This West Side district stretches from the West Loop to East Garfield Park and North Lawndale. It has the most public schools of any district with 63, but many of them are seriously underenrolled.
Mayor Brandon Johnson appointed Michilla Blaise, chief of staff for Cook County Commissioner Frank Aguilar, to the seat. Endorsed by the Chicago Teachers Union, Blaise has been a vocal advocate for pressing Springfield for more cash and has voted consistently for the union’s positions. She introduced the amendment at the board in July that led to the $150 million hole-to-be-filled-later by the state.
Opposing her is Anthony Hargrove, 43, program leader at Garfield Park nonprofit Breakthrough Urban Ministries. He’s endorsed by the Chicago Federation of Labor and Common Ground Collective, an organization opposing CTU and Johnson and financed in large part by the chief executive officer of GCM Grosvenor, Michael Sacks.
Hargrove didn’t respond to our questionnaire, which was disappointing, but he has listed improving students’ math and reading skills as his top priority in other forums. He opposes Chicago Public Schools’ practice of raising property taxes each year by the maximum allowed whereas Blaise supports that practice.
We’re glad Blaise has an opponent with deep roots in the area, and we endorse Anthony Hargrove.
Read all of the Tribune Editorial Board’s endorsements for the 2026 Illinois general election here.
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