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Source: The Washington Post / Getty

It looks like Chicago will have its first Black female mayor ever!

In a landslide, former federal prosecutor Lori Lightfoot defeated Toni Preckwinkle in a runoff election on Tuesday. Lightfoot, who is a lesbian, will also be the first openly gay candidate to lead the city. She will succeed Mayor Rahm Emanuel when she is sworn in on May 20.

In addition, Chicago is the second biggest city in the U.S. to elect a Black woman as mayor.

NBC News reported that The Associated Press called the race for Lightfoot shortly before 8 p.m. Central Time. Apparently with over 65 percent of precincts in, Lightfoot led Preckwinkle 74.3 percent to 25.8 percent.

The AP also wrote:

“Lightfoot promised to rid City Hall of corruption and help low-income and working-class people she said had been ‘left behind and ignored’ by Chicago’s political ruling class. It was a message that resonated with voters weary of political scandal and insider deals, and who said the city’s leaders for too long have invested in downtown at the expense of neighborhoods.”

The New York Times noted that she has “vowed to enact significant change to the Chicago Police Department, increasing training and reducing officer misconduct.”

Lightfoot has never been an elected official before, but she was endorsed by the Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Tribune newspapers, as well as U.S. Reps. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia and Robin Kelly, NBC News noted.

Lightfoot will now be the 7th Black female mayor in the U.S., including Keisha Lance Bottoms of Atlanta and LaToya Cantrell of New Orleans.

Congrats Mayor Lightfoot!

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Lori Lightfoot Becomes Chicago’s First Black Female Mayor, Defeating Toni Preckwinkle  was originally published on hellobeautiful.com