- Credibility:
WICKER PARK — Three 1st Ward alderperson candidates will speak to voters this week at a community meeting.
Incumbent Ald. Daniel La Spata and challengers Proco Joe Moreno and Stephen “Andy” Schneider will speak and take questions 7 p.m. Wednesday at the February meeting of the Wicker Park Committee at the Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. It is open to the public.
Candidate Sam Royko addressed the group in January and will not speak Wednesday, organizers said.
La Spata is seeking his second term in City Hall. In 2019, he defeated then-incumbent Moreno, who was appointed 1st Ward alderperson in 2010.
Moreno was under criminal investigation during the 2019 election and was charged with multiple felonies shortly after losing his seat. He was later given second-chance probation, which was terminated “satisfactorily” in August, according to documents reviewed by Block Club.
Election officials this month ruled Moreno’s criminal history did not disqualify him from seeking office again and that he could appear on the 1st Ward ballot. Royko also survived an effort to boot him from the ballot.
The newly redrawn 1st Ward stretches from the eastern portion of Logan Square down through most of Wicker Park, parts of East Humboldt Park and portions of West Town.
The election is Feb. 28, with potential run-offs happening April 4. More information on each candidate is available here.
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