez-Rosa | 35 | Challenger | Won in first round | 67.26% |
| Tara Stamps | 37 | Challenger | Lost in run-off | 46.99% (run-off); 32.13% (first round) |
| Nicholas Sposato | 38 | Incumbent[nb 2] | Won in first round | 53.58% |
| John Arena | 45 | Incumbent | Won in run-off | 53.89% (run-off); 45.46% (first round) |
2019 Chicago municipal elections
editUWF did not make an endorsement in the 2019 mayoral election, but did create a digital advertisement featuring activists who critiqued candidate Lori Lightfoot for actions during her tenure as president of the Chicago Police Board.[8] Lightfoot proceeded to win the election.
The below table shows the candidates endorsed by UWF in the 2019 Chicago aldermanic election.[9][10] All endorsed candidates who won would later join the City Council's Progressive Reform Caucus.
| Candidate | Ward | Status | Early endorsement | Result | Percentage of votes won |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleopatra Watson | 9 | Challenger | No | Lost in first round | 25.80% |
| Susan Sadlowski Garza | 10 | Incumbent | Yes | Won in first round | 68.82% |
| Tanya Patiño | 14 | Challenger | No | Lost in first round | 29.40% |
| Rafael Yañez | 15 | Challenger | No | Lost in run-off | 40.30% (run-off); 21.83% (first round) |
| Jeanette Taylor | 20 | Open seat | Yes | Won in run-off | 59.71% (run-off); 28.78% (first round) |
| Michael Rodríguez | 22 | Open seat | Yes | Won in first round | 63.80% |
| Byron Sigcho-Lopez | 25 | Open seat | No[nb 3] | Won in run-off | 54.20% (run-off); 29.23% (first round) |
| Rossana Rodríguez Sanchez | 33 | Challenger | Yes | Won in run-off | 50.06% (run-off); 42.05% (first round) |
| Carlos Ramirez-Rosa | 35 | Incumbent | Yes | Won in first round | 59.43% |
| Tara Stamps | 37 | Challenger | No | Lost in first round | 40.17% |
| Andre Vasquez | 40 | Challenger | No[nb 4] | Won in run-off | 53.87% (run-off); 20.09% (first round) |
| John Arena | 45 | Incumbent | No | Lost in first round | 36.21% |
| Erika Wozniak Francis | 46 | Challenger | Yes | Lost in first round | 16.84% |
| Matt Martin | 47 | Open seat | No | Won in run-off | 62.50% (run-off); 39.31% (first round) |
| Maria Hadden | 49 | Challenger | Yes | Won in first round | 63.37% |
2023 Chicago municipal elections
editIn the 2023 Chicago mayoral election, UWF endorsed challenger Brandon Johnson, who previously served on the Cook County Board of Commissioners. Chuy García, who had received UWF's endorsement for Mayor in 2015, requested a delay in the endorsement process while he made his decision about whether to enter the race, but UWF proceeded with endorsing Johnson in September 2022, citing Garcia's unwillingness to provide a timeline for his decision.[11] Johnson was ultimately elected.
The below table shows candidates endorsed by UWF in the 2023 Chicago aldermanic election.[12]
| Candidate | Ward | Status | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daniel La Spata | 1 | Incumbent | Won in general election |
| Khari Humphries | 4 | Open seat | Lost in general election |
| Desmon Yancy | 5 | Open seat | Won in run-off election |
| William Hall | 6 | Open seat | Won in run-off election |
| Cleopatra Draper | 9 | Challenger | Lost in general election |
| Oscar Sanchez | 10 | Open seat | Lost in general election |
| Julia Ramirez | 12 | Open seat | Won in general election |
| Vicko Alvarez | 15 | Challenger | Lost in general election |
| Jeanette Taylor | 20 | Incumbent | Won in general election |
| Jessie Fuentes | 26 | Challenger | Won in general election |
| Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez | 33 | Incumbent | Won in general election |
| Carlos Ramirez-Rosa | 35 | Incumbent | Won in general election |
| Lori Torres Whitt | 36 | Challenger | Lost in run-off election |
| Denali Dasgupta | 39 | Challenger | Lost in general election |
| Angela Clay | 46 | Open seat | Won in run-off election |
| Matt Martin | 47 | Incumbent | Won in general election |
| Maria Hadden | 49 | Incumbent | Won in general election |
| Mueze Bawany | 50 | Challenger | Lost in general election |
State and county elections
edit2018 Illinois and Cook County elections
editUWF endorsed the following candidates in the 2018 Illinois elections:[13][14]
| Candidate | Office | Status | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delia Ramirez | Illinois House of Representatives, 4th district | Open seat | Won in Democratic primary and general election[15] |
