Editor's Note: Live results for the 2023 Chicago Municipal Election are still rolling in, and votes are continuing to be counted. We're updating our live results page here. A map of current mayoral election results for all 50 wards is below.
As the Chicago Board of Elections continues to count votes for the 2023 Chicago Municipal Election, the race for Chicago's mayor is far from final after The Associated Press on Tuesday projected a runoff between former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas and Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson, with 99% of precincts reporting.
According to the latest results, Vallas is leading the crowded field of nine comfortably, with 34% of the vote. Johnson remains in second, with 20% of the vote, followed by incumbent Mayor Lori Lightfoot -- who conceded on Tuesday -- with 17%.
In fourth-place is Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García with 14% of the vote. In fifth place, with 10% of the vote, is Willie Wilson.
MORE: How Did Chicago Vote in the First Round of the 2019 Chicago Mayoral Election?
With a projected third-place finish, Lightfoot, the city's first Back, openly gay female mayor, is expected to become the first elected mayor to lose a reelection bid since Jane Byrne in 1983, despite winning the vote in more than a dozen wards.
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According to the CBOE, Vallas won 20 wards, Lightfoot won 16 wards, Johnson won nine and García won five. Although Lightfoot won more individual wards than Johnson, Johnson won more votes citywide.
As of 6 a.m. Wednesday, here's a breakdown from the CBOE of which Chicago mayoral candidate each of the 50 wards voted for in the 2023 Chicago Municipal Election.
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Ward 1: Johnson, 38.74%
Ward 2: Vallas, 61.96%
Ward 3: Lightfoot, 25.75%
Ward 4: Lightfoot, 28.12%
Ward 5: Lightfoot, 31.43%
Ward 6: Lightfoot, 37.66%
Ward 7: Lightfoot, 39.25%
Ward 8: Lightfoot, 41.64%
Ward 9: Lightfoot, 39.97%
Ward 10: Vallas, 36.14%
Ward 11: Vallas: 58.20%
Ward 12: García, 45.29%
Ward 13: Vallas, 55.45%
Ward 14: Garcia, 55.10%
Ward 15: Garcia, 33.47%
Ward 16: Lightfoot, 38.39%
Ward 17: Lightfoot, 40.27%
Ward 18: Lightfoot, 30.64%
Ward 19: Vallas, 61.81%
Ward 20: Lightfoot, 29.83%
Ward 21: Lightfoot, 40.32%
Ward 22: Garcia, 57.91%
Ward 23: Vallas, 47.21%
Ward 24: Lightfoot, 36.35%
Ward 25: Garcia, 40.40%
Ward 26: Johnson, 33.93%
Ward 27: Vallas, 25.81%
Ward 28: Lightfoot, 36.57%
Ward 29: Lightfoot, 33.08%
Ward 30: Vallas, 34.24%
Ward 31: Vallas, 28.33%
Ward 32: Vallas, 48.02%
Ward 33: Johnson, 35.49%
Ward 34: Vallas, 47.26%
Ward 35: Johnson, 42.84%
Ward 36: Vallas, 31.70%
Ward 37: Lightfoot, 42.13%
Ward 38: Vallas, 58.57%
Ward 39: Vallas, 49.98%
Ward 40: Johnson, 32.08%
Ward 41: Vallas, 72.28%
Ward 42: Vallas, 63.14%
Ward 43: Vallas, 57.17%
Ward 44: Vallas, 41.93%
Ward 45: Vallas, 53.77%
Ward 46: Johnson, 32.77%
Ward 47: Johnson, 37.08%
Ward 48: Johnson, 33.09%
Ward 49: Johnson, 39.01%
Ward 50: Vallas, 50.36%
More Election Results: See How All 50 Wards Voted in Chicago's Aldermanic Elections
Vallas, Johnson Headed to Mayoral Runoff, AP Projects
Vallas and Johnson have secured places in April's Chicago mayoral runoff, the Associated Press projects.
With 99% of precincts reporting as of 5 a.m. Wednesday, Vallas led with 34% of the vote, holding a comfortable lead over his closest challengers.
MORE: Here's What Chicago's Top 3 Mayoral Candidates Said on Election Night
Johnson, who had the support of the Chicago Teachers Union and other key labor groups, is currently running in second with 20% of the vote, pulling past Lightfoot, who will become the first elected mayor to lose a reelection bid since Jane Byrne in 1983.
“Obviously, we didn’t win the election today, but I stand here with my head held high and a heart full of gratitude,” Lightfoot said in a concession speech Tuesday. “There’s more work to do, and I just want to say, thank you all deeply, deeply from the bottom of my heart, thank you.”
MORE: Paul Vallas vs. Brandon Johnson: A First Look at the April Chicago Mayoral Runoff
Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García is currently in fourth place with 14% of the vote, with Willie Wilson in fifth place at 10%.
The runoff between Vallas and Johnson is scheduled to take place on April 4.
Vallas, who finished ninth in the 2019 mayoral race with just 30,236 votes, found himself thrust into the frontrunner spot in this election with his focus on issues of public safety, with sharply-critical attacks of Lightfoot's performance as mayor.
While many polls predicted Vallas in the lead throughout the race, the second place position appeared to be up for grabs, with several projecting a three-way-tie between Johnson, Lightfoot, and García.
What Happens Next?
Chicago's runoff election, for both the mayoral and aldermanic races, is scheduled for April 4. And according to the Chicago Board of Elections, the city had already made preparations for that outcome.
"At this point, all things are prepared for a city wide runoff on April 4," CBOE spokesman Max Bever said during an update Tuesday. "I think that that's what is top of mind for me right now."
Additionally, the city still has nearly 100,000 outstanding mail-in ballots. And though the CBOE doesn't expect to receive ballots returns from all registered vote-by-mail voters, it does expect thousands to arrive "in the coming days."
As long as ballots are postmarked by Feb. 28, and as long as they are received by the CBOE by March 14, the CBOE says. However, the CBOE has until March 21 to certify the results.
"We are going to try to get that proclamation done on the 15th or the 16th," Bever said Tuesday, "so that we can declare those races done, and we can get those ballots printed...and out, and available, for the April 4th runoff."