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Elected School Board Push Wins Big at Polls in 45th Ward

By Heather Cherone | February 25, 2015 5:32pm | Updated on February 25, 2015 5:38pm
 More than 400 people from the Chicago Teachers Union and other groups came out for a rally at Operation PUSH on Martin Luther King Jr. Day calling for an elected school board.
More than 400 people from the Chicago Teachers Union and other groups came out for a rally at Operation PUSH on Martin Luther King Jr. Day calling for an elected school board.
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DNAinfo/Sam Cholke

JEFFERSON PARK — Residents of the 45th Ward overwhelmingly voted in favor of a measure that called on state and city officials to end mayoral control of the Chicago Public School board and allow voters to elect members.

More than 85 percent of 45th Ward voters voted yes on the measure that appeared on ballots in 37 of 50 wards, according to unofficial results.

Citywide, more than 90 percent of voters asked officials to return the school board seats to elected positions, according to unofficial results. Members are now appointed by the mayor.

Ald. John Arena (45th), who faces a runoff April 7 against Chicago Police Lt. John Garrido after a split vote, authored a measure to put the question to voters in every ward, but was blocked by what he called "political shenanigans" orchestrated by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his allies, who oppose efforts to end mayoral control of the school district.

Instead, the council voted to put three less controversial measures to voters over Arena's objections.

Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, who will face Emanuel in the mayoral runoff also set for April 7, favors changing state law to allow the school board members to be elected.

The Chicago Teachers Union and other progressive political groups worked to collect enough signatures in each ward to put the question to voters, but succeeded in only 37 wards. 

There were not enough signatures collected in the 38th, 39th and 41st wards on the Far Northwest Side to put it to voters.

The three other advisory referendums on the ballot citywide also won by large margins, although it is unclear what impact if any the results will have at City Hall.

Citywide, more than 81 percent of voters said Chicago employers should give their employees paid leave to deal with an illness or family emergency.

In addition, 87 percent of voters said city employees should be required to attend at least one counseling session of they are convicted of domestic violence while on the public payroll.

The third referendum asked voters whether small individual contributions and "a limited amount of public money" should be used to block the influence of "special interest money" in elections. It passed with 79 percent of the vote.

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