>>> THERE'S A LOT STILL UNKNOWN ABOUT THE MAKEUP OF THE NEXT CITY COUNCIL BUT ONE THING WE DO KNOW, BIG CHANGES COMING WITH A RECORD NUMBER OF RETIREMENTS THIS TERM MEANING HUNDREDS OF FIRST-TIME COUNCILMEMBERS.

SOME HAVE ALREADY ONE OF THEIR RACES.

FOUR OF THOSE WINNERS JOIN US RIGHT NOW.

BILL CONWAY, JESSE FUENTES AT THE 26th WARD.

BENNETT LAWSON WHO WON THE VOTE FOR THE 44th WARD AND JULIO RAMIREZ OF THE 12th WARD.

WELCOME ALL OF YOU AND CONGRATULATION 'S .

HOW DO YOU DIFFER FROM GEORGE AND HOW ARE YOU SIMILAR TO HIM WITH YOUR PRIORITIES?

>> I THINK ONE OF THE MAIN PRIORITIES IS THAT WE HAVE BEEN DEEPLY DISENFRANCHISED ON THE SOUTHWEST SIDE AND SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE WERE GETTING VOTERS THAT HAD VOTED IN A VERY LONG TIME.

I'M A LONGTIME RESIDENT THERE SO WE ENGAGED IN ONE OF THE THINGS, I LOST MY BROTHER TO GUN VIOLENCE SO WHEN I WAS SHARING MY STORY PEOPLE SAID YOU ARE LIKE ME.

THAT'S THE CLEAR DIFFERENCE, WE ARE NOT PAYING PEOPLE, PEOPLE ARE VOLUNTARILY WITH OUR MOVEMENT.

>> AND COMMUNITIES LIKE BRIGHTON AND McKINLEY PARK, BILL CONWAY YOU ARE PROSECUTOR, LAST TIME YOU WERE IN THE DEBATE FOR COOK COUNTY STATES ATTORNEY, AND YOU LOST THAT RACE TO KIM FOX.

>> THANKS FOR REMINDING ME.

>> NOW YOU ARE IN A NEW DOWNTOWN WARD, WHAT ARE YOUR PRIORITIES?

>> REALLY HAVING KNOCKED ON EVERY DOOR IN THE WARD 4 TIMES, I CAN TELL YOU PEOPLE ARE SAYING THE SAME THING.

THEY ARE FOCUSED ON PUBLIC SAFETY.

BECAUSE OF THAT WE NEED TO MAKE SURE OUR POLICE OFFICERS HAVE THE RESOURCES THEY NEED BUT REALLY CITYWIDE WE NEED TO MAKE SURE OUR NEXT SUPERINTENDENT REALLY EMBRACES A COMMUNITY POLICING MODEL.

BEYOND THAT WE, NO ONE THINKS THE POLICE CAN SOLVE ALL OF OUR PROBLEMS WHICH IS WHY WE NEED TO BE GETTING AFTER MENTAL HEALTH AND JOB GROWTH AND HOMELESSNESS IN THE 34th WARD AND ACROSS THE CITY.

>> JESSE YOU ARE THE YOUNGEST ALDER PERSON TO SERVE YOUR WARD IN A LONG TIME.

TELL US YOUR VISION FOR HUMBOLDT PARK .

>> THE PRESERVATION OF THE PUERTO RICAN COMMUNITY IS WORK I'VE BEEN DOING FOR OVER 10 YEARS.

WE ARE SUSTAINING FAMILIES THROUGH BRINGING MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND HOMEOWNERSHIP.

WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THE AREA BECOMES A DESIGNATED CULTURAL DISTRICT AND GETS THE INVESTMENT IT DESERVES.

OUR BUSINESSES DESERVE CULTURALLY COMPETENT LENDING PROGRAMS SO THEY CAN BE SUSTAINABLE ACROSS THE PUTTER HE CAN COMMUNITY.

>> BENNETT LAWSON, YOU TAKE OVER FOR YOUR FORMER BOSS, HE WAS A BUSINESS OWNER WHO HAD LOTS OF RUN-INS WITH YOUR BIGGEST CONSTITUENT, THE CHICAGO CUBS, HOW ARE YOU DIFFERENT AND SIMILAR?

>> I AM A WHOLE GENERATION YOUNGER SO I COME WITH A DIFFERENT BACKGROUND BUT IT'S TRUE.

I HAVE DIFFERENT LIFE EXPERIENCE AND A DIFFERENT OUTLOOK ON THINGS AND I'M NOT AFRAID TO BRING TECHNOLOGY WHEN NEEDED TO HELP THE WARD.

I THINK THEY UNDERSTAND SOMEONE WHO IS PRAGMATIC.

>> SOME OF OUR SCHOOLS AND 20/25 MAY CLOSE SO HOW ARE WE PROVIDING OPPORTUNITY FOR KIDS TO PROSPER AND FOR PEOPLE TO THRIVE.

I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE INVESTING AND CARING FOR WORKING-CLASS FAMILIES.

>> WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR VISION FOR PUBLIC SAFETY WHAT ABOUT RETURNING BUSINESSES IN THAT AREA THAT HAVE BEEN HIT HARD AFTER COVID?

>> WE HAVE TO MAKE IT AS EASY AS WE CAN FOR BUSINESSES THAT ARE READY TO INVEST IN OUR COMMUNITY, TO BE ABLE TO GET THROUGH THE RED TAPE OF THE CITY SO THAT THEY CAN INVEST IN OUR DOWNTOWN , AND THRIVING COMMUNITIES.

