Former National Security Council adviser Fiona Hill and U.S. diplomat David Holmes are the eighth and ninth witnesses to testify publicly before the House impeachment hearings against the 45th president. Watch live.

Ambassador Gordon Sondland declared to impeachment investigators Wednesday that President Donald Trump and his lawyer Rudy Giuliani explicitly sought a “quid pro quo” with Ukraine, leveraging an Oval Office visit for political investigations of Democrats.

“Empire” actor Jussie Smollett is back in the headlines as the state’s attorney whose office cleared him of charges announces she’s running for re-election. Our politics team digs into that story and more in our weekly roundtable.

By this time next week, Chicago alderman will have voted on the city’s next budget. Mayor Lori Lightfoot is optimistic that her budget will pass, even as progressive groups say she’s breaking campaign promises. 

Ambassador Gordon Sondland, the most anticipated witness in the impeachment inquiry, will confront questions Wednesday about his evolving accounts of the Trump administration’s dealings with Ukraine. Watch live.

For the first time in over a decade, Chicago has a stand-alone Department of Housing dedicated to providing affordable options for city residents. How that department plans to increase affordable housing and fight segregation. 

A career Army officer. A career foreign service official. Both had a consistent message during Day 3 of the House impeachment inquiry, and each was troubled by the phone call between President Donald Trump and the president of Ukraine. 

How transparent is local government? See which agencies made the grade in a new report from nonprofit journalism lab City Bureau. Reporter Sarah Conway tells us more.

Two weeks ago, President Trump was poised to give final approval to a plan that would ban most flavored e-cigarettes, but he has since backed off after hearing a ban could alienate some voters, according to White House and campaign officials.

Two top national security aides who listened to President Donald Trump’s July call with Ukraine’s president are preparing to testify Tuesday at House impeachment hearings as the inquiry reaches deeper into the White House. Watch live.

Senators have been scrambling since Senate President John Cullerton made a surprise announcement that he’ll resign in the new year, leaving vacant one of the most powerful positions in state politics.

Illinois’ Senate president unexpectedly announces his retirement. Mayor Lori Lightfoot comes up empty on a Chicago casino redo. A war of words with Uber. And the Bears prepare for a prime-time matchup with the LA Rams.

Former Ukrainian Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch’s impeachment testimony on Friday spotlighted the role of conservative media in her downfall and the chilling reminder that she remains a social media target.

Twitter says its new ban on political ads will cover appeals for votes, solicitations for campaign contributions and any political content. However, it is allowing ads related to social causes such as climate change, gun control and abortion.

The House will hear from a singular witness Friday in the Trump impeachment hearings: Marie Yovanovitch, the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine who was targeted by the president’s allies in a “smear” campaign now central to the inquiry. Watch live.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot failed to beat the odds in Springfield, with legislators on Thursday adjourning for the year without taking up a fix she says is needed before the city can move forward with a casino.