Mayor Daley Makes It Official

By Scott Smith in News on Dec 12, 2006 3:20PM

To say that Mayor Daley announced his intention to run for a sixth term yesterday would be technically, if not totally, true.

As The Beachwood Reporter pointed out weeks ago, Daley all but announced his intention to run when Terry Peterson stepped down from his job as CHA chief to manage Daley’s re-election campaign. And why wouldn’t he? The guy sure knows how to fundraise – a skill that, in light of ongoing federal investigations, would be really helpful if Daley didn’t have the race all but won thanks to the hemming and hawing of Jesse Jackson Jr. and Luis Guiterrez.

Therefore, Peterson seems to be making only a nominal effort, turning in only 25,000 signatures on Daley’s ballot petition. In contrast, alderman Bill “Dock” Walls turned in 39,000. Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown is also in the race, but did not turn in any petitions. Both will likely lure protest voters, and we’re wondering if Daley has any other thoughts on wooing their constituencies, outside of an Olympic stadium on the South Side.

With the mayoral race a given, look for the dailies to focus on aldermanic races. The Sun-Times reports that 120 people filed petitions stating their intentions to run for alderman, the most since 1991, another quiet election year for Daley. Only 150 signatures are required to earn a place on the aldermanic ballot, about 100 less than the number of friends an average 14 year-old has on their MySpace page. The Sun-Times says it’s the $98,125 salary that draws ‘em in and the Trib takes a look at some of the hotly contested races. Keep an eye out for all those "pro-business" candidates.