The Democratic Socialist Caucus of the
Chicago City Council
The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 alderpersons elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms. The council is gaveled into session regularly, usually mont ...
is a bloc of
aldermen
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members them ...
in the Chicago City Council. The block was unofficially organized as the Socialist Caucus in 2019, and later organized as a formal caucus with its current name in 2021.
It currently has five members, out of the 50 aldermen that comprise the Council. Members of the caucus identify as
democratic socialists
Democratic socialism is a left-wing political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-management within ...
.
History
The caucus was initially organized as the Socialist Caucus following the
2019 Chicago aldermanic election
The 2019 Chicago aldermanic election took place in two rounds on February 26 and April 2, 2019, to elect 50 aldermen to the Chicago City Council. Each alderman represents one of Chicago's 50 wards. The elections are non-partisan and use a two-ro ...
by six aldermen, all of whom were members of the Chicago chapter of
Democratic Socialists of America
The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is a Left-wing politics, left-wing Democratic Socialists of America#Tendencies within the DSA, multi-tendency Socialism, socialist and Labour movement, labor-oriented political organization. Its roots ...
. All six members also joined the larger
Progressive Reform Caucus.
The two caucuses pursue similar policy goals, but the Socialist Caucus' stated goal is to push a wider and more aggressive range of
left-wing
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
policies. When asked about the distinction between the two caucuses in a July 2019 interview,
Carlos Ramirez-Rosa
Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (born February 18, 1989) is an American politician. He has served as the alderman for Chicago's 35th Ward since May 18, 2015.
He is a member of the Chicago City Council's Progressive Reform Caucus, and was elected to serve a ...
provided the example of a
municipal takeover of the
electric utility company ComEd
Commonwealth Edison, commonly known by syllabic abbreviation as ComEd, is the largest electric utility in Illinois, and the in Chicago and much of Northern Illinois. Its service territory stretches roughly from Iroquois County on the south to ...
as one distinctive policy that the Socialist Caucus would pursue.
During the
COVID-19 pandemic in Illinois
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic began in the U.S. state of Illinois on January 24, 2020, when a woman in Chicago, who had just returned from the pandemic's place of origin in Wuhan, Hubei, China, tested positive for the virus. This was the second ...
, members of the caucus called for a wide-ranging recovery package including an paid emergency leave, emergency housing, an end to ICE check-ins, and weekly payments to workers and families. During the
George Floyd protests
The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and civil unrest against police brutality and racism that began in Minneapolis on May 26, 2020, and largely took place during 2020. The civil unrest and protests began as part of internati ...
, the caucus called for cutting funding to the
Chicago Police Department
The Chicago Police Department (CPD) is the municipal law enforcement agency of the U.S. city of Chicago, Illinois, under the jurisdiction of the City Council. It is the second-largest municipal police department in the United States, behind t ...
and increasing funding for programs such as substance-abuse treatment, mental health care and after-school programs.
On May 1, 2021, five members of the group formally organized as the Democratic Socialist Caucus, with Ramirez-Rosa serving as the chair.
Membership
The following table lists current aldermen who are affiliated with the caucus since its formal organization in 2021.
Andre Vasquez
Andre Vasquez (born May 21, 1979) is a Chicago politician, community organizer, and former rapper. He is the alderman of the city's 40th ward. He won election to that office after defeating incumbent Patrick O'Connor in the 2019 Chicago alderman ...
was also a member of the caucus when it was unofficially organized in 2019, but was not part of the founding membership in 2021.
See also
*
Notes
References
{{Reflist, 2
Democratic socialist organizations in the United States
Issue-based groups of legislators
Caucuses of the Chicago City Council