A day after Alexi Giannoulias joins the race, Mayor Brandon Johnson still mum on re-election plans

Chicago's race for mayor is heating up. A day after Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias joined the race, Mayor Brandon Johnson remained mum on whether he'll run for another term, but certainly sounded like he was giving a campaign speech at a brief press conference.

However, Johnson is lagging behind in fundraising, and his coffers are much more shallow than what many consider to be his toughest opponents.

Johnson was asked Monday what he has to say to those concerned he hasn't made his re-election decision yet.

"Here's what I'm going to continue to say to the people of Chicago is that I'm committed to building the safest, most affordable big city in America. And we're doing that, right?" Johnson said.

Not exactly an answer.

"I know that there's great anticipation of what my next move will be. How about I give you a little tease? Later this week, I'm going to announce yet another groundbreaking and a ribbon cutting," he said.

Johnson was asked about Giannoulias entering the race for mayor on Sunday, with his $22 million campaign war chest making him a likely early frontrunner amid a field of at least nine candidates.

Giannoulias, who spent time canvassing on Monday, is running on the slogan "Demand Better," but Johnson seemed unconcerned about his bid for the mayor's office.

"My job is to continue to govern and lead in this moment, and as far as the politics of Chicago, there's a reason why we call it the Windy City, right?. You'll have different waves, and people blowing in and out, but the thing that's most constant, and what's most still, and what's what remains today, is the Johnson administration," the mayor said.

Former alderman and retired University of Illinois at Chicago political science professor Dick Simpson said the fact Johnson has yet to announce whether he's running for re-election is concerning.

"I think it's a problem that Johnson hasn't announced so far. It's meant that he's not raising money. He's not building his coalition broader," Simpson said.

Running the numbers, Johnson had approximately $631,000 in his campaign fund at the end of June, much lower than the nearly $22 million that Giannoulias had on hand.

Illinois State Comptroller Susana Mendoza, who entered the race for mayor earlier this summer, had more than $1.6 million in her campaign fund. Lobbyist and entrepreneur John Kelly had more than $2 million on hand. Congressman Mike Quigley has more than $370,000 in his mayoral campaign fund, but could also tap nearly $1.2 million he has in his congressional campaign fund.

"Money by itself doesn't win elections. You can have more money, but you have to have at least the minimum money to get your message to voters, which in a mayor's race is normally around $5 million," Simpson said.

In fairness, when Johnson decided he'd run in the 2023 election, he didn't announce until the previous October, so there's still time for him to get a re-election campaign going, and especially as the incumbent, he could hold off on his decision without falling out of the public eye.