Now that Rahm Emanuel has officially announced his campaign for mayor of Chicago, election law experts are pointing out that he’s lived in Washington, D.C., for eighteen months, and according to Illinois state law, candidates for mayor must have lived for a year prior to the election in the town for which they are running to be mayor. Consequently, Emanuel’s opponents will certainly sue to get him off the ballot and may have a solid chance of winning. Emanuel will argue that “the fact that Rahm owns a home and votes in Chicago means he’s a Chicagoan,” as his spokeswoman says. Also, he has really wanted to be mayor for a long time, so come on.
Rahm Emanuel: Experts say not a legal resident of Chicago, cannot run for mayor [Lynn Sweet/Sun Times]
