# Who's running for 1st Ward alderperson in 2027? Daniel La Spata faces two challengers

*Ald. Daniel La Spata, Laura Yepez and Bill Thanoukos have filed for 1st Ward alderman in the Feb. 23 election. Filing closes Oct. 26 at 5 p.m.*

By Chicago Politics · Updated Oct 22, 2026

Three candidates have filed to run for 1st Ward alderperson in Chicago's Feb. 23, 2027 election: the incumbent, Ald. Daniel La Spata, and two challengers, Laura Yepez and Bill Thanoukos. All three turned in nominating papers to the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners on Oct. 19, the first day of filing, according to the [Board's receipts](https://chicagoelections.gov/getting-ballot/candidates) that we list on our [1st Ward race page](/elections/2027/ward/1).

Filing stays open until 5 p.m. Monday, Oct. 26, so the field can still grow. The Board hasn't posted its own list of candidates yet.

The 1st Ward takes in about three-quarters of East Village and two-thirds of Wicker Park, and parts of Logan Square, Ukrainian Village and West Town, by the City's neighborhood boundaries. About 66,000 people live there; 60% of homes are rented, and the median household income is $130,892, according to Census figures on the [race page](/elections/2027/ward/1).

## Who is running?

Candidates for alderperson need at least 473 valid signatures from voters in their ward, according to the [Board's 2027 calendar](https://cboeprod.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/prod/2026-06/2027%20Election%20Calendar-ADOPTED.pdf). The counts below are ours: the filled-in signature lines on every sheet of the petition copy the Board gave us, with crossed-out lines left out. They aren't the Board's count of valid signatures, which it makes only if someone objects.

### Daniel La Spata (incumbent)

![Ald. Daniel La Spata (1st Ward)](/img/members/41A0E156-F788-EC11-8D20-001DD804FD38-1559a0aa.jpg "Ald. Daniel La Spata (1st Ward), his official City Council photo. City of Chicago.")

La Spata has held the seat since May 2019. He unseated Ald. Proco Joe Moreno that February with about 61% of the vote, [Patch reported](https://patch.com/illinois/bucktown-wickerpark/1st-ward-aldermanic-election-results), and won a second term in 2023 with 50.1%, 14 votes more than he needed to avoid a runoff, [according to Fox 32](https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/write-in-ballots-force-taliaferro-into-29th-ward-runoff-la-spata-ekes-out-reelection-in-1st).

- **Petition:** 159 pages; 1,373 signature lines by our count (11 crossed out).
- **Campaign committee:** [Neighbors for Daniel La Spata](https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/CommitteeDetail.aspx?ID=34616), with $136,709 on hand on Sept. 30.
- **On the Council:** He chairs the Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety. Read [his record this term](/on-my-block/profile-daniel-la-spata-1st-ward-record) and [his full page](/ward/1).
- [Candidate page](/candidate/daniel-la-spata)

### Laura Yepez

- **Petition:** 238 pages; 2,303 signature lines by our count (26 crossed out).
- **Campaign committee:** [Friends of Laura Yepez](https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/CommitteeDetail.aspx?ID=39590), registered with the Illinois State Board of Elections on Oct. 15, 2023.
- **Background:** The Cook County Democratic Party lists her under the 1st Ward on [its page of ward committeepersons](https://www.cookcountydems.com/ward_commttee_people/1st-ward/). Her biography there describes her as "an MBE/WBE small business owner in the 1st Ward," and says she serves on the board of the Wicker Park Bucktown Chamber of Commerce, leads the Chicago Bed and Breakfast Association and works full time in operations at a digital media company. It says she is "proud to represent women in business and be the first woman, Latina and mom to represent the 1st Ward."
- We didn't find a campaign website for her.
- [Candidate page](/candidate/laura-yepez)

### Bill Thanoukos

- **Petition:** 138 pages; at least 2,453 signature lines by our count (16 crossed out). Our copy has three fewer readable sheets than the Board's receipt lists, so the count is incomplete.
- **Campaign committee:** [Neighbors for Bill](https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/CommitteeDetail.aspx?ID=41043), registered Jan. 16, 2026.
- **Background:** [His campaign website](https://www.billfor1st.com/about) says he is a lawyer with a law degree from Loyola University Chicago, owns Greek Kitchen and helps run his family's restaurant, Hub's. It says he was chief of staff to former City Treasurer Stephanie Neely and was appointed to the Chicago Housing Authority board. It lists affordability, small businesses and housing as his priorities.
- [Candidate page](/candidate/bill-thanoukos)

One more person, Logan Laurie, has a campaign committee registered with the State Board of Elections that names this race, [Neighbors for Logan Laurie](https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/CommitteeDetail.aspx?ID=41336). A committee isn't a ballot filing, and we haven't received nominating papers from Laurie.

