After meeting with Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker and addressing the Illinois House and Senate, Chicago Mayor-elect Lightfoot, went to Washington D.C. for a three-day visit to build relationships and fundraising ahead of her inauguration on May 20th. President Trump congratulated Lightfoot after her historic win on April 2nd over Cook County President Toni Preckwinkle. On Tuesday, Lightfoot met with presidential advisor Ivanka Trump, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and other member of congress. The meeting with Ivanka was said to be very productive.
Lightfoot’s meting with House Speaker Pelosi and other top Democrats in the House was centered on funding for Chicago’s transportation infrastructure. Lightfoot said “I expressed the great need we have in Chicago, particularly around mass transit and making sure that we are getting funds that we need to rebuild our roads and bridges as well.” Lightfoot was asked if she will be meeting with President Trump during her visit in Washington. She said, “he is the president of the United States. If it happens, it happens.” Lightfoot wants to build relationships with people on both sides of the chamber to bring resources and funding to Chicago. Lightfoot said “there’s a tremendous amount of enthusiasm about this new change and opportunity in Chicago and I think a lot of people want to help me personally but also the city be successful, and we’re going to reach out to every resource that we can make that happen.” She will be meeting with members of the Congressional Black Caucus on Wednesday and will be heading to Southwest Washington on Wednesday night for a fundraiser at Cornerstone Government Affairs.
Lightfoot wants Chicago to be a visible player in the 2020 election. She said, “well, we have to make sure that we are building an infrastructure not only to continue to support the things that we think are important; 2020 is going to be a very big year. Chicago is going to play prominently in the local but also the national landscape. And I want to make sure that we have resources to be able to support our friends and people that are going to be aspiring to office all across the country.” Further she said, “it’s very important that we are on the map in Washington, that we have good relationships with our representatives and, of course, our senators,” she said. “Being physically present and having people know who I am and start to build those relationships. I know some of the people in the delegation for sure but it’s important that they know me and that I start to have a physical presence in Washington, D.C., as well as Springfield.” Mayor-elect Lightfoot’s inarguration will be held on May 20th. There will be a city hall open house following the inauguration.
