1963 Chicago mayoral election

Primary elections were held on February 26, 1963.^[2] 48.31% of registered voters participated in the primary elections.^[4]

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Incumbent mayor Richard J. Daley was unopposed in the Democratic primary.

Cook County State's Attorney Adamowski won the Republican primary in a landslide. Adamowski had formerly been a Democrat until 1955, the same year in which he had lost the 1955 Democratic mayoral primary. Adamowski was considered to be smart and articulate.^[3] He had previously carried Chicago's vote when he was elected Cook County State's Attorney in 1956, and his 1960 reelection loss had been a narrow one (which he alleged was due to vote theft committed by the Democratic machine).^[3]

Adamowski sought to receive the backing of the city's sizable Polish-American electorate.^[5] He had a strong backing among this electorate.^[3] Adamowski ran a vigorous campaign.^[3] Adamowski portrayed Daley as a heavy-taxing liberal.^[5] He criticized Daley for what he alleged were government waste and high taxes.^[3] He accused Daley of doing too much for the city's impoverished, particularly its expanding black population.^[5] Adamowski dismissed Daley's assertions that city services had improved during his tenure.^[3] Adamowski was particularly critical of the fire department under Daley's tenure.^[3] He even placed blame for the Our Lady of the Angels School fire with Daley's fire department.^[3] Adamowski criticized Daley for being a powerful political boss, declaring, "we do not have one party-rule, we have one-man rule."^[3]

Daley painted a positive picture of the city of Chicago.^[3] He put focus on the work he had done to redevelop Chicago and improve city services.^[3] He argued that his police department reform had already resulted in reductions of crime rates.^[3] He also boasted of awards won in 1959 and 1961 naming Chicago the "cleanest big city" in the United States.^[3] He also boasted that the National Clean-Up, Paint-Up, Fix-Up Bureau had just declared the "cleanest large city" for 1962 as well.^[3] Daley positioned himself to be the candidate of both business and labor unions.^[3] Adamowski sought to paint himself as the "people's candidate",^[3] saying,

I hear State Street is against me, the bankers are against me, and the labor leaders are against me. State Street doesn't make Chicago big, it's the other way around. I'll take Western Avenue, Nagle Avenue, Ashland Avenue, and Milwaukee Avenue, where the little people reside. I'll take the bank depositors over the bankers any day. That goes for the little people in labor, too.^[3]

A heated issue was "open housing", which referred to the issue of racial integration in Chicago's housing.^[5] Daley attempted to skirt the issue, while Adamowski was vocal and clear in his opposition, stating, "I am opposed to so-called open occupancy legislation, because like patriotism it cannot be legislated. I would oppose it because it creates tense situations and can't be enforced."^[5] Adamowski criticized Daley over aspects of construction undertaken at O'Hare Airport. Firms involved in the construction of the airport had hired Daley-ally and Democratic machine operative Thomas E. Keane, and Adamowski alleged that the airport was being run as, "a private concession for Tom Keane."^[3]

Daley benefited from positive media attention.^[3] Chicago's newspapers provided Daley largely positive coverage, assessing his mayoralty very positively.^[3] Shortly ahead of the election, Daley graced the cover of the March 15 edition of the magazine Time.^[3][6] The cover story, entitled "Clouter with a Conscience", featured photos of new Chicago skyscrapers, O'Hare Airport, and a photo of Daley with President John F. Kennedy.^[3] The article gave Daley credit for transforming the city, and awarding it "new stature".^[3] The article's mere mention of Adamowski labeled him a former state's attorney who, "distinguished himself by never successfully prosecuting a major campaign".^[3] To put Daley in a bind, Republicans introduced a bill in the state legislature that would place a tax ceiling on the general expenditure fund of Chicago.^[3] This meant that Daley, strongly opposed to such a measure, would need to again publicly oppose a measure similar to ones he had successfully helped fight in 1957, 1959, and 1961.^[3] This, Republicans hoped, would lead voters to associate Daley with high taxes.^[3]

Seeking to place a spotlight on his work on developing O'Hare Airport days before the election, to mark the opening of the airport's circular restaurant, Daley arranged to have an opening ceremony for the restaurant, which he was able to get President Kennedy to attend.^[3] The presidential visit also featured a motorcade along the seventeen-mile route between the airport and Conrad Hilton Hotel, where Daley hosted a "civic luncheon".^[3] In the ceremony at the airport, Kennedy praised the airport and mayor, declaring that the airport "could be classed as one of the wonders of the modern world" and was, "a tribute to Mayor Daley who kept these interests and resources together, working together, until the job was done".^[3] Adamowski's campaign benefited from white backlash amid the civil rights movement.^[5]

Daley saw overwhelming support in predominantly African American wards on the city's south and west sides.^[7] Adamowski defeated Daley in ethnically white wards by a three to one margin.^[5] Daley only won due to his overwhelming support from the city's black voters.^[5] Over half of Daley's vote came from black voters.^[5] Daley received 81% of the black vote, but only 49% of the white vote.^[3] The severity of Daley's decline in support with white voters, however, was partly aided by Adamowski's strong support among his fellow Poles.^[3]