Carlos Rivas Jr. wins Near North Side District 3 Chicago School Board

View real-time results on the 2024 general election from the AP.

Carlos Rivas Jr. defeated Jason Dónes to take the Chicago School Board’s District 3 seat in a polarized race marked by big spending supporting staunchly opposite groups, according to results from the Associated Press.

Big money poured into the Northwest and West Side race in one of the most hotly contested battles between the Chicago Teachers Union and business and charter school interests in the city’s inaugural school board elections.

The majority-Hispanic district is home to 55 schools in Avondale, Logan Square, Belmont Gardens, Belmont Cragin, Hanson Park and Hermosa on the Near Northwest Side, along with Humboldt Park on the West Side.

The two candidates, Dónes, 36, and Rivas, 34, grew up and still live in Humboldt Park and both have worked for Chicago Public Schools. Rivas directs public affairs for the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.

“I want to ensure that every kid has that educator in front of them who loves and cares about them and wants them to succeed,” said Rivas, at a Chicago Democrats for Education party Tuesday night.

Rivas said that building consensus on the board will be tough. He was endorsed and financially supported by the political arm of the Illinois Network of Charter Schools, Urban Center Action and Illinois Policy PAC — groups that support school choice, oppose the CTU and are largely backed by wealthy business leaders and some billionaires.

This district is largely made up of Avondale, Logan Square, Belmont Gardens, Belmont Cragin, Hanson Park and Hermosa on the Northwest Side, along with Humboldt Park on the West Side. It’s home to 55 schools — none rated “exemplary” by the state nor as needing “intensive support” — and 274,500 residents. District 3’s population is 7% Black, 26% white, 61% Hispanic and 4% Asian. The students attending the schools are 8% Black, 5% white, 84% Hispanic and 1% Asian and 1% multiracial — and 78% come from low-income backgrounds.
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