Chicago mayoral candidates discuss plans for awarding minority contracts in city

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Six of the nine candidates for Chicago mayor took part in a forum Tuesday where they answered questions about their plans for awarding minority contracts in the city and why should they be elected.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Brandon Johnson and Congressman Chuy Garcia did not take part.

The majority of Chicago's population are people of color, yet some mayoral candidates say the city has done a lousy job doing business with minority and women-owned companies.

"If Black folks are 32% of the city's population, then Black folks need 32% of those contracts," State Rep. Kam Buckner said.

"Minority participation and procurement is down in this administration especially for African Americans," Ald. Sophia King said.

How to increase minority contracts was the subject of a mayoral forum. Candidate and business owner Dr. Willie Wilson said there is too much red tape involved in the application process.

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"My company does close to, closed last year at $300 million, but I was not qualified to get a contract with the city of Chicago," Wilson said.

Mayoral candidates agreed the process needs to be streamlined. Paul Vallas says if he is elected, he will mirror the policies he put in place in the 90s as CEO of Chicago Public Schools during a CPS construction boom.

"Fifty-five percent of all the construction contracts went to minority and women-owned businesses that's out of a $3.2 billion school construction," Vallas said.

Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson, who did not attend the mayoral forum, blasted Vallas for his job as schools chief in Chicago and other cities.

"The harm that his polices have had across the city of Chicago, we are living the manifestation of his failures," Johnson said.

Johnson picked up the remainder of a $1 million campaign contribution from the American Federation of Teachers Tuesday.

Congressman Chuy Garcia was also a forum no-show. He held his own event laying out his plans to expand access for women's health care.

And because she was a no-show, Lightfoot wasn't able to defend her job trying to increase minority contracts. Instead, the mayor attended a ribbon cutting for a new school on the Northwest Side.