| Aaron Ortiz | Illinois House of Representatives, 1st district | Challenger | Won in Democratic primary; unopposed in general election[16] |
| Brandon Johnson | Cook County Board of Commissioners, 1st district | Challenger | Won in Democratic primary; unopposed in general election[17] |
| Alma Anaya | Cook County Board of Commissioners, 7th district | Open seat | Won in Democratic primary; unopposed in general election[18] |
2020 Illinois and Cook County elections
editThe below table shows candidates endorsed by UWF in the 2020 Illinois elections.[19][20] The organization also endorsed Bernie Sanders in the Democratic Party presidential primary election.[20]
2022 Illinois and Cook County elections
editThe below table shows candidates endorsed by UWF in the 2022 Illinois elections and 2022 Cook County elections.[21]
| Candidate | Office | Status | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delia Ramirez | U.S. House of Representatives, 3rd district | Open seat | Won in Democratic primary; unopposed in general election |
| Robert Peters | Illinois Senate, 13th district | Incumbent | Won unopposed |
| Celina Villanueva | Illinois Senate, 11th district | Incumbent | Won in general election |
| Cristina Pacione-Zayas | Illinois Senate, 20th district | Incumbent | Won in general election |
| Theresa Mah | Illinois House, 24th district | Incumbent | Won unopposed |
| Lakesia Collins | Illinois House, 9th district | Incumbent | Won unopposed |
| Lilian Jimenez | Illinois House, 4th district | Open seat | Won in Democratic primary and general election |
| Michael Rabbitt | Illinois House, 15th district | Challenger | Lost in Democratic primary |
| Will Guzzardi | Illinois House, 39th district | Incumbent | Won unopposed |
| Norma Hernandez | Illinois House, 77th district | Challenger | Won in Democratic primary and general election |
| Fritz Kaegi | Cook County Assessor | Incumbent | Won in Democratic primary and general election |
| Brandon Johnson | Cook County Board of Commissioners, 1st district | Incumbent | Won unopposed |
| Alma Anaya | Cook County Board of Commissioners, 7th district | Incumbent | Won unopposed |
| Anthony Joel Quezada | Cook County Board of Commissioners, 8th district | Challenger | Won in Democratic primary; unopposed in general election |
Policy agenda
editIn May 2019, all UWF-endorsed candidates who won in the 2019 Chicago aldermanic election (along with alderman Daniel La Spata) signed onto a legislative policy agenda entitled "Our 100 Day Plan to Reimagine Chicago."[22][23] The agenda includes ordinances supporting public housing and affordable housing, a new real estate transfer tax, an increased minimum wage, a Community Benefits Agreement for the Obama Presidential Center, eliminating exemptions in Chicago's welcoming city ordinance, and reform of tax increment financing.[23]
In November 2019, aldermen affiliated with UWF hosted a series of town halls on the city budget, in support of their proposed alternatives to Mayor Lightfoot's budget.[24] The organization itself released a statement opposing the mayor's budget on the grounds that it lacked funding for affordable housing, failed to re-open closed mental health clinics, and did not contain sufficient progressive revenue measures.[25] On November 26, eight of the nine UWF-endorsed aldermen voted against Lightfoot's budget proposal, which passed by a vote of 39–11.[26]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, UWF worked with other community organizations and some local elected officials to create and endorse a "Right to Recovery" package at the city, county, and state levels.[27][28][29] The package would include paid emergency leave, emergency housing for those unable to self-quarantine, a moratorium on Immigration and Customs Enforcement check-ins, and weekly payments of $750 to families with children and workers facing layoffs and furloughs.[29] [30]
On September 11, 2024, three City Council committee chairs and the president of the Fraternal Order of Police called for the firing of mayoral aide Kennedy Bartley, the former executive director of United Working Families, for using the term "f---ing pigs" to describe police and talking openly about defunding or abolishing the police.[31]
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ Foulkes was previously the alderman of the 15th ward, but ran in the 16th ward due to redistricting.
- ^ Sposato was previously the alderman of the 36th ward, but ran in the 38th ward due to redistricting.
- ^ Endorsed after the first round.
- ^ Endorsed after the first round.
