Next Up

By Kevin Robinson in News on Aug 15, 2007 1:00PM

In other news, Blagojevich says that he will cut $500 million from the budget and spend more on a health plan he favors.

Yesterday, Cook County Commissioner and once and future candidate for Board President Tony Peraica announced that he would run for Cook County State's Attorney in 2008, which current three-term State's Attorney Dick Devine will be vacating at the end of his term.

"It's time for Cook County to have a State's Attorney who puts public safety over politics and prosecutes the rampant corruption fraud that benefits political insiders at the expense of hard-working county residents and taxpayers," said Peraica. "We will audit the books, lock up the crooks, and restore accountability to an office that has failed to protect and serve the people of Cook County."

In an announcement on his website, Peraica vowed to prosecute corruption, patronage and abuses of power without regard to political allegiance. The field of potential candidates is already filling up, with more than half a dozen Democrats publicly expressing interest in the job, including Ald. Howard Brookins (21st), Ald. Thomas Allen (38th) and County Commissioner Larry Suffredin (D-Evanston).

Besides the other hopefuls, Commissioner Mike Quigley has said that he is exploring the possibility of a run as well. "Any Democrat that is backed by the regular Democratic machine in the County of Cook is going to be a caretaker and a person that will be expected to toe the line, sweep these things under the rug and not do anything controversial," Peraica told the Chicago Tribune. Now that the county government has all but collapsed under the weight of a bloated budget and a patronage system that can't be sustained, it seems that the next fight for the future of the county will be over the State's Attorney's office. We'll keep you posted.