CHICAGO — A special Chicago City Council meeting led to some chaos as the council members met to vote on a possible referendum on the city’s status as a Sanctuary City.

For the referendum vote to happen, there needs to be at least 26 alderpeople present.

The fractured body, throughout the contentious day, made multiple attempts to vote but came up short.

The meeting comes as Mayor Brandon Johnson is in Washington D.C. in an urgent attempt to get funding to deal with the crisis.

The meeting ended with shouts and accusations.

The lights were turned off in the midst of a chaotic debate as alderpeople argued about what constitutes a quorum.

“It’s becoming very frustrating to get business done in the appropriate manner,” 32nd Ward Ald. Scott Waguespack said.

Dozens of alderpeople argued for citizens to vote on Chicago’s decades-old Sanctuary City status in a March referendum.

“The policy was set back in 1987,” Ald. Brenden Rilley said. “Things have changed dramatically. I don’t think people ever envisioned 20,000 migrants sent to Chicago in buses.”

But others argued the debate is counterproductive.

“I don’t think we wanna city where police are kicking in doors, rounding up people that they think are illegal,” 6th Ward Ald. William Hall said.

“People attacking our Sanctuary City ordinance in this moment are engaging in demagoguery,” Ald. Carlos Ramirez Rosa said.