Think you could oust Rahm Emanuel from the Mayor's office? Want to run for alderman so you can be mini-Mayor of your ward (and get on the news once in a while, er, effect positive change in your neigborhood)? Are you highly confident and impervious to criticism from blogs like Ward Room?
Then get your signatures in order and get in line! Because today the short window begins to file the necessary paperwork (including nominating petitions) to enter the municipal election on Feb. 24. Candidates for mayor, city clerk, treasurer and alderman reported to the Board of Election Commissioners for the City of Chicago (69 W. Washington St.) starting at 7 a.m. Monday and ending at 5 p.m. Filers who got there before 9 a.m. won priority for a Dec. 3 lottery that will determine who gets the first slot on the ballot. (Voter psychology-wise, it's better to be No. 1).
The filing deadline is Monday, Nov. 24, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Petitions may also be submitted within the same time frame at the Board of Election headquarters on Tuesday the 18th and from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday the 22nd.
The highest profile ballot is the one for mayor. In the running to take on Emanuel are 2nd Ward Ald. Bob Fioretti and Cook County Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, both political progressives. Garcia recently snagged the endorsement of Karen Lewis, the charismatic Chicago Teachers Union leader who could have been a contender (for all the right reasons) but was sidelined by illness. Pat Quinn, the soon-to-depart Illinois governor, was recently talked up as a potential Rahm rival.
