Mayor Brandon Johnson’s shaky grip on the City Council was exposed once more on Thursday, when his much-touted committee reshuffle collapsed in disarray. Hours of backroom negotiations yielded no results, and his reorganization plan never even made it to a vote.

What was meant to be a display of leadership instead highlighted Johnson’s inability to manage alliances, control the agenda, or deliver on promises. By the end of the day, aldermen moved forward on major legislation — but none of it was Johnson’s.

Johnson’s Leadership in Shambles

Johnson had hoped to install allies in top committee posts, rewarding loyalists and strengthening his hand in City Hall. Instead, the day turned into an exercise in chaos. Aldermen lingered in corridors, the clock ticked, and spectators sat waiting in chambers while Johnson’s team scrambled unsuccessfully upstairs.

The mayor couldn’t answer the question posed by the City Council’s Black and Latino Caucuses: what do they get out of his deal? Members from both groups said his plan left them shortchanged, a misstep that doomed the proposal before it reached the floor.

Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) gave a blunt assessment of Johnson’s team: “They don’t know what’s going on.” That remark summed up the mood in City Hall as Johnson’s plan unraveled.

A Council That Moves Without Him

Johnson’s allies had previewed a series of moves: Ald. Daniel La Spata to chair the powerful Zoning Committee, Ald. Andre Vásquez to inherit La Spata’s Pedestrian and Traffic Safety post, and Ald. Jessie Fuentes to take over the Immigrant and Refugee Rights Committee. Other swaps included naming Ald. Emma Mitts vice mayor and handing her old role to Ald. David Moore.

But none of those changes were approved. Instead, aldermen quickly pivoted to other business — approving a record $90 million police misconduct settlement, clearing the way for new housing near the Obama Presidential Center, legalizing coach houses for the first time since the 1950s, and advancing plans for a Chicago Fire stadium.

The contrast was striking: the council managed to move decisively on a wide array of issues while Johnson’s central initiative collapsed in silence. Even as some allies tried to frame the fiasco as “miscommunication,” the reality was plain — the mayor failed to line up the votes, and the council showed it could move without him.

For Johnson, Thursday was more than just a bad day. It was another reminder that he is not in control of the legislative body he is supposed to lead. With a looming $1.2 billion budget gap on the horizon, his inability to deliver raises questions about how much sway he truly has left inside City Hall.

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