(Updated) Court Rules Rahm Emanuel Ineligible to Run for Chicago Mayor
- Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:17pm by
Jonathon M. Seidl
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UPDATE:
CHICAGO (AP) — An Illinois appellate court on Monday threw former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel off the ballot for Chicago mayor because he didn’t live in the city in the year before the election.
The decision cast doubt over Emanuel’s candidacy just a month before the election. He had been considered the front-runner and had raised more money than any other candidate.
The court voted 2-1 to overturn a lower-court ruling that would have kept his name on the Feb. 22 ballot.
Emanuel plans to appeal the matter to the Illinois Supreme Court. Early voting was set to begin on Jan. 31.
“I have no doubt that we will in the end prevail at this effort. This is just one turn in the road,” Emanuel said, adding that the “people of the city of Chicago deserve the right to make the decision on who they want to be their next mayor.”
Those challenging Emanuel’s candidacy have argued that the Democrat does not meet the one-year residency requirement because he rented out his Chicago home and moved his family to Washington to work for President Barack Obama for nearly two years.
Emanuel has said he always intended to return to Chicago and was only living in Washington at the request of the president.
Emanuel is one of several candidates vying to replace Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, who did not seek a seventh term. Emanuel moved back to Chicago in October after he quit working for Obama to campaign full-time.
Before Monday’s ruling, attorney Burt Odelson, who represents two voters objecting to Emanuel’s candidacy, had little luck trying to keep Emanuel off the ballot.
The Chicago Board of Election Commissioners and a Cook County judge have both ruled in favor of Emanuel, a former congressman, saying he didn’t abandon his Chicago residency when he went to work at the White House.
Odelson had said he planned to take the challenge to the state Supreme Court, if necessary.
“Have I stood down at all? No, I‘ve been confident all along because that’s the law. That’s the way you read the law,” Odelson told reporters Monday.
The three main other candidates running – former Sen. Carol Moseley Braun, former schools President Gery Chico and City Clerk Miguel del Valle – have been critical of Emanuel during the race, calling him an outsider who doesn’t know Chicago.
Emanuel appeared to have gotten a big boost last week when his campaign announced he raised more than $10 million and was endorsed by former President Bill Clinton during an event in Chicago.
A Chicago Tribune/WGN poll also released last week showed Emanuel with the support of 44 percent of those surveyed. The same poll found 21 percent of registered voters questioned prefer Braun, while 16 percent favor Chico and 7 percent support del Valle.
Del Valle said the appeal court’s decision bodes well for the other candidates and voters who may have thought the race was a foregone conclusion because the amount of money Emanuel has raised.
“Now voters see there’s an opportunity to look at the field and give candidates either a second look or in some cases a first look. People are going to pay more attention to the other candidates,” del Valle said.
In its ruling the court said while Emanuel met the requirements to vote in Chicago, he did not meet the requirements to run for mayor because he didn’t actually reside in the city for a year before Feb. 22.
“A candidate must meet not only the Election Code’s voter residency standard, but also must have actually resided within the municipality for one year prior to the election, a qualification that the candidate unquestionably does not satisfy,” according to the ruling.
The residency questions have dogged Emanuel ever since he announced his candidacy last fall. Emanuel tried to move back into his house when he returned to Chicago but the family renting it wanted $100,000 to break the lease and move out early. The tenant, businessman Rob Halpin, later filed paperwork to run for mayor against Emanuel, only to withdraw from the race a short time later.
More than two dozen people testified on the residency issue at a Chicago Board of Elections hearing in December. The three-day hearing got progressively stranger as attorneys gave way to Chicago residents who filed objections to his candidacy, including one man who asked Emanuel if he caused the 1993 siege at Waco, Texas.
Emanuel’s lawyer said he is hopeful the state Supreme Court will take up the case, especially since the appeals court decision was not unanimous.
“I think the fact that there’s a dispute within the appellate court certainly makes the case more enticing to the Supreme Court, but I don’t speak for them,” lawyer Mike Kasper said.
—
Associated Press writers Don Babwin, Tammy Webber, Sophia Tareen and Michael Tarm contributed to this report.
The Blaze’s original story is below.
From USA Today:
An appeals court has has overturned a residency decision for Rahm Emanuel, ruling that he is ineligible to run for mayor of Chicago, the Chicago News Cooperative reports.
