ONE People’s Campaign Spurs Voter Turnout in Lakefront Northside Wards
GRASSROOTS ELECTORAL ORGANIZATION HELPS PROPEL BRANDON JOHNSON TO VICTORY AND PUT NEW PROGRESSIVE ALDERS ANGELA CLAY AND LENI MANAA-HOPPENWORTH IN OFFICE
CHICAGO, April 5, 2023 – ONE People’s Campaign (OPC) proudly announces that after leading a mass get-out-the-vote effort for the last month in the 46th and 48th wards, their efforts have helped propel all three of their endorsed candidates in the runoff, Brandon Johnson, Angela Clay, and Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth, to victory. OPC backed these candidates because of their commitment to progressive policies like Bring Chicago Home, police accountability, Treatment Not Trauma, and fully funded public schools. Their victory shows that voters are ready for leaders who will put the needs of people before big corporate interests.
ONE People’s Campaign led a coordinated effort to turnout voters in the lakefront wards that cover Edgewater, Andersonville, and Uptown. In the 48th ward, working with 48th Ward Neighbors for Justice and United Working Families, OPC mobilized hundreds of volunteers, who logged over 600 hours of outreach in doorknocking, phone calls, and texts to voters over the last month. In the 46th ward, ONE People’s Campaign alone mobilized over 400 hours of volunteer time. OPC also led a coordinated effort with Asian American Midwest Progressives and JCUA Votes in the 46th ward. On the night before the election alone, a joint phonebank with these organizations made 4000 calls to voters.
These efforts clearly moved the needle. Voter turnout remained very strong compared to the February election, and Johnson garnered more than 60% of the vote in both wards. Despite huge influxes of money in both the 46th and 48th ward by the Get Stuff Done PAC and the Realtors PAC, the progressive candidates won. Angela Clay, who saw special interest groups spend $250,000 to defeat her, sailed to victory over corporate lobbyist Kim Walz in the 46th Ward. Similarly, the race in the 48th Ward saw Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth defeat real estate developer Joe Dunne by 602 votes.
“OPC was an instrumental partner in this victory!” according to Angela Clay. “From organizing neighbors across different wards to phonebank and doorknock, even lending staff as extra help. OPC endorsed our campaign early on and assembled a real grassroots base of neighbors that really carried us all the way to the finish line.” Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth agrees: “We are grateful for the support that we received during our runoff election from ONE People’s Campaign. We showed that the 48th Ward is ready for true, effective progressive leadership.”
OPC has a track-record of propelling progressive candidates into office. This year, OPC supported winning candidates in 16 races, including all 10 of the candidates they backed for Police District Council. In 2019, they were instrumental in electing a trio of progressive Alders on the north side, Andre Vasquez (40th Ward), Matt Martin (47th Ward) and Maria Hadden (49th Ward). They were also key early supporters of State Senator Mike Simmons (7th District), and State Representative Hoan Huynh (13th District), forming a powerful base of support for OPC’s key issues among Northside elected officials. “ONE People’s Campaign has established itself as a force for good, for progressive movement that is grounded in the experiences and leadership of those who have been most affected by regressive status quo policies,” says Alderman Vasquez. “OPC puts in the work and fights for the community power needed here on the Northside to move our city forward.”
ONE People’s Campaign (OPC) is a progressive 501(c)4 grassroots organization committed to winning racial, gender, and economic justice by dismantling systems of oppression. As people directly affected by the issues, they accomplish this through year-round community engagement, advancing progressive policies, and building governing power across Illinois.