Education

51 Candidates Set to Run for Chicago’s First Fully Elected School Board

More than 50 candidates have thrown their respective names into the ring as Chicagoans this fall are set to fully elect the city’s Board of Education for the first time ever, bringing an end to decades of mayoral control.

There are 51 total candidates who are currently set to appear on the November ballot for the at-large board president position and 20 board seats that are up for grabs, according to Chicago elections officials, after Tuesday marked the end of the candidate filing period.

Chicago’s current Board of Education is split into 10 districts, each of which is represented by one elected and one mayoral-appointed member.

But this year, residents in each of those areas will vote to elect their school board representative. The 21st seat — the citywide board president position — isn’t tied to any specific district and will be voted on by the city as a whole.

Most current board members are seeking election this fall, with the lone exception of current President Sean Harden, an appointee of Mayor Brandon Johnson.

Five candidates are running for that citywide position: current board members Jessica Biggs and Jennifer Custer; former board vice president Sendhil Revuluri; Chicago Teachers Union political director Hilario Domínguez; and Victor P. Henderson, a trial attorney who also serves on the board of directors for the Urban Prep Academies charter schools.

While there are currently 51 candidates, it’s possible that number will be trimmed down before voting begins.

Candidates running for the 20 district seats needed to collect between 500 and 1,500 signatures in order to appear on the November ballot, while board president candidates must collect at least 2,500 signatures.

But candidates can still file objections — challenging the validity of their opponents’ signatures — before June 2. If the Board of Elections determines a candidate didn’t meet the signature threshold, that person can be removed from the ballot.

The election will be held Nov. 3, and winning candidates will begin their terms in January 2027.

See who is running in each race below.

Board President
Victor P. Henderson
Sendhil Revuluri
Jessica Biggs (current member)
Jennifer Custer (current member)
Hilario Dominguez

District 1A
Margie B. Luczak
Ed Bannon (current member)

District 1B
Claudia Peralta
Michelle N. Pierre

District 2A
Ebony DeBerry (current member)
Bruce Leon
Hector Morales

District 2B
Deborah “Debby” Pope (current member)
Kyna Lenhof
Daniel Basco

District 3A
Norma Rios Sierra (current member)
Peter Gonzales

District 3B
Carlos A. Rivas Jr. (current member)
Jason Dónes

District 4A
Karen Zaccor (current member)
Ellen Sherratt
Angel Alvarez

District 4B
Ellen Rosenfeld (current member)

District 5A
Aaron “Jitu” Brown (current member)
LaPamela Williams

District 5B
Michilla “Kyla” Blaise (current member)
Anthony Hargrove

District 6A
Anusha Thotakura (current member)
Brenda Lee Anderson
Isaiah White

District 6B
Michael L. Neal
Brittany B. Kimble

District 7A
Emma Lozano (current member)
Jesus Ayala Jr.

District 7B
Yesenia Lopez (current member)
Erika E. Diaz-Chavez

District 8A
Angel Gutierrez (current member)

District 8B
Juan Ignacio Gonzalez
Cydney Wallace (current member)

District 9A
Angel Luis Velez Rodriguez (current member)
Brittany R. Bailey Preston

District 9B
Therese Boyle (current member)
Katherine S. Dunneback

District 10A
Che “Rhymefest” Smith (current member)
Tameka Walton
Krista Nichols Alston

District 10B
Connie Anderson
Patrick C. Watson
Rosita Chatonda

Additional candidates in unspecified districts:
Marlo Barnett
Kernetha Jones

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