The state court ruled that he is not a resident of Chicago. Emanuel did not live in the city while serving as President Obama’s chief of staff.
The Illinois Appellate Court has ruled that Rahm Emanuel did not live in Chicago while he was serving as White House chief of staff and should be taken off the Chicago mayoral ballot. The case now goes to the Illinois Supreme Court.
Rahm Emanuel has been knocked off the mayoral ballot after an Appellate Court overturned a ruling in his residency case.
The court ruled that Emanuel did not meet the residency requirement for eligible candidates.
“We conclude that the candidate neither meets the the municipal code’s requirement that he have ‘resided’ in Chicago for the year preceding the election in which he seeks to participate nor falls within any exception to the requirement.”
The appellate court reversed the decision of the Circuit Court that Rahm Emanuel can appear on the Mayoral Ballot.
The court reversed the decision with one dissent. The panel consisted of three judges.
The decision would remove Emanuel from the ballot for the mayoral election.
The case is expected to be appealed to the Illinois Supreme Court.
Emanuel has been the front runner in the election to this point, recently polling at 44 percent of the vote, and has raised the most money in the campaign, over $11 million.
The Associated Press:
A lawyer for Rahm Emanuel says the former White House chief of staff will appeal a ruling that says his name can’t appear on the ballot for Chicago mayor.
Mike Kasper said on Monday that they will take the case to the Illinois Supreme Court.
Earlier Monday, an Illinois Appeals Court ruled that Emanuel‘s name can’t be on the Feb. 22 ballot because he didn’t live in Chicago for a year before the election.
This is a breaking story. Updates will be added.
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Comments (189)
charliego
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:32pmAs I noted from another site comment; Holder is saddling up his steed.
Report Post »joan k
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:31pmHa.. Lucky for Chicago the thug can’t run
Report Post »Mister_Bill
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:31pmWow, let see there is no cronyism in Chicago, even the dead can vote on election day. He won 2 earlier
Report Post »Court decisions, one in Chicago and another in a lower court, but the “Illinois Appellate Court has ruled that Rahm Emanuel did not live in Chicago while he was serving as White House chief of staff and should be taken off the Chicago mayoral ballot.” Looks like an issue that should be looked into by the Justice Dept. Oops I forgot, that would be Rahm’s buddy Holder that Obama appointed. You can fool some of the people all the time, and all of the people some of the time but you cannot fool all the people all of the time. The chickens have come home to roost.
wisehiney
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:30pmOne down, one to go.
Report Post »UPSETVET
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 3:02pmWell I guess Rham can ask his former boss for his old job back. He gave up a plush position in government to seek another more lucrative position with the state of illinois. Oops, it backfired on him and he now finds himself in political limbo. Hopefully he’ll have to cry on his own shoulder for being such a disappointment to himself. Ha Why does Chicagoans love these guys so much ?Can’t they see they only want to feather their own nests ?
Report Post »thetang
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:30pmStill hope for Chicago? Odds are, he will find another way,just wait and see!………….
Report Post »teachermitch32
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:52pmActually NO, there is no hope for Chicago. Did you read the story? He has support of over 40% of the voters. These voters are absolute idiots…but they ARE Chicago.
Report Post »emertz8413
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:29pmThe guy gives me the creeps, rather he was in Chicago than the White House. (with appologies to my brother who lives in a suburb of Chicago)
Report Post »huff-n-puff post___er child
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:29pmStupid, Stupid laws. Why do they have to make things difficult?
Report Post »I smell a bribe coming.
sbenard
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:29pmYou mean Rahm can’t Run? It’s a national tragedy!
Report Post »Is it too early to say, “Good riddance”?
TheAudacityOfHYPE
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:27pmHA!!! Nice try Chicagoland
Report Post »Star Spangled
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:26pmGood news for Chicago !!
Report Post »Muslim in Chief
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:26pmThree words to say to him….NEENER NEENER NEENER
Report Post »Caremom
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:26pmOkay, So it is true the Donald just wasted a big campaign donation on Emanuel’s mayoral campaign?
Report Post »Warphead
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:25pmI think maybe the “Chickens have come home to roost?”.
