Lakefront liberals is a voting bloc in the city of Chicago that was prominent in the 1970s and 1980s.

Description

Lakefront liberals are described as geographically residing along the lakefront of Chicago in neighborhoods such as Lake View and

Lincoln Park Lincoln Park is a park along Lake Michigan on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. Named after US President Abraham Lincoln, it is the city's largest public park and stretches for seven miles (11 km) from Grand Avenue (500 N), on the south, ...

. Some included the South Side lakefront neighborhood

Hyde Park Hyde Park may refer to: Places England * Hyde Park, London, a Royal Park in Central London * Hyde Park, Leeds, an inner-city area of north-west Leeds * Hyde Park, Sheffield, district of Sheffield * Hyde Park, in Hyde, Greater Manchester Austra ...

as another area of Chicago where they occupied. They are predominantly white professionals. Many of the members of the coalition were born during the

baby boom A baby boom is a period marked by a significant increase of birth rate. This demographic phenomenon is usually ascribed within certain geographical bounds of defined national and cultural populations. People born during these periods are often ca ...

. Their beliefs included "good government" and racial equality.

Electoral impact

Lakefront liberals were credited with the two-term election of 44th Ward alderman

Dick Simpson Richard Charles Simpson (born July 28, 1943) is an Americans, American former Major League Baseball right fielder and center fielder. He played from 1962-1969 for the Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles / California Angels, Cincinnati Reds, St. Loui ...

in the 1970s. Another alderman considered a lakefront liberal was

William Singer William Singer is an American lawyer, politician, consultant, and lobbyist who the formerly served as a Chicago alderman, representing the 44th and 43rd wards during his aldermanic career. While on the Chicago City Council, Singer was an indep ...

. Yet another alderman considered one was David Orr, who later became a long-serving Cook County Clerk. Lakefront liberals were credited with contributing to the elections of Harold Washington in

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...

and

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

. During the 1987 Democratic mayoral primary, both Washington and his challenger, former mayor Jane Byrne, actively pursued the lakefront liberal vote.

Modern status

Some analysts believed that lakefront liberals supported Rahm Emanuel in his

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

election. Some writers believed that Lori Lightfoot was the beneficiary of lakefront liberals' support in the

2019 Chicago mayoral election The 2019 Chicago mayoral election was the 2019 edition of the quadrennial elections held to determine the Mayor of the City of Chicago, Illinois. The election was held on February 26, 2019. Since no candidate received a majority of votes, a run ...

. In the initial round the election, Bill Ruthhart of the Chicago Tribune wrote that her, "base proved to be in the liberal lakefront wards on the North Side." In the initial round, Lightfoot saw particularly strong performances in far north lakefront neighborhoods. Lightfoot also carried the endorsement of former lakefront liberals-supported alderman Dick Simpson.

Possible extinction

Lakefront liberals are considered by some political writers to be largely extinct. Edward McClell wrote this in a late-2019 Chicago magazine article. McClell argued that lakefront neighborhoods on the North Side of Chicago have become among of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Chicago, and have also become some of the most conservative-leaning neighborhoods. North side lakefront communities were among the most supportive areas for Mayor Rahm Emanuel (who was regarded as an "establishment" politician) in his elections. McClell wrote that it is theorized that much of the former lakefront liberals voting base left the geographic area that the coalition once occupied, after being priced-out, moving to neighborhoods such as Wicker Park,

Logan Square Logan Square may refer to: * Logan Square, Chicago, a neighborhood on the north side of the city * Logan Circle (Philadelphia) or Logan Square, a park in Philadelphia **Logan Square, Philadelphia Logan Square is a neighborhood in Philadelphia. Bou ...

, and Avondale, making up part of what is now known as the "Milwaukee Avenue Progressives".

References

{{reflist Government of Chicago Politics of Illinois Liberalism in the United States