>> JESSE FUENTES, WE MENTIONED HUMBOLDT PARK BUT YOUR WARD IS A LITTLE BIGGER THAN THAT, WHAT ABOUT YOUR PUBLIC SAFETY INVESTMENT PRIORITIES?

>> THERE IS A DIRECT CORRELATION TO THE INVESTMENT IN OUR SCHOOLS AND YOUTH PROGRAMMING AND THE LEVELS OF CRIME.

OUR PRIORITIES ARE GOING TO BE TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE OPENING UP MENTAL HEALTH CLINICS SO WE ARE INVESTING IN THESE PROGRAMS, AND THAT WE FIGHT FOR SCHOOLS TO HAVE THE RESOURCES.

THERE'S NO REASON NOT TO HAVE FULL-TIME COUNSELORS AND SOCIAL WORKERS TO PROVIDE THE RESOURCES THAT OUR YOUNG PEOPLE SO DESERVE.

>> BENNETT LAWSON, THE 44th WARD, WHAT ARE YOUR PRIORITIES IN TAKING CARE OF THE LGBTQ POPULATION.

>> PRESERVING THAT IS IMPORTANT.

CITYWIDE WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A VOICE OF THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY.

IT'S ABOUT VISIBILITY, IT'S ABOUT WHEN ISSUES COME UP, WE WILL SEE WHAT THE CHALLENGES ARE.

CERTAINLY A LOT OF US ARE WORRIED ABOUT THE VIOLENCE AGAINST TRANS WOMEN OF COLOR SPECIFICALLY.

>> JULIO, OVER THE YEARS, COUNCILMEMBERS VIEWED THIS JOB DIFFERENTLY.

SOME WERE JUST INTERESTED IN THEIR WARD OR CITYWIDE ISSUES, DO YOU VIEW YOURSELF AS SOMEONE WHO WANTS TO BE PART OF CITYWIDE LEGISLATION ISSUES?

>> YEAH OF COURSE.

WE ARE THINKING ABOUT THE SOUTHWEST SIDE AS A WHOLE.

WHEN YOU ARE LOOKING AT DISENFRANCHISEMENT, IT'S NOT JUST THE 12th WARD, ISSUES ARE NOT BOUNDED BY WARDS SO I WANT TO BE A LEADER.

>> BILL CONWAY WHAT ABOUT YOU, WILL YOU JUST CATER TO YOUR WARD OR BE A PART OF THESE BROADER DEBATES?

>> I THINK WE HAVE FOUND OUT THAT CERTAINLY ACROSS COVID AND OTHERWISE, CRIME AND EVERYTHING ELSE IS A VERY PORTABLE ISSUE.

WHICH IS WHY I TALK ABOUT HOMELESSNESS AND MENTAL HEALTH AND JOB GROWTH, THOSE ARE CITYWIDE ISSUES AS MY COLLEAGUES HAVE MENTIONED.

AS SOMEONE WHO WAS A MILITARY VETERAN I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK AND FIND COMMON GROUND WITH PEOPLE FROM DIFFERENT PLACES AND HAD DIFFERENT VIEWS FOR MYSELF.

FAILURE TO COMPLETE THE MISSION WASN'T AN OPTION SO I'M EXCITED TO BE ABLE TO FIND COMMON GROUND WITH MY NEW COLLEAGUES HERE IN THE REST OF THE CITY COUNCIL.

>> JESSE, WE HAVE THIS RUNOFF FOR MAYOR, 2 VERY DIFFERENT CANDIDATES, WHO WILL YOU BACK IF ANYBODY?

>> 100% OF MY ENERGY IS GOING BEHIND BRANDON JOHNSON.

BRANDON JOHNSON IS THE RIGHT CHOICE FOR WORKING FAMILIES, HE HAS A PLAN FOR PUBLIC SAFETY THAT ENSURES WE ARE INVESTING IN MENTAL HEALTH, AND WE ARE PROTECTING OUR COMMUNITIES SCHOOLS, AND THAT WE ARE ENSURING WE ARE INVESTING IN YOUTH PROGRAMMING ALL AROUND.

HE ALSO HAS A FINE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN THAT ENSURES WE ARE BUILDING WEALTH IN OUR COMMUNITIES OF COLOR.

>> I'M GOING TO LET MY VICTORY TAKE A DAY OR TWO AND FOCUS ON PUTTING MY OFFICE TOGETHER.

WE WILL SEE, IT MAY CHANGE IN THE NEXT WEEK OR SO.

>> WHAT DO YOU THINK?

>> I'M GOING TO BE SUPPORTING BRANDON JOHNSON , I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE DO BLACK AND LATINO ISSUES, WE HAVE A LOT IN COMMON AND I THINK WE NEED TO COME TOGETHER AND GIVE BRANDEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE THE MAYOR.

>> I'VE BEEN SO FOCUSED ON THE 34th WARD FOR THE LAST SIX MONTHS, I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO SEE BOTH PAUL AND BRANDON PRESENT THEIR VIEWS TO THE VOTERS, AND FRANKLY IF SOMEONE TRIES TO FIND COMMON GROUND I'M WILLING TO WORK WITH ANYONE THAT IS READY TO BUILD SAFER AND STRONGER COMMUNITIES FOR CHICAGO AND I'M CONFIDENT IN BOTH OF THOSE GENTLEMEN.

>> IT DOES SEEM LIKE A LOT OF