Paul Vallas, a leading mayoral candidate in Chicago, is facing backlash after it was revealed that he had liked a series of derogatory tweets. According to the Chicago Tribune, the Democrat liked tweets that contained racist language, supported controversial police tactics, and insulted incumbent Mayor Lori Lightfoot on personal terms.
Some of the tweets referred to Lightfoot, the city’s first openly LGBTQ mayor, as “Larry,” called her a gnome, and made fun of her receding hairline. Several of the tweets were made before Vallas announced that he was running for mayor again last summer after losing his bid in 2019.
Vallas told the Tribune that many people on his campaign had access to his Twitter account, and he was working to identify who may have liked the controversial tweets.
But Vallas later told CBS News that he believed his account was hacked. Many of the tweets his account liked portrayed Chicago as a disaster zone plagued by crime.
In a statement to the Tribune, Vallas said he does not “personally manage” the account and was “shocked when this was brought to my attention because this kind of abhorrent and vile rhetoric does not represent me or my views.” All of the tweets have since been removed from his profile, which now says “@PaulVallas has not liked any tweets.”
This is just the latest scandal to befall the Democratic front-runner who is running on a law-and-order platform in the crime-ridden city and has gained widespread support from conservatives.
Vallas has previously faced criticism from Lightfoot and others who have accused him of using a racist dog whistle by saying his campaign is about “taking back our city,” but his campaign has denied the message has anything to do with race. He also came under fire last summer for attending an event for Awake Illinois, a suburban group that has called Governor Pritzker a “groomer.”
At first, Vallas sidestepped questions about the Fraternal Order of Police’s conservative leanings. But he became more forceful in recent weeks, saying the FOP “disappointed” him by agreeing to attend a speech by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, whom Vallas described as a “right-wing extremist.”
A recent poll by M3 Strategies shows Vallas leading the race by 32 percent, followed by progressive Brandeon Johnson at 18 percent, and Lightfoot coming in third at 13.6 percent. But the election is likely going to head into a run-off, NBC Chicago reports, as none of the candidates are expected to get more than 50 percent of the vote.
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