Wisconsin and Chicago Elections Today to Watch

Wisconsin voters are heading to the polls today in a record-shattering state Supreme Court race.

The swing state voters will decide the future of abortion, legislative maps, and other hot-button issues as the winning candidate will decide the majority of the now conservative majority 4-3 panel.

As of Monday morning, nearly 410,000 people had already voted early. There is a risk for severe weather in Wisconsin today with chances of seeing damaging wind, and damaging hail — and far southwest Wisconsin could see some tornadoes. Polls close today at 8pm.

The hot contest is between former state Supreme Court Justice Dan Kelly, a conservative, and liberal Milwaukee County Judge Janet Protasiewicz.

 

Campaign spending surpassed $45 million last week, tripling the previous state record.

Politico, Live updates here at Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Chicago Chooses Between Progressive and Moderate to Replace Lori Lightfoot

Chicago voters are choosing a new mayor to address issues including crime, taxes, schools and investment in policing to lead the heavily Democratic city, the country’s third-largest.

The candidates are both Democrats but the race is officially a non-partisan run-off after neither candidate received more than 50% of the vote when Lori Lightfoot was defeated.

Former Chicago schools CEO Paul Vallas is the moderate Democrat endorsed by Chicago’s police union and major business groups.

Also funding Vallas is Betsy DeVos — a further indication that school privatization champions, including big-money Republican donors, see an opportunity to reenter Chicago’s educational landscape with a Vallas win.

Brandon Johnson is a former teacher and union organizer backed by the Chicago Teachers Union.

Vallas has repeatedly attacked Johnson for past comments in support of defunding police, which Johnson says he wouldn’t do as mayor. Still, Vallas — who wants to hire hundreds more officers — says the biggest quality dividing the candidates is experience. 

Johnson, in turn, has argued Vallas, who has run for office multiple times as a Democrat, is too right-wing to lead Chicago.

“When you take dollars from Trump supporters and try to cast yourself as part of the progressive movement — man, sit down,” Johnson said before leading a crowd of several thousand gathered for a rally in chanting “Paul Vallas, take a seat.”

Polls close at 7pm.

AP, Find Live Updates HERE

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