Video: Chicago’s election night celebrations

Video: Chicago’s election night celebrations
Carrie Austin, 34th Ward Alderman WBEZ/Bill Healy
Video: Chicago’s election night celebrations
Carrie Austin, 34th Ward Alderman WBEZ/Bill Healy

Video: Chicago’s election night celebrations

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It’s often been said that Chicago is a City of Neighborhoods - a city comprised of the traditions, cultures and characters of its many ethnic communities. 

Nowhere was that culture on better display than on election night Tuesday in the city’s 50 wards. Unlike the huge celebration in Grant Park following Obama’s election, this week’s parties took place in the Wards where people live.

This year was an historic one for aldermanic races.  All but seven wards had contested elections as 240 candidates competed for seats on the City Council.

But the stories and images of these races rarely made it into the election night media coverage.

So as the television cameras trained their spotlights on Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel and his opponents, we sent our camera crews out to canvas the wards in search of election night parties for the various aldermanic candidates.

The result?  An amazing, behind-the-scene glimpse of politics, community, ethnicity and humanity in Chicago today.

Think of it as a video time capsule of Chicago-style politics, circa 2011.

Photo: Carrie Austin, 34th Ward Alderman. (WBEZ/Bill Healy)

Video: Sean Aucoin, Spencer Bagley, Andrew Gill, Bill Healy, Emily Wilensky, Samuel Vega.