- ^ Villanueva was initially endorsed when she was the incumbent State Representative for the 13th district and running for re-election in that seat. On January 7, 2020, she was appointed to fill a vacancy in the State Senate seat for 11th district.
References
edit- ^ a b "What We Do". United Working Families. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
- ^ a b c Farmer, Stephanie; Noonan, Sean (2019-11-13). "Chicago Unions Building a Left-Labor-Community Coalition, United Working Families, to Restore Working-Class Democracy". Labor Studies Journal. 44 (4): 388–395. doi:10.1177/0160449X19887244. ISSN 0160-449X. S2CID 210490217.
- ^ a b Uetricht, Micah (2015-04-06). "Meet Rahm Emanuel's Other Election Day Challenger". The Nation. ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
- ^ "2018 Convention Agenda and Resolution". United Working Families. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
- ^ Bartlett, Rob (2014-10-23). "Two Years after the CTU Strike: "Reform" Plague Still Spreads". solidarity-us.org. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
- ^ "Can the Working Families Party succeed in America?". openDemocracy. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
- ^ "Endorsements | United Working Families". 2015-03-03. Archived from the original on 2015-03-03. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
- ^ "New Ad Targets Lightfoot For Failing To Discipline Cops While On Police Board". 2019-03-30. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
- ^ "Endorsements". United Working Families. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
- ^ United Working Families. "Very proud to announce that Byron Sigcho Lopez for 25th Ward Alderman and Andre Vasquez, 40th Ward are joining our slate of candidates running to win a Chicago #ForTheMany". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2019-03-21.
- ^ Spielman, Fran (2022-09-29). "Sorry, Chuy: Chicago Teachers Union, United Working Families endorse Brandon Johnson for mayor". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
- ^ "2023 Endorsements". United Working Families. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
- ^ "United Working Families Announces 2018 Candidate Slate". United Working Families. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
- ^ "United Working Families Adds Endorsements to 2018 Candidate Slate". United Working Families. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
- ^ "Delia Ramirez". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2019-07-08.
- ^ "Aaron Ortiz". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2019-07-08.
- ^ "Brandon Johnson (Illinois)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2019-07-08.
- ^ "Alma Anaya". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2019-07-08.
- ^ Foxx, Kim (2019-11-22). "Thank you to @UWFIllinois for their support for my re-election for State's Attorney! We've got lots more work to do in Cook County to reform justice and make our communities safer and fairer for all residents, and I'm proud to have you as a partner in this fight once again.pic.twitter.com/q0MaxDeQ2k". @KimFoxxforSA. Retrieved 2019-11-23.
- ^ a b "2020 Endorsements". United Working Families. Retrieved 2020-03-19.
- ^ "2022 Endorsements". United Working Families. Archived from the original on 2022-06-15. Retrieved 2022-06-15.
- ^ "Our 100 Day Plan to Reimagine Chicago". United Working Families. 2019-05-16. Retrieved 2019-06-03.
- ^ a b Pratt, Gregory (2019-05-15). "Incoming progressive aldermen lay out agenda for 1st 100 days of Lightfoot administration: 'It's a new day in Chicago'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2019-06-03.
- ^ Smith, Ryan (2019-11-15). "Tax revenue should go to affordable housing, not megadevelopments, aldermen say". Curbed Chicago. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "UWF Statement on 2020 Chicago Budget". United Working Families. 2019-11-26. Retrieved 2019-12-16.
- ^ Spielman, Fran (2019-11-26). "City Council approves Lightfoot's $11.6 billion budget — with 11 'no' votes". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
- ^ Hinton, Rachel (2020-03-23). "State, local lawmakers propose 'right to recovery' coronavirus relief package". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2020-03-24.
- ^ Rodriguez, Rossana; Ramirez-Rosa, Carlos; Sigcho Lopez, Byron; La Spata, Daniel; Taylor, Jeanette (2020-03-16). "If we want everybody to stay home during a coronavirus crisis, we need deep change to make that possible". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
- ^ a b United Working Families. "Recovery For All Package". actionnetwork.org. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
- ^ Freund, Sara (2020-03-17). "Chicago leaders ask for immediate moratorium on evictions, utility shut-offs, and housing court". Curbed Chicago. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
- ^ Speilman, Fran (2024-09-11). "Three City Council leaders demand ouster of top mayoral aide who called police 'f---ing pigs'". Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved 2024-09-11.