Chicago developers remain pessimistic about post-Trump affordable housing policies
By Yilun Cheng Medill Reports President-elect Joe Biden has outlined his plans to advance affordable housing nationwide, but with little progress in the past two decades and rising construction costs, Chicago developers remain pessimistic about his proposed affordable housing initiatives. Biden has made an ambitious proposal to invest $640 billion into affordable and quality housing […]
No clear home for Yang Gang
Seb Peltekian Medill Reports CHARLESTON, S.C. — Venture capitalist Andrew Yang announced the end of his run for the Democratic presidential nomination after mustering minimal support in the first two contests of the year, Iowa and New Hampshire. So where will his supporters, affectionately known as the Yang Gang, turn? “My heart’s broken but I’m […]
Out, but not in: Examining barriers to reentry
By Kaisha Young Medill Reports Approximately 11,000 people are released from Illinois prisons each year. In this edition of Medill Newsmakers, we take a look at the challenges returning citizens face when trying to reenter society. Photo at top: A man walks on the sidewalk outside Cook County Jail. (Kaisha Young/MEDILL)
Who’s running for Chicago Mayor – and why?
By: Noah Broder Medill Reports As the February 26 election moves closer and early voting begins, 14 mayoral candidates are working to win the critical 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate receives over half of the vote, there will be a runoff election on April 2 between the top two candidates who receive […]
Candidates canvass for votes for open seat in Illinois 4th District House race
By Xinyi (Ethel) Jiang Medill Reports On a chilly Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, Delia Ramirez trudges through the snow, knocking on doors. She is introducing herself to voters in the Illinois 4th state house district in Chicago. The Illinois 4th is a heavily Latino district, stretching from West Town through Humboldt Park in Chicago. […]
Stop blaming the polls
By Mariah Quintanilla Stop blaming the pre-election polls. They told you all they could about Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. The pre-election polls based on national surveys accurately predicted what they were designed to predict: Clinton’s popular election win. So why did so few consider the fact that the electoral college had a real chance of […]
Cold turkey is bad enough. This year Thanksgiving presents the real scare of political cold war
By June Leffler Bringing up the election is ground zero for a cold war during Thanksgiving dinner. Everyone has a strong, contentious opinion, but it’s better to lay low to avoid total annihilation. Who hasn’t weighed in on how to deal with potential political discussions this Thanksgiving? Therapists, advice columnists, talk show hosts and their […]
Hurting from neglect: Election Day mattered in historic Indiana worker community
By Cloee Cooper Out of nine congressional districts in Indiana, two re-elected Democratic congressmen on Nov. 8. One of those was in the 1st Congressional District, where East Chicago’s historic community Marktown is located. Democratic Rep. Pete Visclosky who has been in office since 1985, was re-elected. Although Marktown voted Democratic, as it usually does, […]
A Trump presidency is sobering for ex-offenders
By June Leffler A week before the presidential election, Lacey Stolzke was released from jail after serving 225 days. “I was never into politics, because I was so caught up in my drug use.” At 27 years old, she’s in treatment and living at Grace House, a halfway house for female ex-offenders who are recovering […]
Hillary Clinton wins the unofficial election among people who can’t legally vote
By Pat Nabong On the days leading up to the election, ex-offenders, permanent residents, tourists, disenfranchised voters, Mexicans and immigrants who couldn’t legally vote were able to cast their ballots in unofficial voting stations. And on the night that Donald Trump became president-elect, Hillary Clinton won the unofficial election. Official Unofficial Voting Station: Voting for […]
