Lori Lightfoot, the first openly gay African-American woman to be elected mayor of Chicago, won a sweeping mandate of 73.7% of the vote. Lightfoot gained public support form public attorneys, the former Chicago Public Schools board president, and numerous co-runners who lost the first round. Lightfoot even found strong support in 7 of 17 predominantly white wards, a hopeful sign of racial easing in a city sorely beset by divides.