## What does a 1st Ward alderperson do?

The 50 alderpersons are the City Council. They vote on the City's budget, taxes and borrowing and on citywide ordinances, and they sit on the committees that review them first. The 2026 revenue ordinance, which set many of the City's fees and taxes, [passed 29-19](/matter/SO2025-0021719-titles-1-3-4-7-8) on Dec. 19, 2025.

An alderperson also files the ward's own business: liquor-license limits on a stretch of a street, parking signs, alley access and sign permits. Of the legislation La Spata filed this term, the most common subjects are Municipal Code amendments, alley access and signs, [according to our records](/ward/1). The ward office, at 1958 N. Milwaukee Ave., handles residents' service requests.

## What are the key dates?

All from the [Board's calendar](https://cboeprod.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/prod/2026-06/2027%20Election%20Calendar-ADOPTED.pdf):

- **Oct. 26, 5 p.m.:** filing closes.
- **Oct. 27 to Nov. 2:** voters can object to a candidate's nominating papers. We track objections on our [objections page](/elections/2027/objections).
- **Dec. 17:** the last day to withdraw; the Board certifies who is on the ballot.
- **Jan. 26, 2027:** the last day of regular voter registration. Grace-period registration continues in person through Election Day.
- **Feb. 23, 2027:** Election Day, 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- **April 6, 2027:** a runoff between the top two, if no one wins more than half the vote.
- **May 17, 2027:** the new term begins.

## How to follow the race

Our [1st Ward race page](/elections/2027/ward/1) lists every filing as we receive it, the campaign committees and the incumbent's record next to the Council median. Each candidate has a page: [La Spata](/candidate/daniel-la-spata), [Yepez](/candidate/laura-yepez) and [Thanoukos](/candidate/bill-thanoukos). Not sure of your ward? Start with your address in the [voter guide](/elections/2027/voter-guide), or see [who's running in every ward](/elections/2027/alderman-candidates).

We list a candidate once they file with the Board, and we don't endorse. Our [criteria page](/elections/2027/criteria) explains how we cover the election. The next date to watch is Monday, Oct. 26, when filing closes at 5 p.m.


## Sources

1. chicagoelections.gov: [Board's receipts](https://chicagoelections.gov/getting-ballot/candidates)
2. patch.com: [Patch reported](https://patch.com/illinois/bucktown-wickerpark/1st-ward-aldermanic-election-results)
3. fox32chicago.com: [according to Fox 32](https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/write-in-ballots-force-taliaferro-into-29th-ward-runoff-la-spata-ekes-out-reelection-in-1st)
4. elections.il.gov: [Neighbors for Daniel La Spata](https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/CommitteeDetail.aspx?ID=34616)
5. elections.il.gov: [Friends of Laura Yepez](https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/CommitteeDetail.aspx?ID=39590)
6. cookcountydems.com: [its page of ward committeepersons](https://www.cookcountydems.com/ward_commttee_people/1st-ward/)
7. elections.il.gov: [Neighbors for Bill](https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/CommitteeDetail.aspx?ID=41043)
8. billfor1st.com: [His campaign website](https://www.billfor1st.com/about)
9. elections.il.gov: [Neighbors for Logan Laurie](https://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/CommitteeDetail.aspx?ID=41336)
10. City of Chicago: [Neighborhood and community area boundaries (Chicago Data Portal)](https://data.cityofchicago.org/d/y6yq-dbs2)

On the map: [East Village](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/on-my-block/neighborhoods/east-village), [Wicker Park](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/on-my-block/neighborhoods/wicker-park), [Logan Square](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/on-my-block/neighborhoods/logan-square), [Ukrainian Village](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/on-my-block/neighborhoods/ukrainian-village), [West Town](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/on-my-block/neighborhoods/west-town), [1st Ward](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/ward/1)

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Source: https://www.chicagopolitics.org/on-my-block/who-is-running-1st-ward-alderperson-2027 · Chicago Politics, an independent tracker of the Chicago City Council. Guide for agents: https://www.chicagopolitics.org/llms.txt