Willie Wilson has officially thrown his hat into the ring to be Chicago Mayor in 2023. He announced his decision on April 11, 2022. This is the third time he has run.
He feels that: “The city’s in horrible condition. So we got to change.” Wilson stated that he will “spend whatever it takes” to get elected, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The Chicago businessman told reporters, “I don’t need to run for mayor to get a paycheck. My wanting to do this is to serve communities.” He added that his campaign wants “to bring all races, creeds, and colors together.”
During the news conference held at his condo in the Loop, Wilson declared he is going to donate $5 million to his own mayoral campaign. His contribution blows the caps on all candidates’ fundraising in the 2023 mayoral race. He made similar contributions to his campaign in the past.
Wilson admitted that he “made a mistake” when he endorsed Mayor Lori Lightfoot. “I made a hell of a mistake. I’ve been very disappointed,” he added.
It is possible the businessman could seriously damage Lightfoot’s chances of becoming re-elected, according to veteran political operative Victor Reyes — who is not involved in the 2023 mayoral race.
Lightfoot’s “strongest base of support is older African-American women,” Reyes stated. He added that Wilson could “potentially cut in — with the church folks he appeals to. It does significantly hurt her in the context that he might appeal to that older Black base that seems to be sticking with her.”
The Chicago businessman is a Lousiana sharecropper’s son. At the age of 13, he left home. Career-wise he started from the bottom as a janitor. From there he rose to own McDonald’s franchises. Now he heads a multimillion-dollar plastic glove distribution company.
He hopes to rebuild Chicago together with the citizens’ help.
Watch My Live Press Conference today at 11:00am. It will be broadcast on all the local media.
I will be announcing whether or not I will be running for Mayor of Chicago.#DrWillieWilson, #RebuildingChicagoTogether pic.twitter.com/5RqoCjEmN2
— Dr. Willie Wilson (@DrWillieWilson) April 11, 2022
There has been a lot of controversy over his free gas giveaway a few weeks ago. He has stated that the two things had nothing to do with each other. His only goal was to help out his community members.
He is no stranger to people having issues with his way of doing things. In the past mayoral race, he gave church members money to help them offset bills. One person told him he should have given them a check. Wilson stated, “Why would I give a person a turkey when they don’t have a stove to cook on?” Meaning: most of the people did not have a checking account to deposit the money, so why would he give them a check they would have to pay to cash.
The mayoral primary is scheduled for Feb. 28, 2023.
Written by Sheena Robertson
Sources;
WGN: Willie Wilson officially announces he is running for mayor of Chicago; by Judy Wang, Tahman Bradley
Chicago Tribune: Willie Wilson confirms he’s running for Chicago mayor, will focus on crime and education: ‘The city’s in horrible condition’; by GREGORY PRATT and ALICE YIN
Chicago Suntimes: Willie Wilson joins 2023 race for mayor; by Fran Spielman
Chicago Tribune: Willie Wilson selling up-by-the-bootstraps story in Chicago mayor race; by DAVID HEINZMANN and RICK PEARSON
Top, Inline, and Featured Image Courtesy of Evan Guest’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
