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1979 Chicago mayoral election

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1979 Chicago mayoral election

← 1977 (special) April 3, 1979 1983 →
Turnout61%[1] Increase 21 pp
 
Nominee Jane Byrne Wallace D. Johnson
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 700,874 137,664
Percentage 82.1% 16.1%

Mayor before election

Michael A. Bilandic
Democratic

Elected Mayor

Jane Byrne
Democratic

The 1979 Chicago mayoral election was first the primary on February 27, 1979, which was followed by the general on April 3, 1979. The election saw the election of Chicago, Illinois' first female mayor, and the first female mayor of any major American city, Jane M. Byrne. Byrne defeated Republican Wallace Johnson by a landslide 66 percent margin of victory, winning more than 82 percent of the vote.[2] Byrne's 82% of the vote is the most any candidate has received in a Chicago mayoral election.

Byrne had won the Democratic Party's nomination by narrowly defeating incumbent mayor Michael A. Bilandic in the party's primary election.

Primaries and nominations

[edit]

60.5% of registered voters participated in the primary elections.[3]

Democratic primary

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In what was regarded to be a major upset to the Chicago Democratic political machine, Jane Byrne succeeded in pulling off an insurgent challenge to incumbent mayor Michael Bilandic.[4] Byrne, whom Bilandic had previously fired from the post of the city's Commissioner of Consumer Sales in 1977,[4][5] had launched an underdog challenge to Bilandic, who had received the backing of the Cook County Democratic Party.[4]

Turnout in the primary was among the greatest in Chicago mayoral history.[4] By some reports, turnout was 839,443, which was 58.97% of Chicago's 1,423,476 voters.[4] Turnout exceeded the average mayoral primary election turnout in the years since 1955 by more than 10 percentage points.[4] Byrne was a first-time candidate for elected office.[6] She campaigned as a progressive reformer.[2] Her campaign manager was Don Rose, who had previously served as the Chicago press secretary for Martin Luther King Jr.[2] She attacked alderman such as Edward M. Burke and Ed Vrdolyak as an "evil cabal" who ran the city's government.[2] Her candidacy was seen as a longshot.[2]

Byrne was endorsed by Jesse Jackson.[7] Byrne had lambasted Bilandic's government's slow response to the 1979 Chicago blizzard, criticism which was greatly credited with fueling her upset victory.[8][9] Polls, up to the election day, had shown Bilandic in the lead.[2]

Results

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Chicago Democratic Party Mayoral Primary, 1979[10][11]
Candidate Votes %
Jane Byrne 412,909 51.04%
Michael A. Bilandic (incumbent) 396,194 48.96%
Majority 16,775 2.07%
Total 809,043 100.00%

Byrne won a majority of the vote in 29 of the city's 50 wards, with Bilandic winning a majority in the remaining 21 wards.[11] She swept the city's African-American wards, winning more than 2/3 of votes from them.[4]

Republican primary

[edit]

Wallace D. Johnson, an investment banker who was the chairman of the firm Howe, Barnes & Johnson Inc.,[4][12] won a landslide victory in the Republican primary over his sole opponent. The total number of votes cast in the Republican primary was 21,144, equal to roughly 2.6% the 809,043 votes cast in the Democratic primary. Johnson had, from 1970 through 1976, been a member of the Chicago Transit Authority board, where he was involved in creating the Super Transfer and Culture Bus, and in 1973 helped to lay the groundwork for the creation of the Regional Transportation Authority.[12]

Results

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Chicago Republican Party Mayoral Primary, 1979[13]
Candidate Votes % +/-
Wallace D. Johnson 18,268 86.39% N/A
Raymond G. Wardingley 2,877 13.61% N/A
Majority 15,391 72.79% N/A
Total 21,144 100.00% N/A

Socialist Workers nomination

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The Socialist Workers Party nominated Andrew Pulley. Pulley was a steelworker that had been the party's vice presidential nominee in 1972.[14][15]

