Paul Vallas has emerged as the frontrunner in the race for Chicago mayor, according to newly-released polls, setting up a battle among the other candidates for second place and the other spot in April's runoff election.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot, specifically, is counting on undecided voters breaking her way as voters head to the polls Tuesday - on Election Day. If not, she would be the first Chicago incumbent mayor to lose in 34 years.
"I just want to say this to the folks that are undecided - if you care about making sure that our city continues to move forward, if you care about the core democratic values that we hold in this city, then you're going to care about the fact that I'm the only candidate on the ballot that can beat Paul Vallas," Lightfoot said.
Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson argues the momentum is building his way, he's not the only one capturing the Progressive vote. While he has support from the Chicago Teachers Union and other union support, some big labor endorsements are sticking with Jesús “Chuy” García.
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"You have to have a real movement to make sure that we're making the critical investments," Johnson said.
"In the end, it's going to come down to trust and who has proven themselves to be able to bring the city together," added Garcia.
A runoff has become increasingly likely as no candidates are expected to receive at least 50% of the vote, which is required to avoid one.
There's a chance that voters may not even know which two candidates would be in a runoff for some time after Election Day. That’s because of how tightly-packed the contenders are in polls leading up to the election.
Several factors could be at play, with the first being how closely-contested the race has become. There are a good number of candidates who have paths into the top-two spots in voting, which would then qualify them for the April 4 head-to-head runoff in the race.
What’s more, mail-in ballots, which are far outpacing any previous mayoral election in Chicago, could be key. Those ballots can be submitted until midnight on Election Day, and so long as they are postmarked by Feb. 28, they can be counted as long as they are received by March 14.
