LOGAN SQUARE — The 2015 election season is gearing up along with the New Year and a candidate forum set for 1st and 2nd Ward residents.
The 1st and 2nd Ward aldermanic debate kicks off Wednesday, Jan. 7 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Wicker Park Lutheran Church, 1500 N. Hoyne Ave.
The 1st Ward forum begins at 7 p.m. and will be moderated by DNAinfo’s Wicker Park reporter, Alisa Hauser.
Candidates confirmed for the debate include:
- Ald. Joe Moreno (1st), incumbent.
- Ronda Locke, a former Moreno staffer during the first two years of his term.
- Anne Shaw, an East Village resident who ran against Moreno in the 2012 1st Ward Committeeman race and lost.
- Andrew Hamilton, a Ukrainian Village resident and lawyer.
(Former candidate Mia Lopez was removed from the ballot in December.)
Any questions for the 1st ward candidates and incumbent can be sent to Hauser at ahauser@dnainfo.com.
The 2nd Ward forum is set for 7:45 p.m. and will be moderated by Elaine Coorens of Our Urban Times. Candidates confirmed for the debate include:
- Steve Niketopoulos, a media producer and community organizer who is the administrator for several neighborhood group Facebook pages.
- Stacey Pfingsten, a former community outreach coordinator for Ald. Bob Fioretti (2nd).
- Brian Hopkins, a former aide to Cook County Commissioner John Daley.
- Bita Buenrostro, a restaurant executive who previously ran for 43rd Ward alderman in 2011.
- Alyx Pattison, a West Town resident who works as an attorney and serves as a community representative on Jose de Diego School's Local School Council.
- Cornell Wilson, a Marine Corps veteran.
Elections will take place Feb. 24. In races where no candidate earns 50 percent of the votes cast, a runoff between the top two candidates will take place April 7.
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