New face and longtime politician vying for Chicago mayor

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago mayor’s race pits a longtime political insider against a former prosecutor who’s never held public office.

Tuesday’s election comes at a time when many voters are weary of the old machine-style politics for which the city has long been known.

In some ways the contest between Toni Preckwinkle and Lori Lightfoot reflects a movement happening nationally in the Democratic Party as people with little or no political experience challenge the more established “old guard.”

But the contest also is uniquely Chicago. It’s occurring at a time when the city’s financial problems, gun violence and allegations of public corruption have left many voters fed up and looking for change.

Preckwinkle is Cook County board president and leads the county Democratic Party.

Lightfoot says she’s “a different kind of Democrat.”