The uncontested incumbents are Alds. Lamont Robinson (4th), Peter Chico (10th), Nicole Lee (11th), Ray Lopez (15th), Ronnie Mosley (21st), Samantha Nugent (39th), Andre Vasquez (40th), Anthony Napolitano (41st), Matt Martin (47th) and Debra Silverstein (50th). They will not need to raise money or campaign. Elianne Bahena, chief of staff to retiring Ald. Michael Rodriguez (22nd) and his handpicked successor, is also running unopposed.

The lack of competition stands in contrast to the Council's recent assertiveness. Johnson has issued four vetoes, cast three tie-breaking votes, accepted a Zoning Committee chair he did not choose, and struggled to pass two budgets amid mounting resistance to a third. Yet only 140 candidates filed to run for four-year Council terms, down from 210 in 2023, when 174 ultimately survived petition challenges. More incumbents could end up unopposed after petition challenges are resolved.

Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd), a leader of the self-described "Common Sense Caucus," said the low interest may reflect public satisfaction with a Council that is "stepping up, doing the hard work and pushing back on the executive branch of government for the first time in many, many decades." But he also acknowledged another possibility: "In other cases, maybe it's a job they simply don't want. There's so much upheaval at City Hall, perhaps some folks don't want to sign up for that circus."

Ald. Marty Quinn (13th), one of three veteran incumbents retiring, linked the shortage of candidates to the historic Nov. 3 election for 21 seats on Chicago's first elected school board. "Having these two election seasons intersect has taken a lot of potential aldermanic candidates off the table," Quinn said, noting that community activists involved in schools and block clubs were drawn to the school board races.

Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th), who is leaving after four terms, blamed the political climate. "You have a career that you would be leaving to go into public service, and public service is so ugly. There's so much negativity. There's so much distrust," he said. O'Shea also questioned why more residents aren't running in wards facing crises. "There's no one in a community of 50,000 people who thinks they could do a better job or want to do a better job?" he asked.

Veteran political consultant Delmarie Cobb pointed to the cost of running. "The days when you could run for a City Council seat by knocking on doors and just being visible are long gone," she said, citing gated communities, locked buildings, doorbell cameras and a decline in volunteers. "The idea of getting $300,000 — where am I gonna get that?" Cobb added that many incumbents now refuse to appear at forums, denying challengers their best chance to draw contrasts.

Ald. Nicole Lee (11th), who is fighting to keep the White Sox in Bridgeport and a planned Amtrak maintenance facility out of the community, said the job is "not a cakewalk sort of job, as some people may have thought of it years ago. This is technically a part-time job. And when I talk to people about that, I tell them it's more like two full-time jobs."

Ald. Samantha Nugent (39th), who has navigated outcry over a homeless encampment in a local park and helped lead a 31-member bloc of conservative and moderate alderpersons, said she has earned a pass. "I'm a workhorse. I'm out in the community all the time," she said. "Hopefully, no opposition just reflects that they know I'm there to support them."

Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th) attributed the high number of uncontested races to the time members spend on "crisis management." He added, "Maybe they understand how bad the budgets are looking."

Mike Ruemmler, president of One Future Illinois, a nonprofit created by business leaders to influence city and state policy, said he is not surprised. "It's been a rough four years. A lot of rancor within the Council. Tough budgets to deal with," he said. "It doesn't seem like a desirable job to have these days." His group plans to support several anti-administration Council members and target up to 10 mayoral allies.

Rodriguez said he was delighted but not surprised that no one filed to challenge Bahena, who was the leading vote-getter in her police district council race and is well known in the 22nd Ward, which includes Little Village and North Lawndale. He noted that federal agents detained her for seven hours a year ago as part of President Donald Trump's deportation campaign. "She has a stellar resume, and she'll be the first female in that seat," Rodriguez said.

Four years ago, five ward races were uncontested at the close of filing, but ballot challenges doubled that number to 10. The modern record for candidates filing for alderman was set in 2011, when 351 filed and 239 survived challenges. In 2023, the Council welcomed 16 new members after a wave of retirements, resignations and defeats. The lowest turnover in modern history came in 2003, when just three new members joined.