General election

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Democrat Byrne had the support of such trade unions as the Chicago Federation of Labor and United Auto Workers.[15] Republican nominee Johnson failed to attract much support. Socialist Workers Party nominee Pulley sought to convince voters that neither Democrats nor Republicans offered an adequate alternative for workers.[15] He argued that, despite having support of trade unions, Byrne was "an anti-labor, anti-strike candidate".[15] During his campaign, he urged trade union members to organize to form a labor party in Chicago, urging them to run independent labor candidates in the following year's congressional elections.[15] Pulley, himself a member of United Steelworkers 1066 at U.S. Steel's Gary Works, argued, "If we don't act to establish a political party, the unions will be destroyed."[15]

Results

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With 82.05% of the vote, Byrne won the largest vote share in the history of Chicago mayoral elections[16] (excluding the, invalid, April 1876 election). Wallace D. Johnson only carried 2 of the city's 3,100 precincts.[17]

Mayor of Chicago 1979[18][19] (general election)
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jane Byrne 700,874 82.05
Republican Wallace D. Johnson 137,663 16.12
Socialist Workers Andrew Pulley 15,625 1.83
Turnout 854,162

Byrne won a majority of the vote in each of the city's 50 wards.[18] In fact, Byrne won all but two of the city's 3,100 precincts.[12]

Results by ward[18]
Ward Jane Byrne
(Democratic Party)
Wallace D. Johnson
(Republican Party)
Andrew Pulley
(Socialist Workers Party)
Total
Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes
1 10,799 86.4% 1,497 12.0% 197 1.6% 12,493
2 11,273 89.3% 863 6.8% 494 3.9% 12,630
3 9,050 91.2% 603 6.1% 271 2.7% 9,924
4 10,419 87.0% 1,048 8.8% 502 4.2% 11,969
5 11,929 79.8% 2,048 13.7% 971 6.5% 14,948
6 14,026 89.5% 1,005 6.4% 639 4.1% 15,670
7 10,972 81.9% 1,956 14.6% 476 3.6% 13,404
8 15,881 89.3% 1,078 6.1% 823 4.6% 17,782
9 13,441 89.2% 1,078 7.2% 548 3.6% 15,067
10 15,176 76.0% 4,411 22.1% 372 1.9% 19,959
11 22,511 89.6% 2,448 9.7% 160 0.6% 25,119
12 16,583 78.8% 4,325 20.5% 140 0.7% 21,048
13 22,797 78.5% 6,113 21.0% 131 0.5% 29,041
14 13,957 83.7% 2,539 15.2% 185 1.1% 16,681
15 14,228 83.5% 2,498 14.7% 323 1.9% 17,049
16 10,132 92.4% 543 5.0% 289 2.6% 10,964
17 11,961 90.7% 827 6.3% 396 3.0% 13,184
18 18,453 83.5% 3,280 14.8% 374 1.7% 22,107
19 18,441 75.3% 5,815 23.7% 231 0.9% 24,487
20 10,729 90.6% 771 6.5% 344 2.9% 11,844
21 18,497 90.3% 1,139 5.6% 856 4.2% 20,492
22 9,459 85.1% 1,519 13.7% 140 1.3% 11,118
23 20,989 80.5% 4,926 18.9% 155 0.6% 26,070
24 8,389 93.1% 420 4.7% 202 2.2% 9,011
25 10,056 89.2% 1,113 9.9% 102 0.9% 11,271
26 11,392 86.4% 1,664 12.6% 131 1.0% 13,187
27 11,786 94.9% 445 3.6% 191 1.5% 12,422
28 8,338 92.8% 423 4.7% 223 2.5% 8,984
29 8,870 91.3% 577 5.9% 265 2.7% 9,712
30 13,357 81.5% 2,890 17.6% 132 0.8% 16,379
31 12,886 90.0% 1,304 9.1% 129 0.9% 14,319
32 11,282 86.4% 1,642 12.6% 134 1.0% 13,058
33 12,608 83.9% 2,266 15.1% 157 1.0% 15,031
34 15,971 91.7% 786 4.5% 668 3.8% 17,425
35 15,090 75.1% 4,820 24.0% 191 1.0% 20,101
36 20,790 77.6% 5,827 21.7% 189 0.7% 26,806
37 11,492 87.3% 1,347 10.2% 322 2.4% 13,161
38 18,188 74.3% 6,150 25.1% 136 0.6% 24,474
39 14,929 77.2% 4,262 22.0% 147 0.8% 19,338
40 13,063 74.7% 4,229 24.2% 191 1.1% 17,483
41 19,852 70.6% 8,119 28.9% 163 0.6% 28,134
42 13,876 77.1% 3,867 21.5% 260 1.4% 18,003
43 12,944 73.3% 4,294 24.3% 429 2.4% 17,667
44 13,622 77.7% 3,446 19.7% 453 2.6% 17,521
45 19,786 72.7% 7,259 26.7% 183 0.7% 27,228
46 13,133 77.7% 3,271 19.4% 493 2.9% 16,897
47 15,669 79.5% 3,863 19.6% 174 0.9% 19,706
48 11,335 74.5% 3,568 23.4% 317 2.1% 15,220
49 13,419 79.0% 3,167 18.6% 409 2.4% 16,995
50 17,048 79.0% 4,314 20.0% 217 1.0% 21,579
Totals 700,874 82.1% 137,663 16.1% 15,625 1.8% 854,162

