Chicago's search for its next police superintendent narrowed on Thursday evening, November 12, when the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability voted to send Mayor Brandon Johnson three finalists — all of them veteran insiders in the Chicago Police Department (CPD): First Deputy Superintendent Antoinette Ursitti, Chief of Community Policing Angel Novalez, and Chief of Counterterrorism Christopher Papaioannou.
Source: Focal News (Chicago)
The commission, meeting in public at Malcolm X College, used its power under the city ordinance for the second time since it was created. The three names were chosen in closed session, as the ordinance allows, and the commission does not release the names of the other applicants.
Source: Chicago Patriot
The clock the mayor now faces
Under Section 2-80-040 of the Municipal Code, the commission had 120 days from the vacancy to finish a nationwide search. Mayor Johnson now has 30 days — until about December 12 — to appoint one of the three finalists or reject the whole list in writing and ask for a new slate. If he picks one, the commission must hold a public hearing on the nominee before the City Council's Police and Fire Committee votes, and then the full council decides.
Ursitti: the possible first woman at the top
Ursitti, a 26-year veteran, would make history as the first woman to lead the department if chosen. Former Superintendent Larry Snelling promoted her to second-in-command just days before announcing his retirement this summer. She previously served three years as chief of detectives, a period in which clearance rates rose — the department's homicide clearance rate reached 74 percent through May, according to earlier reporting on her promotion. Ursitti holds a doctorate in addition to a master's degree and is a licensed counselor in Illinois, and she drew attention for her command of facts during recent City Council budget hearings.
Novalez and Papaioannou
Novalez, also a 26-year veteran and a finalist in the previous search cycle as well, now leads community policing and efforts to strengthen police-community relationships. He previously led the department's constitutional policing and reform work, implementing policies to meet a federal consent decree that followed the police killing of Laquan McDonald, and the department bolstered its compliance with the decree during his tenure. Papaioannou, a 27-year veteran, was promoted to chief of counterterrorism this spring after two years as deputy chief; he coordinated public safety operations for major events and was described as a behind-the-scenes force behind the successful Democratic National Convention in 2024. He is a first-generation Greek American and lifelong Chicago resident.
Commissioner Sandra Wortham praised the finalists in a statement, saying they offer unique backgrounds with varied, impactful experience across patrol operations, violent offender apprehension, criminal investigations, community policing, large-scale operations and reform efforts. One commissioner, Angelique Guzman, cast the lone vote against Papaioannou, according to the Sun-Times account cited in reporting on the meeting.
Why this choice is different
This year's slate includes no outsiders and no African American candidates, unlike previous cycles. Snelling, who is Black, led the department for less than three years before retiring on July 15, 2026; murders fell to historic lows during his tenure and the 2024 Democratic convention ran smoothly, though he also had to navigate the deployment of federal agents across Chicago during Operation Midway Blitz. Interim Superintendent Fred Waller has led the department during the search. The vacancy followed Snelling's July 1 announcement that he would retire after 34 years with the department.
Johnson faces reelection in February. Alderman Matt O'Shea (19th), who had tried to postpone the search until after the mayoral election, praised Ursitti, saying her detective clearance record was 'nothing short of remarkable.' Alderman Nick Sposato (38th) called Ursitti the frontrunner. Police union president John Catanzara predicted a new mayor would install a new superintendent in the spring — a claim about politics, not a decision, and the mayor's office has announced no such plan.
What happens next
The mayor's decision is due by about December 12. His nominee then faces a commission public hearing and City Council votes. Whoever is chosen inherits a department still under a federal consent decree, judged publicly on clearance rates, response times, violent crime and its relationship with communities of colour — and, this time, possibly on an election timetable as well.