Matt Martin
Member of the Chicago City Council
from the 47th ward
Assumed office
May 20, 2019
Preceded byAmeya Pawar
Personal details
Born (1984-03-05) March 5, 1984
Arizona, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationNorthwestern University (BA)
Harvard University (JD)
WebsiteOfficial website

Matt Martin (born March 5, 1984)[1] is an American politician who is currently serving as a member of Chicago City Council for the city's 47th ward.[2] He won election as alderman in 2019 and was re-elected in 2023. The 47th ward includes all or parts of the North Center, Lincoln Square, Lakeview, and Uptown neighborhoods.

Early life and career

Matt Martin was born in Arizona and attended Northwestern University on a music scholarship, where he majored in jazz studies and political science.[3][4] He later graduated from Harvard Law School.[5] Martin later worked as a civil rights lawyer in the Illinois Attorney General's office,[6] and co-founded the Heart of Lincoln Square Neighbors Association.[1][7]

2019 aldermanic campaign

Matt Martin's campaign emphasized funding public schools, maintaining affordability in the ward, property tax relief for homeowners, and police accountability.[5] He was endorsed by the Chicago Tribune which noted that Martin "has an independent streak and shares our determination that a new City Council put away its rubber stamp and flex its legislative muscle. We believe Martin can be an influential new voice on a re-energized council."[8] In addition, he was endorsed by former Cook County Clerk David Orr[3] and organizations such as ONE People's Campaign and United Working Families.[9][10]

He finished first with 39.4% in a nine-candidate field in the election held on February 26, 2019 and then faced Michael Negron, who finished in second place with 21.4%, in a runoff election held on April 2, 2019.[6][11] Following the first round election, he received a number of additional endorsements from elected officials and organizations including 49th ward alderwoman-elect Maria Hadden,[12] 35th ward alderman Carlos Ramirez-Rosa,[13] U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL),[13] the Chicago Teachers Union,[14] and SEIU Healthcare Illinois.[15] On April 2, 2019, he won the runoff election with 62.6% of the vote.[2][16]

On April 10, 2019, Martin joined six other newly elected members of the City Council in protesting against the approval of tax increment financing for the Lincoln Yards and The 78 real estate developments.[17]

Chicago City Council (2019–present)

City-wide issues

City budget

Martin was one of 11 aldermen who voted against Mayor Lori Lightfoot's proposed 2020 budget, alongside other members of the Progressive Caucus.[18] In a statement, Martin said "While I commend the Mayor and her budget team for filling this year’s budget gap without layoffs or a significant property tax increase, ultimately, I saw a number of critical missed opportunities to seek more progressive sources of revenue, fund our social services in a more robust manner, and pursue structural changes that will set us on the path to solvency."[19] Martin held multiple public events and town hall meetings about the budget before and after the vote.[20][21][22][23]

Alliances and relationships

At the start of the 2019–23 term, Martin joined City Council's Progressive Caucus and Black Caucus.

Electoral history

47th Ward General election
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Matt Martin 7,533 39.4
Nonpartisan Michael Negron 4,087 21.4
Nonpartisan Eileen Dordek 3,347 17.5
Nonpartisan Jeff Jenkins 1,592 8.3
Nonpartisan Heather Way Kitzes 921 4.8
Nonpartisan Angie Maloney 879 4.6
Nonpartisan Thomas Schwartzers 369 1.9
Nonpartisan Gus Katsafaros 343 1.8
Nonpartisan Kimball Ladien 75 0.4
Total votes 19,146 100
47th Ward Runoff[16]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Matt Martin 11,779 62.6
Nonpartisan Michael Negron 7,053 37.5
Total votes 18,832 100.0

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "2019 Chicago Voters' Guide: Matt Martin". WTTW. 2019. Archived from the original on March 1, 2019.
  2. 1 2 Hernandez, Alex V. (April 2, 2019). "Matt Martin Wins 47th Ward Race To Succeed Ameya Pawar, Beating Rahm's Former Policy Chief". Block Club Chicago. Archived from the original on April 6, 2019.
  3. 1 2 Kapos, Shia; Hurst, Adrienne (January 25, 2019). "47th Ward Spotlight". Politico. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019.
  4. ↑ "The Alderman — Alderman Martin". June 4, 2019. Archived from the original on June 4, 2019. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  5. 1 2 "47th Ward candidate for alderman: Matt Martin". Chicago Sun-Times. January 27, 2019. Archived from the original on February 3, 2019.
  6. 1 2 Bremer, Shelby (February 27, 2019). "47th Ward Election: 2 With Deep Political Ties Advance to Runoff". NBC 5 Chicago. Archived from the original on March 4, 2019.
  7. ↑ Wetli, Patty (October 4, 2017). "Huge Turnout For Lincoln Square Neighbors Association Launch: What's Next?". DNAinfo. Archived from the original on April 7, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2019. 'I had very modest expectations. I thought 10 to 20 people would show up,' said Matt Martin, who coordinated the event along with Paige Worthy.
  8. ↑ "Editorial: Our choices for Chicago City Council: Wards 47-50". Chicago Tribune. February 12, 2019. Archived from the original on March 4, 2019.
  9. ↑ "Our Impact". ONE People's Campaign. 2019. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019. With his strong track record as a civil rights attorney and expertise in the issue of police accountability, we are confident Matt will be an effective voice in city council speaking up for progressive issues.
  10. ↑ "Endorsements". United Working Families. 2019. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019.
  11. ↑ Fisher, Amber (February 27, 2019). "47th Ward Aldermanic Election: Martin, Negron Head To Runoff". Patch Media. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019.
  12. ↑ Hadden, Maria (March 7, 2019). "I want to make sure that my endorsement comes with the people power that helped bring change in the 49th Ward. That is why this cycle I'm focusing on supporting the 4 candidates I've announced the past 2 days". Twitter. Archived from the original on March 14, 2019.
  13. 1 2 "Proudly Endorsed By". Matt47.com. 2019. Archived from the original on April 12, 2019.
  14. ↑ "2019 Chicago Runoff Elections". Chicago Teachers Union. 2019. Archived from the original on March 14, 2019.
  15. ↑ "2019 Chicago Election Center". SEIU Healthcare Illinois. 2019. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019.
  16. 1 2 "RunOff & Suppl Aldermanic April 2, 2019 Unofficial Summary Report City of Chicago, Illinois" (PDF). Chicago Board of Elections. April 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 7, 2019.
  17. ↑ Spielman, Fran (April 10, 2019). "City Council OKs $1.6 billion in subsidies for Lincoln Yards, 'The 78'". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on April 11, 2019. Retrieved April 20, 2019. Joining the protesters were seven newly-elected progressive aldermen: Daniel La Spata (1st); Mike Rodriguez (22nd); Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th); Andre Vasquez (40th); Matt Martin (47th) and Maria Hadden (49th).
  18. ↑ Spielman, Fran (November 26, 2019). "City Council approves Lightfoot's $11.6 billion budget — with 11 'no' votes". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  19. ↑ Martin, Matt (November 27, 2019). "2020 Budget Vote". Alderman Matt Martin. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  20. ↑ "#BudgetForTheMany Canvass with Ald. Matt Martin". United Working Families. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  21. ↑ "Budget Town Hall Meeting with Ald. Matt Martin". United Working Families. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  22. ↑ Hernandez, Alex V. (November 5, 2019). "Ald. Matt Martin Hosting Budget Town Hall Wednesday In Lakeview". Block Club Chicago. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  23. ↑ "City Budget Northside Town Hall". www.facebook.com. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
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