Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez has been decisively voted out of office. The well-funded incumbent lost her primary with just 29 percent of the vote. Challenger and former prosecutor Kim Foxx pulled through with 58 percent.
This is mostly thanks to the #ByeAnita campaign, led by a collective of young black activists who creatively combined direct action with electoral strategy. They ousted Alvarez without even endorsing an opponent, spending just $1,000. Alvarez has been unpopular with progressives in Chicago for a while now, for undercharging several police officers who have killed unarmed black men and women. But general unpopularity doesn’t lead to a loss like this. The change of leadership in the State’s Attorney’s office came from an organized and savvy campaign.
When the movement in Chicago first demanded McCarthy, Alvarez & Emanuel gone (in that order), it seemed wildly ambitious. And now?
— Joe Macaré (@joemacare) March 16, 2016