Good afternoon, Chicago.
Mayor Brandon Johnson raised the possibility of city worker layoffs today after a bruising budget fight that he again claimed led to an unbalanced spending plan for this year.
At a City Hall news conference, the mayor responded to a question about retroactive changes to the 2026 budget, which aldermen passed over his objections last month, by reiterating the package could force personnel cuts.
Meanwhile, the top financial official in Johnson’s administration, Jill Jaworski, is leaving to take a job with the nonprofit corporation that runs Navy Pier.
Here’s what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit chicagotribune.com/latest-headlines and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices.
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Ayelech Gray, left, of Elk Grove High School, Jonila Ilazi of Rolling Meadows High School and Nell Krzyszczuk of Rolling Meadows High School receive training to be official election judges while operating on-campus early voting sites as part of the Cook County clerk’s office’s first-ever high school early voting program at Hersey High School in Arlington Heights on Jan. 6, 2026. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
Cook County clerk’s office teams up with Chicago Bears to launch inaugural student election judge program
Through the initiative, dubbed “Defenders of DA’mocracy,” students across the county will see the inner workings of the election system firsthand by becoming official election judges for their peers ahead of this spring’s primary. Read more here.
More top news stories:
US Rep. Jan Schakowsky endorses Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss for Illinois’ 9th Congressional District
Federal government withholding $1 billion from Illinois meant for child care, family assistance
Republican candidate for Illinois governor Ted Dabrowski fills news conference with contradictions
Northwestern Memorial Hospital workers hold signs during a rally to call attention to emergency department staffing needs, among other concerns, across the street from the hospital on Jan. 6, 2026, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
Northwestern Memorial Hospital workers demand better staffing, ahead of expansion vote
A hospital workers’ union is calling on Northwestern Memorial Hospital to beef up its emergency department staffing, ahead of a scheduled state board vote next week on whether the hospital should be allowed to embark on a $96 million expansion project. Read more here.
More top business stories:
CAVA at Block 59 to open next week, Yemeni coffee and New York-style street food coming
Warner Bros. rejects Paramount takeover again and tells shareholders to stick with Netflix bid
Bulls center Nikola Vučević defends Hornets guard Kon Knueppel on Jan. 3, 2026, at the United Center. (Matt Marton/AP)
Chicago Bulls are being forced to play small again. Absence makes the heart grow fonder for double-big lineups.
Sometimes, going big is better. That has been a new trick for the Bulls this season. Small ball wasn’t cutting it. Read more here.
More top sports stories:
NFL coaching and GM tracker: Atlanta Falcons to interview Chicago Bears assistant GM Ian Cunningham
FCS championship notes: Illinois State QB Tommy Rittenhouse praised as ‘a competitor’ — plus a big-man TD
Yoonshin Park stands in her studio at Mana Contemporary Chicago on Dec. 30, 2025, while surrounded by artist book prototypes for her upcoming exhibition “Prompt and Prompted.” The show will be on display from Jan. 24-May 10 at the Hyde Park Art Center. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)
Yoonshin Park includes students’ artwork in upcoming ‘Prompt and Prompted’ exhibit
The fascination with papermaking has always been inside of Yoonshin Park. Her newest exhibit, “Prompt and Prompted,” at the Hyde Park Art Center, showcases reimagined structures of what books can be in an art form known as artist books. Read more here.
More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories:
Jazz for winter 2026: Concerts to heat up the cold months
President and CEO of Chicago History Museum is stepping down
In appreciation: Chicago singer Josie Falbo had a voice bigger than her fame
A bullet hole is seen in a windshield as law enforcement officers work at the scene of a shooting involving federal law enforcement agents Jan. 7, 2026, in Minneapolis. (Tom Baker/AP)
Minneapolis mayor says ICE officer’s killing of motorist was ‘reckless’ and wasn’t self-defense
An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed a Minneapolis motorist today during the Trump administration’s latest immigration crackdown on a major American city — a shooting that federal officials claimed was an act of self-defense but that the city’s mayor described as “reckless” and unnecessary. Read more here.
More top stories from around the world:
Denmark and Greenland seek talks with Rubio over US interest in taking the island
Nick Reiner’s arraignment in parents’ killing is delayed after his attorney asks to be replaced
