Chicago’s latest power struggle is playing out not at the ballot box, but inside the city’s public housing bureaucracy, where Mayor Brandon Johnson is pushing to remove the Chicago Housing Authority’s operating chairman after the board refused to go along with his pick for CEO.
What started as a routine leadership search at an agency that serves tens of thousands of households has turned into a slow‑burn showdown. The CHA’s top official, meanwhile, is signaling he is not going anywhere quietly.
Johnson seeks removal of CHA chairman
According to Crain's Chicago Business, Mayor Johnson has asked city officials to move ahead with ousting Matthew Brewer, the CHA’s operating chairman. The push followed the board’s decision to approve a CEO that Johnson did not support, turning what is usually an inside‑baseball personnel matter into a very public tug‑of‑war between City Hall and the housing authority.
Board picks an outsider over the mayor’s choice
On March 17, the CHA Board of Commissioners voted to hire Keith Pettigrew, the executive director of the District of Columbia Housing Authority, as its next CEO. That decision effectively sidelined Johnson’s preferred candidate, former Ald. Walter Burnett.
The vote was split, with at least two commissioners objecting. The division has been cited as a sign of deeper tensions over how the search was handled and how much politics is driving the decision, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
How the fight began
The conflict did not appear overnight. Last year, Brewer sent a letter to federal officials flagging potential conflicts tied to Burnett’s appointment, prompting the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to ask the CHA to pause while it reviewed those concerns, according to reporting in the Chicago Tribune.
Questions about property interests and the need for waivers have hung over the mayor’s effort to install his longtime ally, complicating what might otherwise have been a straightforward political appointment.
Mayor’s office pushes back
The mayor’s office says it is still reviewing the CHA board’s resolution and has raised questions about what it describes as irregularities before the final vote, a spokesperson told local outlets.
Johnson had already moved to reshape the board by adding several new commissioners he hoped would support his choice for CEO. Those appointments, and the maneuvering around the search, have run into resistance from both the City Council and within the board itself, according to coverage by ABC7.
Brewer says he isn’t leaving
Brewer has publicly pushed back on efforts to force him out, telling reporters he intends to remain at the authority while it transitions to new leadership, Crain's Chicago Business reported.
The CHA’s leadership page lists Brewer as operating chairman and interim CEO, a dual role that gives him direct oversight of agency operations, according to the CHA.
What happens next
The CHA board’s resolution spells out that a newly appointed CEO can be removed during the first year only for misconduct or neglect of duty, and only with a supermajority vote. That language gives the board considerable leverage as the mayor presses his case.
Observers say any attempt to force out a sitting board chair would likely spill into a broader political battle that plays out in City Hall, at CHA board meetings, and in public forums, according to WTTW.
Residents and advocates are watching
Housing advocates warn that this kind of leadership brawl is not just insider drama. Prolonged uncertainty at the top can slow repairs, stall funding, and delay plans for new housing - all of which hit CHA tenants directly.
Residents at properties such as Harrison Courts have already been reporting ongoing problems with basic maintenance, including rot, pest issues, and roof leaks. Those headaches underscore the real‑world stakes of the fight over who runs the agency, as documented in coverage of rot, rats and roof leaks at Harrison Courts.
What to watch
The key moves to watch now are whether Johnson formally initiates proceedings to remove Brewer, how the CHA board responds procedurally, and when Pettigrew officially takes over and starts negotiating a contract.
Local outlets report that the mayor’s office is continuing its review of the board’s actions while the CHA prepares to complete its leadership transition in the coming weeks, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
