Sendhil Revuluri Drops Out of Chicago School Board President Race, Leaving Three Candidates for November

Sendhil Revuluri dropped out of the race for Chicago Board of Education president on Tuesday. Three candidates now remain in the contest for the board's first elected president.

Revuluri, a former vice president of the board, said he could not responsibly continue asking voters for their time, money or votes because of what he called "special-interest cash" drowning out the "voices of real Chicagoans."

"Because of what's actually standing in the way, I can't responsibly keep asking Chicagoans for their contributions, their time, or their votes," Revuluri said in a statement.

Revuluri's name will remain on the November ballot. His withdrawal leaves current board member Jessica Biggs, former Chicago Teachers Union political director Hilario Dominguez and trial attorney Victor Henderson in the race.

The 21-member school board is up for election this November for the first time in its history. Voters will also choose the board's first elected president.

Revuluri was appointed to the board by then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot in 2019. He had criticized the operations of the current partially elected board. During a candidate forum hosted by WTTW News earlier this month, he said board members need to better understand what matters most to Chicagoans and set clear expectations.

He thanked his supporters, volunteers and staff for their work throughout the campaign.

"I'm grateful to every person who gave their time, money, and energy to this campaign," Revuluri said. "Our staff and volunteers worked tirelessly for a year, collected signatures from all 50 wards, and never lost sight of why we were doing this. I couldn't have asked for a better team, and Chicago's students couldn't have asked for better advocates."

The November election will determine the leadership of the Chicago Public Schools system. The district will have a fully elected board after the election.