Harold Washington – 1922-1987

While in his second term in the U.S. Congress, Washington agreed to run for mayor of Chicago in 1983, defeating in the Democratic primary incumbent Jane Byrne and Richard M. Daley, son of the late long-time mayor, Richard J. Daley. He then went on to defeat the white Republican challenger in the general election, in which voters turned out in record numbers. Washington faced much opposition in the mostly white City Council, but he was nevertheless elected to a second term. He died in office seven months into that term.