Dupage Policy Journal

Jeanne Ives, an Illinois political activist and former Republican candidate for governor, is speaking out amid news that Chicago mayor-elect Brandon Johnson has a sizeable, unpaid water bill owed to the city.

In a post to her personal Facebook page, Ives said Johnson remains in arrears on his water bill payment despite clearly having pocketed the means to have settled the balance and be current on all the payments he owes to the local utility company.

"Hey Suburban Teachers - your union dues went to support this deadbeat," Ives posted. "Makes nearly $200k as a lobbyist and he refuses to pay his water bill. Nice Job choosing BJ! He's a radical socialist - never met a tax hike he didn't like."

All told, the Chicago Tribune reports Johnson, a Cook County commissioner, owed the city more than $3,357.04 in water and sewer bills and more than $400 in parking tickets. This was prior to moving in an attempt to settle the debts after news of them went public just days before voters were set to go to the polls to cast ballots in his Chicago mayoral runoff election against opponent Paul Vallas.

The Vallas campaign also publicly noted that in 2020 the Illinois State Board of Elections hit Johnson’s county commissioner campaign with $17,637 in fines “due to violations of the Campaign Disclosure Act," and four years earlier Johnson was successfully sued for nonpayment of a $3,657.51 debt. Reports of his debt have been publicly published, according to a report from the Cook County Record.

These financial issues have stoked concerns that Johnson is unfit to oversee the financial affairs of Chicago, which is the third-largest city in the United States, according to a report from the Cook County Record.