Geracaris wins 9th Ward election, ‘ready to do the work’ on affordable housing

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Illustration by Lily Ogburn

The Chicago mayoral runoff between Paul Vallas and Brandon Johnson occurred Tuesday following the nine-person general election Feb. 28.

Casey He, Assistant City Editor

Ald. Juan Geracaris (9th) will continue to serve as the 9th Ward’s councilmember on City Council after winning 67.41% of the vote, according to the Cook County Clerk’s Office.

Geracaris ran against Kathy Hayes, a former Cook County administrator, who received 32.59% of the vote.

“I think (the result) really shows that I have the support of the ward,” Geracaris told The Daily Tuesday night. “This confirms that people think I’m doing a great job, so I’m pleased with the results.”

Geracaris graduated from Northwestern’s McCormick School of Engineering in 1997 and now works as a senior network systems engineer at the Kellogg School of Management. He also serves as vice president of Evanston Latinos and co-founded Evanston Skates to advocate for a permanent skate park in the city.

After former Ald. Cicely Fleming (9th) stepped down, Mayor Daniel Biss appointed Geracaris to the 9th Ward councilmember seat in February 2022.

In an interview with The Daily in February, Geracaris said his top priority is to increase affordable housing availability in Evanston. 

“Affordable housing is a problem that we need all hands on deck,” he said Tuesday. “I’m ready to do the work.”

Geracaris said his other priorities include advocating for cyclist and pedestrian safety and furthering the city’s Climate Action and Resilience Plan by helping residents modernize homes with energy-efficient technology. 

Hayes previously worked as a sexual assault and domestic violence witness court advocate and later as an African American community liaison for the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.

In an interview with The Daily, Hayes said her top priority is to keep families in Evanston. She added that she wants to strengthen reentry programs for people exiting the prison system, as it can be difficult for them to secure employment and housing.

Hayes said she also wants to improve the city’s reparations initiative. 

She did not respond to the Daily’s request for comment Tuesday night.

By winning Tuesday’s election, Geracaris will remain in his seat until 2025. 

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @caseeey_he

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