Report Post »taebaggranny
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:41pm@ WARPHEAD NAH, THEY’LL JUST MAKE CHICKEN SOUP…and Chico can eat it or choke, They won’t care which…
Report Post »knotaclu
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:25pmThis is funny. I am sure the man will be the next mayor of Chicago, but it sure is fun watching the struggle they are having making it happen….
Report Post »tenn3535
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:24pmToo funny, but also too sad. You know Obama will pull his residency and just give him the keys to Chicago. Too Funny yet TOO SAD!!!!!!!!!!!
Report Post »@leftfighter
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:49pmWhat’s funny is, if Rahmbo can‘t run for mayor of Chicago because he couldn’t prove he was a resident, there’s a higher standard to be mayor of Chicago than President of the United States.
Just sayin’.
Report Post »mdlwoods
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:24pmROFLMAO!!!! That’s all I got to say about that!
Report Post »SnapTie
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:24pmThere is a GOD.
Report Post »mrfunn
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:38pmDitto!
Report Post »CatB
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:24pmHe rented out his house … he was not a resident .. if you want to be a “resident” you must MAINTAIN a residence .. he did not.
Report Post »CitizenVetUSA
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:38pmSeems to be solid reasoning………
Report Post »SheriS
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:02pmWhen you are a “politico” in Chicago, any and everything has always been considered okay! The city of Chicago used to be a wonderful place to live, shop, and eat! That all changed when money became a problem and they raised taxes on everything. Lived in the state most of my life, but moved to Indiana where housing was about half the cost for a lot more house and property thanks to much lower taxes and considerably lower sales tax. They doubled the cigarette taxes and the road from the city became jammed with the people coming to IN to buy hugh quantities of cigarettes at hugh savings from Chicago. We moved out of IL to IN–had twice the house, acreage, and half the taxes–lived there for 16 years and loved it! The problem was all the Illinoisians got the same idea and the culture started being corrupted thanks to the people moving from Illinois! Pity the people in IN now with the hugh tax increases just installed by the state legislature!
Report Post »sWampy
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:31pmIt amazes me how greedy rich people are, he made out like a bandit in real estate deals that helped cause the housing collapse, yet he was to cheap to just keep his home vacant for a few years?
Report Post »McLovin
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:23pm“Dolt …”
Report Post »bullcrapbuster
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:23pmThat would be great news for Chicago.
Report Post »sjohn70037
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:23pmThe fat lady hasn’t sung on this one yet. You just watch what dirty Chicago politics has up it’s sleeve.
Report Post »Tyr
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:34pmI agree. The only time these Socialist/Marxists adhere to the ruling of the court is when it finds in their favor. They will just find a fellow Leftist judge, pay him off or make promises to him for a cozy appointment. Such is the state our country. Justice goes to the highest bidder!
Report Post »GeorgieJo
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:45pmShoot They will dig up a dead lefty judge and have him make it ok for Rambo to run
Nothing about Chi-town surprises me anymore
Pardon the expression “shoot” The Czar of Rhetoric/Civility may be checking
Report Post »CYCLONE
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:22pmHaa hhaaaaaa
Report Post »dizzyinthedark
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:22pmNice one Illinois State Court! Way to go! You may have hope here. Strike one!
Report Post »RobertCA
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:57pmNow money will start floating ………as usual .
Report Post »Ken
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:06pmYep. Somebody’s gonna line the pockets of the state supreme court and get him back on the ballot in no time!
Report Post »Snowleopard-the artist {cat folk artist}
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 3:02pm@Ken
They will find some way to get him into the office; maybe on a write in ballot, if they do such things in Chicago elections. It is like Soros once said, the voters do not count, it is who certifies the votes that counts, and whoever controls them, controls the elections.
Report Post »NoMarxist
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 3:07pmObama will issue an executive order making deadfish mayor, by-passing the courts and the election process. It’s just how this administration rolls!
Report Post »sbenard
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:22pmI beg the Court to reconsider. LOL!
Report Post »We DON‘T want Frankenstein’s Monster back in Washington where he’d do even more damage!
solaveritas
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:33pmRahm’s job in Washington is gone, though there HAS to be a new CZAR position available. I know the CZAR of Political Civility. Rahm can give lessons on correct conversation in the showers1
This is a small it of good news about our otherwise sad activist judiciary. It appears the appeal court actually used the PLAIN MEANING OF THE STATUTE in reaching their decision. Fancy that.
Keep praying for the judges to get things right.
