With Evanston at an intersection of housing, equity and sustainability, the upcoming mayoral race promises to shape the city’s future for years to come. This year’s election isn’t just about electing a leader—it’s about defining the values and priorities of a city known for its progressive stance on social issues. As the town navigates these points, the mayor will play a key role in guiding policy and shaping the community’s direction.
While the race has attracted a diverse group of candidates, two have emerged as frontrunners, capturing the majority of public attention and support: incumbent Daniel Biss and challenger Jeff Boarini. Biss is a well-experienced politician with extensive experience from multiple campaigns at both local and statewide levels. After successfully running twice for state representative—winning once in Illinois’ 17th district—he became the state senator for the 9th district, representing much of Illinois throughout his tenure. Occasionally spotted at local events, Mayor Biss is a seasoned politician with strong ties to the community. However, running opposition campaigns is hard at any level, and while Biss has a well-established political base, Boarini is attempting to build name recognition, with many voters unfamiliar with him and his platform, “I have seen some signs for someone, but I couldn’t tell you their name. I don’t even really know who they are.” said an anonymous Evanstonian voter when asked about candidates other than Mr. Biss.
However, in an attempt to support candidates with lower name recognition and smaller campaigns, the Evanston City Council recently approved a measure for matching the funds raised by mayoral candidates. Allocating either one-sixtieth of the annual budget. The fund will then match up to nine times the initial contribution up to around $60,000 per candidate. For candidates with little exposure to the limelight of local politics, this can prove invaluable. “Through its small donor fund, the City will match up to $60,000 … I was told that creating enough awareness to win will easily cost $120,000,” said candidate Jeff Boarini. “My opponent has a $200,000 head start so I decided that I needed to try for larger donations and, so far, that has worked out.”
While the financial well-being of a campaign is crucial to mount any good run at an office, it is rarely the sole determinant of election success. Much more important, however, is the way in which the candidates utilize these resources to push their policy goals. The incumbent Mayor Daniel Biss and his campaign have emphasized the new Envision Evanston 2045 Project, a policy plan of the mayor and his city council. His campaign has also underscored additional projects like the new Northwestern stadium project, of which he was the tie-breaking vote and the new climate initiatives for future government and private buildings. However, in a city known for liberal and progressive politics, differentiation on a policy front from any incumbent presents a challenge. Boarini has advocated for some of the same policies that have been pushed by Biss while emphasizing transparency and his pragmatic approach toward policy. He has criticized the current administration for what he sees to be a lack of transparency in the decision-making process and has proposed more community involvement in policy development and city zoning guidelines.
As the race draws to a close, all of Evanston will have a chance to hear from both candidates, Biss and Boarini, at the Evanston Candidate Forums on March 8th. With the consolidated municipal elections fast approaching on April 1st, residents will have a crucial chance to engage, ask questions and make their own decisions about the future of Evanston.
