Chicago is getting a moment in the Vatican spotlight later this month, as Mayor Brandon Johnson heads to Rome for an audience with Pope Leo XIV. The trip is scheduled for May 26 to 30, with the sitdown with the pontiff set for May 28. Johnson says he plans to use the meeting to talk about shared priorities, including voting rights, immigrant protections and workers' rights.
The mayor's office confirmed the basic itinerary on Wednesday, though the visit itself was first reported by the Chicago Tribune, which noted the May 28 audience date. City Hall has also told local outlets that the trip will include stops in both Rome and Vatican City and that World Business Chicago will pick up the travel tab, according to CBS Chicago.
Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost and raised on the South Side and in nearby Dolton, is the first American to lead the Catholic Church, a milestone that drew national attention when he was elected. AP has tracked his first year in office and the intense interest surrounding his tenure. Illinois leaders have already been making the Rome rounds this spring. Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias both had audiences at the Vatican, and an Illinois Municipal League delegation also met with the pope, NBC Chicago reports.
Why the Visit Matters Locally
For Johnson, the trip is part symbolism, part strategy. The head of the Catholic Church now has deep South Side roots, and the mayor is eager to frame the audience as a values-driven conversation. "I think we are going to talk about the values we share, protecting voting rights, protecting immigrant rights, and protecting workers' rights," Johnson said in a statement, according to CBS Chicago.
He also kept things light when asked what he might bring as a gift. Johnson joked that he would show up with a Cubs cap for the pontiff, a quip caught on camera by NBC Chicago.
What To Watch In Rome
Back home, aldermen, advocates and civic groups will be watching for any concrete asks or follow-up plans that come out of the Vatican visit, especially on immigrant services, labor standards and other progressive priorities. How City Hall packages the trip politically once Johnson is back in Chicago could matter almost as much as what actually gets said in the room.
The visit also lands amid broader diplomatic tension between the Vatican and the White House that national outlets have been tracking, which could color the optics of any high profile conversations, according to AP.
City Hall says Johnson is scheduled to return on May 30 and that more details about the audience will be released after the trip wraps. For now, the administration is pitching the journey as a blend of cultural diplomacy and a rare chance to put the mayor's agenda on a global stage.
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