Report Post »CYCLONE
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:34pm… the funny part is watching what happens to the 11 milliion in campaign donations that he already raked in….. ;-)
Report Post »t00nces2
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:39pmA little rule like that didn’t stop Obama from running for president…
Report Post »@leftfighter
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:43pmUm… uh oh!
How much you wanna bet Rahm sends them a dead fish?
Report Post »DashRipRock
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:44pmaaaahahahahahahahaa
aaaaaaaaaaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaaaaa
AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA
Report Post »rpp
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:46pmI cannot believe this! rotfl! Finally, a court that actually rules on the law, not what they want!
Report Post »SnapTie
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:53pmEven after losing the football game plenty of people will be dancing in the streets.
Report Post »Scaz
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:51pmI agree. Chicago is already a lost cause. Let him stay there where his damage would be minimal.
Report Post »TruthTalker
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 1:19pmDead Fish is sad today…
Report Post »Creestof
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:00pmPoor, poor baby…maybe the mafia has an opening for him.
Report Post »independentvoteril
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:05pmWonder if he‘ll have to return Soro’s money????
Report Post »RLTW
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:08pmWith his Ballerina background I’d call today a nut *******.
Report Post »Ken
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:08pmCheck with Capone’s relatives. They got a job for yuz!
Report Post »AmeriWoman
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:23pmBWAHAHAHA!
Wonder if O will scooch up and get the SC to rush in and rescue him before early voting starts….
Oh, this just keeps getting better and better!!
AW
Report Post »Rogue
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:30pmNote to Rahm: You might want to pay off a MAJORITY of judges next time, when it goes to the Supreme Court – one is not enough on a three-man panel. Oh, what am I saying… there are more than enough Dems in the Supreme Court to uphold the first ruling…. this will be a non-story.
Report Post »chazman
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:48pmRahm ought to hook up with Olbermann and take turns driving the RED bus for the Young Communist’s out there in commie California!!
Report Post »UPSETVET
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:49pmThree cheers for the Illinois Appeals Court that ruled Rham Emauel is ineligible to have his name on the ballot for Mayor of Chicago. I guess the Obama ex Chief of Staff will have to play by the same rules as everybody else. I’m sure he thought he was an exception, just like Obama thinks he’s an exception to the natural born citizen rule for Presidential candidates. If Pelosi and Reid had been on the judges panel, they would have passed him with flying colors. The case now goes to the State Supreme Court for it’s ruling on the matter. Rham clearly wasn’t a resident of Chicago for a year prior to his candidacy, but he thought ” Hey, I‘m Rham Emanuel and I don’t have to play by the rules and an exception will have to be made for me “. Welcome to the real world Rham my man !
Report Post »exdem
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:49pmWhat???? Corruption is no longer desirable in Chicago???
Report Post »Mikeyyy
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 2:58pmmaybe dead fish can send some more dead fishes over to the overturning people, make em rethink their position.
Report Post »Snowleopard-the artist {cat folk artist}
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 3:00pmWell, now we shall see what dirty tricks he will attempt to pull out of his hat; I expect there will be several, and hope he is not allowed to get away with them. Rahm Emanuel is a disgrace of the largest order when he has failed to meet eligibility to run for the mayor’s office; and then almost has gotten away with it.
Report Post »theCREATORisGOD
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 3:05pmGood!! This thug should not be able to hold a public office!
Report Post »Harvey
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 3:19pmHes already in the Mafia,where else would he get 11 million dollars to run for Mayor.Thats a lot of money to buy a mayors office,must be some mighty big returns.
Report Post »fertlmind
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 3:23pmThis isn’t going to stop him!
Report Post »AzDebi
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 3:24pmDon’t you people understand anything? THE RULES DON’T APPLY TO THEM!
Report Post »booger71
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 4:11pmOnly ELECTED Officials can have dual residencies.
Report Post »PlanetXenu
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 4:19pmdon’t get too excited… his Chicago Mafia friends may stick their hands in Gov. business. (not kidding either)
Report Post »lylee
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 7:07pmRahm will be the next mayor of Chicago, he just needs to get the courts mind right. The Chicago way it will prevail.
Report Post »PeachyinGA
Posted on January 24, 2011 at 7:17pmForget dead fish. Heads will roll (horses that is)!
Report Post »