If anyone living within the greater Chicago area heard a single, prolonged expletive reverberating through the air this morning, it probably had something to do with this: An Illinois Appellate Court has kicked Rahm Emanuel off the ballot for mayor because, it decided in a 2–1 ruling, he wasn’t a resident of the city for one year prior to the election. The Chicago Board of Election Commissioners and a Cook County judge had previously found that Emanuel had maintained his Chicago residency even after moving to the nation’s capital for the past two years to serve as President Obama’s chief of staff. The new ruling does not put an end to Emanuel’s lifelong dream of running Chicago, however, as it will be appealed to the state Supreme Court. But it’s still a big setback, and a surprising twist in a race that Emanuel was almost sure to win.
Rahm Emanuel booted off ballot in 2-1 Appellate Court decision [Sun Times]
