53 candidates apply to be next Chicago police superintendent

More than 50 people have applied to become the next permanent superintendent of the Chicago Police Department, according to the body tasked with submitting three finalists to Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson.

Anthony Driver Jr., president of the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability, told reporters Wednesday that 53 candidates submitted their materials for consideration before the May 7 deadline.

Of those, 32 applicants have current or former ties to the CPD, Driver said.

Driver said the commission would not disclose the names of those who applied.

The commission now has until mid-July to select three finalists and submit those candidates to Johnson. Those finalists, Driver said, will be made known to the public.

“The commission will thoroughly evaluate all candidates,” Driver said Wednesday.

“This historic search represents a transformative opportunity to shape the future of law enforcement in our city.”

Once the finalists are submitted, Johnson will either select one to be confirmed by the City Council, or he will instruct the commission to start its search over again.

The commission has, so far, hosted three in-person meetings across the city and a fourth via video conference to solicit feedback from citizens about what they want in the next leader of the CPD. Speakers at the meeting have overwhelmingly supported the idea of a CPD veteran as the next head of the department.

The commission has retained an outside firm, based in California, to assist in the vetting and interview process as the candidates are narrowed down.

Notably absent from the applicant pool is Fred Waller, the former CPD chief of patrol who will serve as interim superintendent after Johnson is sworn in next week.

After his interim appointment was announced last week, Waller said he would not apply for the permanent job, and he was “a man of his word,” Driver said Wednesday.

Twenty-four applicants are white, 22 are Black and seven are Latino, Driver said.

Eleven are female and the other 42 are male.