In the 37th Ward, every candidate's petition is challenged, Ald. Emma Mitts' included. Here's what each filed

All five people running for alderperson in the 37th Ward face objections to their nominating petitions, including Ald. Emma Mitts, Block Club Chicago reported Wednesday. If the Board of Elections upholds an objection, that candidate is off the Feb. 23 ballot.

Why it matters: the 37th Ward, covering parts of Austin and Humboldt Park, has had the same alderperson since 2000. How many names survive the objection process decides how much of a choice its voters get.

This adds a ward to yesterday's list of incumbents facing challenges.

Who's running, and our counts

Our numbers are the filled-in signature lines on the petition copy the Board gave us, not counts of valid signatures; the Board decides validity when someone objects. A candidate needs 473 valid signatures from ward voters. None of these copies is marked incomplete on our 37th Ward page.

| Candidate | Lines we counted | Petition pages | |---|---|---| | Emma Mitts (incumbent) | 2,460 | 203 | | Carmelita Earls | 1,700 | 195 | | Howard Ray | 974 | 108 | | Kobey Lofton | 689 | 80 | | Michael Murphy | 586 | 79 |

The thinnest cushion is Murphy's, about 1.2 times the minimum by our count. That doesn't predict a ruling: the Board strikes lines for reasons a line count can't see, such as a signer registered outside the ward or a signature that appears on two candidates' petitions.

Who objected

Earls is challenging the petitions of Ray, Murphy and Lofton, Block Club reported, citing Board records. The objections to Mitts and Earls were filed by residents, whom we don't name.

The candidates

• Mitts was appointed in January 2000, after her predecessor went to prison in the Operation Silver Shovel bribery case, and has won every election since 2003. In 2023 she got 61% against three challengers, Block Club reported.
• Earls sits on the 15th District Police Council, an elected civilian oversight body, and spent more than 30 years with the Fire Department, rising to deputy chief. She ran for the 28th Ward seat in 2011 and was disqualified by the Illinois Appellate Court days before that election, Block Club reported.
• Ray, a police officer of more than 28 years, was runner-up in 2023 with 26%.
• Lofton is a North Lawndale native who has worked in youth advocacy and violence prevention for more than 10 years.
• Murphy, an IT systems engineer, ran this month for Cook County Board president as a Libertarian.

What our records add

Mitts' record. Our page shows 93.2% attendance, and Mitts was with the majority on every divided Council vote. She is one of the 28 signers of Tuesday's letter rejecting the Mayor's budget (our story), and she co-sponsored last winter's citywide hemp ban (our story).

Money. On Sept. 30, Mitts' campaign reported $58,459 cash on hand after raising $52,760 in the third quarter. Earls' reported $638. The other three had no third-quarter state report on file, according to our ward page.

What's next

Hearing officers will take up each objection, and the Board must certify the ballot by Dec. 17. The ward page will show rulings as they're posted. We couldn't reach the Board's website, where its objection list is posted, at 9:36 a.m. Wednesday.