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CHICAGO — Two political heavyweights running for mayor brought supporters in a show of strength Monday.

Incumbent mayor Lori Lightfoot filed over 40,000 signatures with challenger Jesus “Chuy” Garcia filing 47,000-plus of his own. Both showed up Monday morning to the Board of Elections Loop supersite with a swath of supporters behind them.

“I think if you ask voters across Chicagoland and other taxpayers,” Garcia said. “They’re ready for a change.”

During a brief availability with reporters, Mayor Lightfoot offered her pitch for another four years.

“Everything about our lives was completely upended during the period of COVID and people are still recovering from that,” Lightfoot said. “So, what we’ve got to do is pierce through that level of frustration and anger — and to some extent, fear — that people have, and remind them about what we’ve been able to accomplish together.”

Garcia, meanwhile, contrasted his leadership style with that of Lightfoot.

“I can be a unifying force in Chicago. I have the temperament to bring people together,” Garcia said. “I have the ability to listen to people, to be collaborative and inclusive. That has been my public service over years of time.”

Chicago Alderman Roderick Sawyer also filed to run for mayor today, adding himself into a group of at least 9 well-known candidates in a crowded 2023 mayoral election field.

If no candidate gets over 50% of the vote during the Feb. 28 election, the top two candidates go to a runoff on April 4.