References

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  1. ^ Denvir, Daniel (May 22, 2015). "Voter Turnout in U.S. Mayoral Elections Is Pathetic, But It Wasn't Always This Way". Bloomberg.com. City Lab (The Atlantic). Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Hautzinger, Daniel (March 12, 2019). "Chicago's First (And Only) Female Mayor". WTTW Chicago. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  3. ^ Franklin, Tim (February 23, 1983). "Voter turnout of 80 percent dwarfs record". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved April 3, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Kneeland, Douglas A. (March 1, 1979). "Jane Byrne's Defeat of Mayor Shatters Image of Democratic Machine in Chicago". The New York Times.
  5. ^ "Kentucky New Era - Google News Archive Search".
  6. ^ Mouat, Lucia (August 23, 1982). "Jane Byrne: off and running for reelection in Chicago". Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  7. ^ Felsenthal, Carol (November 14, 2014). "Remembering Jane Byrne". www.chicagomag.com. Chicago magazine. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  8. ^ "Mayor Jane Byrne (1979-1983)". November 13, 2012.
  9. ^ "Chicago elects Byrne". Bangor Daily News. Bangor, Me. April 4, 1979. p. 1. Retrieved June 17, 2012 – via Google News Archive.
  10. ^ "Our Campaigns - Chicago Mayor - D Primary Race - Feb 27, 1979".
  11. ^ a b c "Election Results". Archived from the original on November 30, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  12. ^ a b c Heise, Kenan (December 3, 1993). "WALLACE JOHNSON, BANKER WHO RAN FOR MAYOR IN '79". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  13. ^ "Our Campaigns - Chicago Mayor-R Primary Race - Feb 27, 1979". www.ourcampaigns.com.
  14. ^ Martin Waldron (January 2, 1972). "The Socialist Campaign: Low Funds, High Hopes". St. Petersburg Times. pp. 9–A.
  15. ^ a b c d e f Jenness, Doug (March 30, 1979). "Chicago socialist candidate: 'Why workers need a labor party now'" (PDF). The Militant. Vol. 43, no. 12. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
  16. ^ Peterson, Bill (April 4, 1979). "Jane Byrne Sweeps to Victory in Chicago's Mayoral Race". Washington Post. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  17. ^ Heise, Kenan (December 3, 1994). "WALLACE JOHNSON, BANKER WHO RAN FOR MAYOR IN '79". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  18. ^ a b c "Election Results for 1979 General Election, Mayor, Chicago, IL".
  19. ^ "Board of Election Commissioners For the City of Chicago Mayoral Election Results Since 1900 General Elections Only". Chicago Board of Election Commissioners. July 18, 2004. Archived from the original on July 18, 2004. Retrieved March 26, 2023.