Chicago mayoral candidates, including Johnson and Giannoulias, face petition challenges

Elections Chicago mayoral candidates, including Johnson and Giannoulias, face petition challenges A total of 12 Chicago mayoral candidates will face petition challenges ahead of the February election, including Mayor Brandon Johnson By NBC Chicago Staff • Published November 8, 2026 • Updated on November 8, 2026 at 10:11 am Petition challenges are a staple of Chicago politics, but this year could be especially chaotic as 12 mayoral contenders are facing those challenges. For the first time, that list includes Chicago’s incumbent mayor, as Brandon Johnson’s petitions will face the scrutiny of Election Board hearings in coming weeks. Stream NBC 5 for free, 24/7, wherever you are. WATCH HERE The Chicago Board of Elections will meet Monday to assign hearing officers to each of the dozens of petition challenges that were filed in the lead-up to a deadline that passed last week, and Johnson’s petitions were challenged by two parties, including representatives of Willie Wilson’s mayoral campaign. At issue, according to reporting by NBC Chicago’s Mary Ann Ahern, are a number of potential invalid signatures, which were either included from the campaign of Melissa Conyears-Ervin or were submitted on photocopied petitions, which violates rules around elections. On Monday, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s petitions were officially challenged – meaning he will have to undergo a Board of Elections hearing to see if he will remain on the ballot. As Mary Ann Ahern reports, he would be the first incumbent mayor to face a ballot challenge.​‌ In total, mayoral candidates need 12,500 valid signatures in order for their names to appear on the ballot in Chicago, and while Johnson is facing multiple challenges, his campaign has expressed confidence he will remain on the ballot. Johnson is also far from alone in terms of those who were challenged. Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias is facing a challenge of a different sort before the Election Board, as fellow mayoral candidate Bill Quinlan has argued that he is violating Illinois law by having run for reelection as Secretary of State and for mayor of Chicago at the same time. Elections Illinois Election 2026 Nov 4 A breakdown of what happened in the 2026 Midterm elections Illinois Election 2026 Nov 4 How did Illinois vote in governor's race compared to 2022? Map shows which counties flipped Quinlan also challenged the ballot standing of Rep. Mike Quigley, who successfully ran for reelection to Congress, and Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas, who also successfully ran for reelection. Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza’s petitions were also challenged, meaning multiple frontrunners in the race will have to fight to stay on the February ballot. Chicago mayoral candidate John Kelly is facing questions about his residency after documents reviewed by NBC Chicago political reporter Mary Ann Ahern raised concerns about the city where he officially lives. Amid all of his challenges, Quinlan’s mayoral petitions were also challenged, as were those of Danielle Carter-Walters, Jesse Maronto and John Kitover. Finally John Kelly will face a residency challenge to his candidacy, with Ahern reporting there have been questions over where the mayoral candidate claims his primary residence within the state of Illinois. Hearing officers will be assigned to all of the ballot challenges during Monday’s board hearing, with those hearings occurring in the coming weeks. The election itself will take place on the final Tuesday of February, and if no candidate receives a majority of the vote, then a run-off election would take place in April. This article tagged under: Elections