Politics
George Cardenas Enters Expanding Chicago Mayoral Race
Former Ald. George Cardenas kicked off his mayoral campaign in a June 16, 2026 speech. (WTTW News)
Longtime 12th Ward Ald. George Cardenas is the latest challenger seeking to unseat Brandon Johnson in next year’s mayoral election.
The former alderperson and current Cook County Board of Review commissioner kicked off his campaign during a launch event on Chicago’s Southwest Side Tuesday at which he pledged to tackle the city’s fiscal and public safety issues.
“Chicago does not need magical thinking,” he told supporters at New Star Lighting, “it needs serious management.”
Cardenas becomes the second candidate to launch their campaign this month, joining state Comptroller Susana Mendoza who announced her own plans to run June 3. Also running are U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley and businessmen Joe Holberg and Liam Stanton, while others including Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas and Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias are expected to enter the race.
Cardenas represented McKinley Park and parts of Little Village and Brighton Park during his tenure as 12th Ward alderperson, which lasted from 2003 until his resignation in November 2022 following his election to the Cook County Board of Review, a position he still holds.
During his time on the City Council, Cardenas chaired its Committee on Environmental Protection and Energy and served as an ally to former Mayors Richard M. Daley, Rahm Emanuel and Lori Lightfoot.
He acted as Lightfoot’s deputy floor leader at the time of his resignation.
Cardenas centered his remarks Tuesday on fiscal discipline, Tax Incremental Financing reform and public safety improvements, which he said would be priority No. 1 if he is elected.
“Safety is not just a slogan,” he said. “It will be my governing duty.”
While he said he would support both Chicago police officers and police accountability, Cardenas said Chicago cannot police its way out of what he called a youth hopelessness crisis built on "disconnection, stress, unstable households” and a lack of “trusted” adults in teens’ lives.
To combat this, he plans to better support and back parents through a program to assist families with jobs, healthcare and housing.
Cardenas did not specifically call out Johnson during his remarks Tuesday, but he did point to “management” and “governance” problems and said city leaders must make changes as Chicago is owed billions in uncollected debt while asking “more and more” from its taxpayers.
“When city government is disorganized, families pay the price,” he said, “and when fiscal controls are weak, neighborhoods will suffer.”
Chicago’s mayoral election is scheduled for Feb. 23, 2027.
