Former Illinois state Sen. Daniel Biss, a Democrat, won the Evanston mayoral race on Feb. 23, media outlets reported.
An hour after polls closed, Biss had collected more than 73 percent of the votes counted and declared victory on a video teleconference with supporters and the press, patch.com noted. Unofficial results from the Cook County clerk's office showed that Boss garnered 73.62% of the votes, while public relations/marketing strategist Mary Loraine "Lori" Keenan received 17.48% and local native/Purdue University student Sebastian Nalls got 8.9%.
Biss campaigned on his ability to lead the city through the pandemic in a more equitable direction and a plan to enact "transformational" policy changes at the municipal level, including public safety reform, a push for affordable housing and improved sustainability policies.
In an open letter to constituents, Biss said, in part, "Our first task must be the recovery from this pandemic which has taken the lives of over 100 Evanstonains [sic], caused our community so much pain and, and shuttered numerous businesses. But coming back from this pandemic stronger and more equitable than before is not the end of our transformation — it's just the beginning.
"I believe an essential part of being Mayor is listening to everyone and hearing every voice — not to promise always to agree, but to make sure you know that if you share your view I will hear it, I will learn from it, and even if you don't convince me I will grow from it and it will affect the way I think going forward."
Biss grew up in Bloomington, Indiana, and moved to Illinois after receiving his bachelor's degree at Harvard University and his Ph.D. in mathematics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
He was an Illinois state representative as well, serving in that role 2011-13. He was state senator 2013-19. Biss unsuccessfully ran for governor in 2018.
