Several Chicago mayoral candidates could be knocked off the ballot

CHICAGO - In the Chicago mayoral race, the field will likely shrink as challenges are filed to knock several candidates off the ballot.

Five mayoral candidates have been challenged, including the son of former mayor Eugene Sawyer, 6th Ward City Council member Roderick Sawyer.

However, each of the well-funded front-runners have so far avoided a challenge.

"The four candidates with the most resources and the most money, which of course is Mayor Lightfoot, Congressman Garcia, Willie Wilson and Paul Vallas. The four of them will be on the ballots," said 2nd Ward Ald. Brian Hopkins. "I don't believe they're going to be challenged, and if they are, they would certainly withstand that challenge."

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Hopkins, who represents the downtown and Near North Side second ward in the City Council, took a close look at attempting to remove Mayor Lori Lightfoot from the ballot.  

He concluded she likely does have the required 12,500 valid voter signatures to win a ballot spot, though he says he found problems on her nominating petitions.

"Frankly, we found some, we didn't find enough to continue the effort with just a couple of days left, because it looked like we were gonna run out of time, even if she was short of 12,500, we simply didn't have enough time to prove it on a line by line basis," said Hopkins. 

The candidates who have so far been challenged are Sawyer, police officer Frederick Collins, activist Ja'Mal Green, Chicago businessman Willie Wilson and political newcomer Johnny LoGalbo.